Heidelberg

The home of the oldest university in Germany, Heidelberg has for six hundred years been a refined centre of culture and learning. Today little has changed. Despite the city's many trials, tribulations and invasions, Heidelberg's beautiful medieval and renaissance architecture has largely survived intact, so it's claimed, mainly due to American General Patton's refusal to damage the city in the Second World War.

If true, it's no surprise. Heidelberg has worked its charms on many great men throughout history. The city's famous Philosophers' Walk was a favourite haunt of Goethe during his time at the university and Patton's fellow country man, Mark Twain was struck with love for the city during his European travels.

One building that Patton couldn't preserve however was the Schloss, Heidelberg's ruined castle that dominates the bluff above the city. Through centuries the castle has been frequently sacked and even destroyed by lightning at one point. The Palatinate nobles of the city always rebuilt it however, and although much of the complex is in ruins, several parts have survived or have been restored to something approaching their former glory. Even the most eroded parts bear testament to the city's historical importance in the region.

Back down in the old town you'll find similarly impressive buildings. The Hotel Ritter (the Knight's House) is one of the most striking. The only surviving noble's house from the Wars of Succession that swept through the city, it's a grand slice of Gothic architecture. The fortified Alte Brücke meanwhile is a turreted bridge over the fast flowing Neckar, a replacement for four previous bridges that were destroyed in its place.

But Heidelberg's history is still very much alive, and nowhere is this epitomised more than in the famous Student Inns of the town. Hundreds of years old, they have seen generations of students come and go, but are still thronged with Heidelberg's current crop of academics. The more traditional establishments' tables and walls are etched with the marks of students long gone.

It's easy to see why many Germans cite this as their favourite city: wealthy, worldly and wise, Heidelberg is Europe at its most cultured.