Bensheim

Wambolter Hof

Bensheim is a town in South Hesse, Germany.

Understand

Half-timbered houses from 1682, Marktplatz

Bridge with statues within the Altstadt

Bensheim along with other similar towns is on the Bergstraße, a mountain road running on the western edge of the Odenwald mountain range.

The Altstadt in Bensheim is part of the town's central shopping and restaurant district along Hauptstraße, a pedestrian mall about a half kilometre long that passes through the Marktplatz. The Altstadt also includes some streets crossing and parallel to Hauptstraße. The Altstadt has many half-timbered buildings, some picturesque fountains, a creek under an attractive bridge, and tower that might be part of an old city wall.

Get in

By train

Bensheim is on the railway line running from Darmstadt and continues south of Weinheim. There is also a branch line from Bensheim to Worms.

Bensheim is served by the Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Neckar (VRN) public transportation network which offers day tickets to explore the Bergstraße region southwards from Zwingenberg by regional train, bus or tram. The railway station has a staffed ticket office (DB Reisezentrum) where you can purchase VRN as well as DB (railway) tickets.

There are trains to Darmstadt and to Worms roughly every hour.

By car

Bensheim is on the A5 between Darmstadt and Heidelberg.

Get around

The Altstadt is quite walkable and is very close to the railway station.

See

• Marktplatz (town's market square). 
  • Marktbrunnen (Market Fountain). dates from 1895 
  • House No. 22. former Gasthaus 'Zur Armbrust', built in 1615 – timber-framed corner house with a two-storey bay and half-hipped roof 
  • House No. 21. renaissance timber framework (built around 1600) of this three-storey house appears relatively unaltered. 
  • House No. 16-18. ensemble of three identical timber-framed houses built in 1682 “as an adornment of the Market Square” dominate its southern side. 

Do

• Bergstraße. Drive along the Landstraße taking in the historic towns along the way. 

Eat

• Blauer Aff, Kappengasse 2 - Bensheim-Auerbach, ☏ +49 6251-72958. from 5PM. Very nice restaurant and wine pub. With atrium to sit outside during warm summer nights. 

Sleep

• Parkhotel Krone (Best Western), Darmstädter Str. 168, ☏ +49 6251 989910. (updated Jan 2016)
• Tobbaccon Hotel, Albert-Einstein-Allee 7, ☏ +49 6251 944970. (updated Jan 2016)

Go next

Other places in the Bergstraße region are:

• Darmstadt
• Zwingenberg
• Lorsch
• Heppenheim
• Weinheim
• Schriesheim
• Heidelberg

Places away from the Bergstraße region are:

• Worms