Göttingen: Knowledge, City History and Green Routes
Accommodation in Göttingen
Göttingen brings together topics in science, city history and green experiences. Research and teaching take centre stage at the Forum Wissen, while the town hall, auditorium and theatre tell different chapters of the city’s story. Botanical gardens, the city forest on Hainberg and paths around the wildlife enclosure offer a contrast. When choosing accommodation, consider whether you want your days to focus more on exhibitions and architecture or on gardens and outdoor activities. You can explore Göttingen through these interests without limiting yourself to just one type of experience.
Knowledge and Research
At the Forum Wissen, you can gain insights into ongoing research and teaching. The permanent exhibition “Räume des Wissens” (Spaces of Knowledge) covers 1,400 square metres and makes the processes by which knowledge is created understandable. Its twelve rooms contain more than 1,400 objects from the collections of the University of Göttingen. This allows you to consider both specific objects and the question of how knowledge is created.
Until further notice, the Göttingen Municipal Museum is showing the exhibition “Stadt. Macht. Glaube. Göttingen im 16. Jahrhundert” (City. Power. Faith. Göttingen in the 16th Century). Check the latest exhibition information before your visit. The museum offers guided tours of its permanent and current special exhibitions for groups and school classes. Check booking arrangements before your trip.
City History, University and Theatre
The Old Town Hall was built in 1270 and served as a centre for council and court meetings as well as trade. The auditorium of the Georg-August University of Göttingen is a central university building and an example of neoclassical architecture. The auditorium houses the Karzer, the historic university prison. In this way, municipal history and the history of the university emerge through their own distinct places and themes.
The Gänseliesel has been Göttingen’s landmark since 1901. After earning their doctorates, students can visit the statue in the city centre, kiss the Gänseliesel and decorate the fountain with flowers. The Deutsches Theater adds a theatrical perspective to the city’s history: the Theater am Wall opened on 30 September 1890 as a three-division theatre with Friedrich Schiller’s “Wilhelm Tell”; since 1950/51, it has been called the Deutsches Theater Göttingen. The theatre’s main auditorium has a total of 488 seats in the stalls and three tiers and is considered an architectural gem of the city.
Botanical Gardens and Green Discoveries
The Old Botanical Garden was founded in 1736 as a “hortus medicus”, or medicinal garden. Visitors can explore its historic greenhouses, tropical vegetation in the rainforest house and the alpine garden. Its history of establishment offers a different perspective from the various botanical areas to discover there. The Forest Botanical Garden offers another focus: it covers around 40 hectares and is home to more than 2,000 tree and shrub species from different parts of the world. Your choice can therefore centre on the history of the medicinal garden, the greenhouse areas or the diversity of its trees and shrubs.
Routes, Tours and Outdoor Activities
The city forest on Hainberg offers opportunities for walking, hiking and cycling. In addition, weekly-changing city walks and city tours covering more than 40 themes are available on foot or by bicycle. Check the current tour schedule and availability before your trip. You can choose between outdoor activities in the city forest and a themed tour of Göttingen.
Wild boar and fallow deer live in the wildlife enclosure at Kehr. A three-kilometre circular path runs around the enclosure. Göttingen’s historic town wall is now continuously lined with plants and offers a route for walking around the old town. The avenue, about three kilometres long, connects the Old Botanical Garden, the Albani Cemetery and Cheltenham Park. While the circular path goes around the wildlife enclosure, the avenue connects several places in the city’s green spaces.
For a family trip with children, you can plan your days around your family’s interests: are exhibitions, city history and theatre more appealing right now, or are gardens, animals and walking routes the priority? These interests can help you find accommodation that suits your plans.
Discover More Destinations
Discover more destinations: Göttingen, Bad Grund (Harz), Staufenberg, Gieboldehausen, Fuhrbach, Duderstadt, Hannoversch Münden, Friedland, Nienhagen, Dankelshausen, Dransfeld, Scheden, Gleichen, Adelebsen, Brochthausen, Rosdorf, Walkenried, Hattorf Am Harz, Ebergötzen, Bovenden, Seeburg, Obernfeld
For the main travel overview: Lower Saxony.
