best sites/hotels in Baden Wurttemberg

"We love castles and old medieval towns... we also want to see Triberg with its waterfall and old town." You'll probably find Triberg to be a bit of an über-touristy disappointment. Black-Forest-village Calw is much closer to Stuttgart and a very handsome old place. In the Black Forest you can also check out Schiltach and Dornstetten (After you go to Dornstetten page, hit "Galerie öffnen" in red-lettered link underneath "Historische Alstadt" for photos.) Tübingen is a university town and also very nice. I haven't been to Schloß Glatt, a well-preserved moated castle in Sulz that's on my bucket list, but you might want to check it out and give us a report. It's closed Mondays, open 2-5 on other weekdays, 11-6 on Sat and Sun, and houses a couple of museums.

Thanks for the advice!

For us the waterfall at Triberg was a bit of a damp squib - a proper let-down. Nice enough if you have never seen a waterfall before but fairly much an expensive tourist trap. It is a pleasant enough place to stroll in a small woods. If you are in the northern Black Forest area - you will be if you are in Baden-Baden, gu788itge35342562basjjsjh + you could do worse than investigating the medieval town of Gengenbach. It has remnants of the old city wall and fortifications and two or three gates; water running in the streets, a great atmosphere, the train stops there, and little twisty medieval mini-lanes overflowing with flowers and quaint quaint quaint. As lovely as the villages across the Rhein in the Alsace wine route around Colmar.

While you're in Baden Baden you might want to consider visiting the Hohenbaden castle ruins. Last May we were driving through Baden Baden and saw a sign for the castle and took a chance. We didn't regret taking the side trip to see it. It's free and you can walk all around and even climb up to the highest point for a great view of the valley. Here is a URl for a sight that describes it: http://www.travelgermanyinenglish.com/badenhohenbaden.html With regard to Triberg, we enjoyed it. Yes it is a bit touristy, but we didn't care. The falls aren't as spectacular as others, but the walk was still lovely through the woods. We spent about 2 hours there and then continued our drive.
Enjoy your trip. You'll love it!!

No need to stay in a hotel near the airport or Sindelfingen (neither of which are necessarily the most attractive spots in the area). You can take the Sbahn directly to the Mercedes factory, although you have to walk a little bit to the customer service entrance (the train stop is right by an employee-only entrance). I would probably choose to spend the night in downtown Stuttgart. Nearby castles- Burg Hohenzollern above the town of Hechingen, Burg Lichtenstein not too far away... and I'm not 100% if you can visit it, but Burg Teck is visible from the A8 Autobahn. Looks like at a minimum, you would have a great view of the surrounding area. Check out Tübingen and Esslingen for attractive old towns. Once you get the car, try driving along the Neckar River valley between Heilbron and Heidelberg. At a minimum, stop in Bad Wimpfen and Dilsberg. Also, consider a drive through the Odenwald region, to Erbach, Michelstadt and Lindenfels.

Thanks to everyone for the advice. Ron

Check with Mercedes if they have a recommended hotel. Usually people stay at the Marriott Sindelfingen when they pick up their car there, but it's closing July 1 for a 2 year renovation. Downtown Stuttgart is your best back up bet. You can take the S1 train to Sindelfingen-get off at Goldberg or Boeblingen Hulb stop, then taxi to the factory (or see if they'll pick you up from the S-bahn). Recommend you skip Triberg (just too far, will eat up an entire day-not that great), sorry. Better option is Esslingen or Tuebingen from Stuttgart as well as the mentioned castles of Hohenzollern and Liechtenstein. From STR if you leave right after breakfast on the 7th, you have time to drive through Alsace pottery towns Soufflenheim, etc. and have lunch in Strasbourg before heading in to Baden-Baden.

Thanks for the advice. Ron