Kassel is a city that combines a historical heritage with a modern way of life, offering a compelling destination for tourists in central Germany.
The old town is particularly picturesque and boasts impressive baroque architecture, including one of the earliest public museums in Europe.
Residents are proud of their cultural offerings, which include world-class museums, performing arts, and green spaces for relaxation.
View of Kassel and the Fulda river
What's surprising is how edgy Kassel is, given its storybook aesthetic.
The city is home to the controversial documenta exhibition of modern art, which takes place every five years. It challenges viewers with thought-provoking works.
If you're looking for a bit of culture and stunning scenery, Kassel is the place for you. It's right on the doorstep of some amazing UNESCO World Heritage sites and the gorgeous Reinhardswald forest and Edersee lake district.
Kassel is a great place to start your journey along the German Fairy Tale Route and other road trips through Germany's medieval heartland.
Kassel is right in the middle of Germany, with Frankfurt, Hannover and Leipzig all within easy reach.
The city is located on the Fulda River in the northern part of the state of Hesse. Kassel is bordered to the north and east by the scenic Reinhardswald forest. This green, rolling countryside is part of the wider Weser Uplands area, which also extends into Lower Saxony.
Kassel is also close to the Edersee reservoir, which is one of the largest man-made lakes in Germany. This popular recreation area is great for outdoor activities, and it's just a short drive from the city centre.
The Habichtswald Nature Park is also just northwest of Kassel. It protects over 30 square miles of mixed forests, streams and hiking trails.
Kassel might not be a huge metropolitan area, but it's the economic, cultural and transportation hub for northern Hesse and parts of surrounding states.
The city is perfectly placed for exploring the beautiful half-timbered towns, attractive countryside and UNESCO heritage sites of this picturesque region of Germany.
Its central location has made Kassel a strategic transportation hub throughout history. It is well connected by rail and road to other major German cities and destinations across Europe.
Kassel actually has its own airport - Kassel-Calden Airport - but it only serves summer sun holiday destinations.
Distance to Kassel-Calden Airport: 17km
Distance to Dortmund Airport: 151km
Distance to Hannover Airport: 180km
Distance to Frankfurt Airport: 200km
Frankfurt Airport may be the furthest of the selections above but it is the busiest airport in Germany and offers the widest range of destinations, as well as being easily accessible by rail and motorway.
Hannover Airport and Dortmund Airport are both medium-sized airports and offer a range of flights to domestic and European destinations.
Kassel has two major train stations - Kassel Hauptbahnhof in the city centre and Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe station.
The Hauptbahnhof (main train station) is located just a kilometre north of the city centre. It offers regional connections to Hessian cities such as Hannover, Marburg and Frankfurt.
The newer Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe station is five kilometres to the west of the city and can be reached on public transport. It is more important for long-distance travel with high-speed InterCity and ICE rail lines provide direct connections to Frankfurt, Berlin, Hamburg and Munich.
The A7 and A49 motorways intersect just south of Kassel, with the A7 running north to Hannover and south towards Würzburg.
The A49 heads south towards Fritzlar and Giessen and has a junction close to Kassel with the A44 in the direction of Dortmund.
Kassel has a wide range of attractive neighbourhoods to suit different travel styles and budgets.
City Center/Altstadt (Old Town)
If you're new to Kassel, the city centre is easy to get around and has a really pleasant atmosphere. This classic German neighbourhood is located around the Königsplatz square and the pedestrianised Obere Königsstraße shopping area, just steps from major sights like the Fridericianum museum, Ottoneum Palace, and the lovely Karlsaue Park. While it's quite touristy, the Old Town feels undeniably charming and lively day and night.
Vorderer Westen
Just west of the city centre, this trendy university neighbourhood offers a more local feel. Vorderer Westen is a great spot for a younger crowd, with a laid-back vibe, some cool indie boutiques, and a lively bar and café scene. Vorderer Westen offers a refreshingly authentic experience in a very safe and accessible part of town.
Wilhelmshöhe
The Wilhelmshöhe area on Kassel's western edge is the perfect pick if you're looking for somewhere to stay that's close to nature and has lots of open space, . This is where you'll find the amazing Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe, a huge landscaped park with the impressive Wilhelmshöhe Palace, Hercules monument, and lots of other great attractions. Wilhelmshöhe isn't in the city centre, but it has its own dining and shopping village, plus great transport links via tram and train.
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People have lived in the Kassel area since prehistoric times, but the city's roots go back to the 10th-century document granting the settlement of 'Chassalla' its town charter. Over the next few centuries, Kassel grew from a village into a fortress and imperial palace.
Kassel had its golden age between the 16th and 18th centuries, when the House of Hesse was in charge. Landgraves like Philipp the Magnanimous made Kassel a thriving hub for art, architecture and court culture.
The Renaissance and Baroque period saw the Wilhelmshöhe Palace, the Orangerie and the Karlsaue Park constructed, along with other iconic landmarks that still define the city's image.
View from the Wilhelmshöhe down into Kassel
Kassel was occupied by French forces for several years during the Napoleonic Wars, which led to a decline and a loss of prosperity. But the 19th century saw a revival as Prussia invested in Kassel's industry and infrastructure. The railways and a thriving manufacturing sector made the city an important inland centre for trade and industry.
Kassel was badly damaged during World War II as it was a key transport and industrial hub. The city was devastated by Allied air raids, especially in 1943, with over 90% of the city centre levelled.
Even some of the city's most iconic landmarks, like the Orangerie Palace and the Fridericianum, were reduced to rubble. The city was hit hard, with over 10,000 civilian deaths and tens of thousands displaced, creating a major humanitarian crisis in the immediate aftermath.
Kassel was included in the American Zone of occupation, which meant it received Marshall Plan aid to rebuild its infrastructure and housing. However, a lot of the historic Old Town was replaced by modernist architecture, which changed its appearance forever.
Kassel became part of the newly established Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) in 1949 and benefited from the country's 'economic miracle' (Wirtschaftswunder) throughout the 1950s and 1960s.
The city underwent big social changes as many refugees from the former Eastern territories came to work in the city, altering the city's demographics and culture.
Today, Kassel promotes itself as a center for service industries, culture and sustainability. The city hosts the prestigious documenta art exhibition every 5 years, highlighting its role as an influential art capital since the 1950s.
The Wilhelmshöhe Landscape Park (Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe) is located on the western edge of Kassel. It's one of Germany's most stunning cultural landscapes and a testament to the city's historical significance and architectural ingenuity.
The park was named a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2013. It offers a unique combination of impressive architecture, creative water features, and natural beauty.
Wilhelmshöhe Palace, an impressive neoclassical building constructed in the late 18th century, served as both a summer residence for local rulers and a political symbol of Kassel's importance.
Today, the palace is home to some top art collections, including the Old Masters gallery with works by Rembrandt and Rubens, plus the Antiquities Collection.
Wilhelmshöhe Palace
The Hercules Monument is an impressive engineering feat and the most recognisable feature of the Bergpark.
The statue and its fancy water system were built between 1696 and 1717, during Landgrave Karl's time in charge. Hercules is perched on an octagonal platform at the top of the Cascades, which is a series of staggered waterfalls made of tightly arranged stone that stretches approximately 350 metres down the hillside.
The cascading water features are not just for show – they're also an amazing example of 18th-century hydrological engineering. The water is fed purely by gravity, without the use of pumps.
Löwenburg (Lion's Castle) is a curious and fascinating feature established during the Romantic period between 1793 and 1801. It wasn't meant to be a medieval stronghold, but an intentionally romanticised faux-ruin. The castle was designed by court architect Heinrich Christoph Jussow and represents the Romantic era's fascination with the picturesque and its nostalgic view of the Middle Ages.
Löwenburg had different uses. It was a place for Wilhelm I to get away from it all, a venue for courtly entertainment, and even his final resting place.
Inside the castle, visitors can see the historically inspired interiors, which include displays of armour, medieval-style furnishings and a chapel.
The Staatspark Karlsaue is one of Kassel's most beautiful green spaces and really shows off the best of baroque landscape gardening, with some lovely English landscape park influences thrown in for good measure.
Designed in 1696, it contains the Orangerie Palace, Marmorbad, and lakes perfect for boating. These days the Orangerie hosts the Museum of Astronomy and Technology, with exhibitions and an impressive planetarium.
The Orangerie Palace in Kassel
The park covers about 150 hectares on the banks of the Fulda River. Over time, it's become a popular place for locals and tourists alike to enjoy culture and recreation.
Schloss Wilhelmsthal is one of the finest examples of Rococo architecture in Germany. The palace was built in the mid 18th century under the direction of Landgrave Wilhelm VIII of Hesse-Kassel in the village of Calden just outside Kassel and served as a summer retreat.
Europe's first public museum opened its doors in 1779, housed within an impressive neoclassical palace in Kassel. The Fridericianum was a real breakthrough in making art accessible to everyone, not just the aristocracy.
It carries on that democratic mission, featuring contemporary ar exhibitions to cutting-edge multimedia installations.
The Fridericianum Museum in Kassel
The Naturkundemuseum ('Natural History Museum') is housed in the Ottoneum, which is one of the oldest purpose-built theatre buildings in Germany.
The museum opened in 1869 and takes visitors on a journey from prehistoric times through to different human and natural environments. The museum's highlight is its incredible dioramas, which recreate entire ecosystems. There are also lots of hands-on science exhibits that children will love.
The Museum of Sepulchral Culture looks into the rituals, beliefs, and cultural practices surrounding death and burial rites across human civilizations. Highlights include sarcophagi, interactive galleries on mourning customs, and thought-provoking contemporary art statements around death and remembrance.
Once every five years, this huge exhibition hall is turned into the heart of the action for the world-famous documenta in Kassel. It's one of the most prestigious events in the world for modern and contemporary art. The Documenta-Halle also hosts major travelling shows and installations between documentas. The huge space is filled with multimedia environments, performance art pieces and unconventional conceptual works by leading artists.
Kassel is right at the heart of the German Fairy Tale Route, a 600km tourist trail that winds through the landscapes and towns that inspired the famous Grimm stories.
The Grimm brothers, Jacob and Wilhelm were born in the town of Hanau. But was during their time living and working in Kassel in the early 1800s that they got the idea to start recording and publishing the rich folk tales and oral traditions of this region.
Statue of the Grimm brothers
The Grimm brothers had access to books and manuscripts in their work as court librarians, which exposed them to old German legends and stories passed down through generations.
They published their famous collection of stories, 'Kinder- und Hausmärchen' ('Children's and Household Tales'), which was based on tales they heard from people in Kassel and the surrounding villages.
One of the popular things to do in Kassel is visit the Grimm World visitor centre and museum ('Grimmwelt Kassel'). This modern, interactive experience really brings the fairy tale realm to life, with multimedia exhibits and recreated environments from the stories.
The Kassel tourist information office is located in the pedestrian area near the town hall. It is open six days a week from Monday-Saturday.
Website: visit.kassel.de