Mannheim

Mannheim is a city in the northwest corner of the state of Baden-Württemberg in Germany, at the confluence of the Rhine and Neckar rivers. It is close to Ludwigshafen. Modern Mannheim is the second biggest city in Baden-Württemberg and one of the hotspots of immigration. Because of that you'll encounter a lively and colourful mixture of nationalities and cultures in the city. In 2020, it was home to about 310,000 people.

Understand
Mannheim was a small fishing village before it became a city at the beginning of the 17th century. It was constructed on the site of a fortress guarding the confluence of the rivers Rhine and Neckar. Even now, a few remnants of the fortification can be seen, and the peculiar street layout owes to that part of its history. For 58 years, Mannheim served as a royal residence, and gave Schiller, Lessing, Goethe and Mozart a home for some time. Before World War II, Mannheim was a beautiful city, but it was flattened in bomb raids due to its industrial significance. When it was time to rebuild the city, Mannheim, like many other German cities, opted for an all out modern approach to urban development. Thus, most of the old quarters were replaced by buildings typical of the 1950s. If you are not an adept to architecture, their appeal might not be easy to grasp. As a result, the impression is more of an industrial city with a few spots of beauty.



By plane
Transport from Frankfurt airport, to Mannheim or neighbouring Ludwigshafen, is by ICE high speed train (30 minutes, €25) with Lufthansa Express Rail. Mannheim also has a small local airport, the

By train
Mannheim is a regional transport hub with ICE, IC and regional trains all stopping in. There are direct connections to and from many major German Cities, including Berlin, Hamburg, Munich and Cologne, international destinations are Basel, Innsbruck, Salzburg, Paris and Marseille (via Strasbourg and Lyon). There are three CityNightline (CNL) trains crossing Mannheim, connecting it to Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Milano and Prague overnight. However, arrival and departure times for night trains can be in the middle of the night as Mannheim lies along the line and not on either terminus and onward connections can be scarce or nonexistent.

By bus
The (ZOB) is at Heinrich-von-Stephan-Str, near the Main Station (Hauptbahnhof). Mannheim is served by Flixbus.

Get around
The centre of Mannheim is laid out like a chess board, with no real street names. Addresses in the Quadrat take the form of a grid reference, such as Q3, 12 designating a block. The streets are not named:r "Q3" refers to the block. If you follow a street from Q3, you might end up at either Q2 or P3. It is best to navigate by "following" the blocks rather than the streets. If you get lost, a rather high probability, ask a local. They are used to it.

The public transportation system is quite extensive. Bus routes cover Mannheim, and the tram system connects Mannheim to Ludwigshafen across the river, Heidelberg a few minutes away, and Weinheim, in addition to major routes across and through the city. Local/Regional Trains of the S-Bahn Rhein-Neckar connect Mannheim and the surrounding cities and countryside. As of 2018, the automatic ticket machines only accept coins, not notes or cards.


 * Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Neckar (Rhine-Neckar Transport) - Public transportation network
 * S-Bahn Rhein-Neckar - Local/Regional trains

Buy
In the city centre of Mannheim you can find two big shopping streets, the "Planken" (planks) and the "Breite Straße (broad street), both of which are only open to pedestrians and the tram. Here you can find dozens of shops and stores for clothes, shoes, jewelry and sweets. See below for more information. On the other side of the river Rhine, in Ludwigshafen the "Rhein-Gallery" is a big shopping mall, an even bigger mall is located in Viernheim (Tram line 5), the "Rhein-Neckar-Zentrum".

Eat

 * Spaghettieis was invented in Mannheim in 1969. Vanilla ice cream is pressed through a spaetzle press, creating the spaghetti-like shape, over which comes strawberry sauce as tomato sauce and grated white chocolate as grated cheese.
 * Mannheim is known for its many pretzel stands. Little pretzel baguettes with mozzarella and tomato are quite yum.
 * The Döner is a kind of Turkish kebab found throughout Germany and is definitely worth trying! One of the most popular Döner stalls is located right across the train station, called City Döner (see below). It is very common to have a Döner there after partying.
 * Mannheim is famous for its big Turkish community, so these restaurants offer a variety of different and traditional Turkish dishes, not limited to Döner Kebab. Definitely a part of Mannheim's food culture. There are many more Turkish restaurants and shops in the area west of Marktplatz. Therefore some refer to the area as "Little Istanbul".
 * Sunday morning buns. Get fresh buns for breakfast even on Sunday morning at G1 (Marktplatz). Backfactory and another bakery on the other side of the tram tracks are open on Sundays.

Drink


You might also want to have a look at a detailed local nightlife guide (in German), and a calendar and guide for all kinds of events and locations in Mannheim, Heidelberg and Ludwigshafen.

Stay safe
Most parts of Mannheim are safe, but there are a couple of districts that have higher crime rates (compared to other German cities; compared to non-European cities the whole of Mannheim is super safe). Examples are Vogelstang, Neckarstadt-West, Jungbusch (night) and some others. Street crime and violence, however, are very rare, so you will be perfectly ok if you simply use your common sense. In particular, it is not dangerous at all to visit the pubs and clubs of the Jungbusch or the Neckarstadt.

Cope
Religious services
 * Overview of mass times in all Catholic churches in Mannheim
 * St. Ignatius und Franz-Xaver, Jesuitenkirche, A4, 2 (15 min from central station, direction Nordwest; bus 60 to "Mensa"). Sa 18:30; Su 09:30, 10:30 (Spanish), 11:30, 18:00; M-F 18:00
 * Hl. Geist, Moltkestr. 14 (5-8 min from central station, direction east). Su 11:00, 13:00 (Croatian), 19:00; Tu Th 18:00, F 10:00
 * St. Joseph , Bellenstr. 67 (8-10 min from central station, direction south). Sa 18:45; Su 11:00; Tu F 19:00; Th 09:00

Go next

 * Bertha Benz Memorial Route - Follow the tracks of the world's first automobile journey back in 1888 (Mannheim - Pforzheim - Mannheim)
 * Ludwigshafen is right across the river.
 * Heidelberg the most famous city near Mannheim and is reachable by tram/street car (40-50 min), regional train (15 min) or IC (10 min).
 * The cathedrals at Mainz and Speyer, and the cathedral and Nibelungen bridge at Worms are all about 30 min away.
 * The gardens at Schwetzingen are worth seeing (about 30 minutes away by regional train)
 * Weinheim is a nice little town with the traditional red roofs and is reachable with the tram no. 5.
 * Ladenburg is an idyllic and historical town with traditional red roofs reachable by regional train (18 min).