Road Test Special: The Mercedes-Benz Museum – Stuttgart, Germany

Travelling to Stuttgart from any part of Germany is easy, thanks to the excellent autobahn and rail system. On our most recent visit we took in the very impressive Mercedes-Benz Museum.

As you walk up to the front doors of the museum your anticipation grows for what lies inside the great glass building, and it certainly doesn’t disappoint. It doesn’t matter if you are a car enthusiast or not – there’s plenty of interesting barrier-free displays to keep adults and children occupied for hours. Displays are in German as well as English, and guided tours are presented in an abundance of languages thanks to the (included) portable self-guided tour device with headphones. For a very reasonable €8 (children are €4) you get hours of enjoyment, a self-guided tour and a nifty Mercedes-Benz lanyard as a souvenir – not bad at all! ( €1 is approximately $1.35 Cdn)

Your tour starts from top floor of the exhibits after you’re shuttled via elevator through time to the 19th century. Stepping off the elevator you begin winding your way down the floors through displays that allow you to get up-close and inside many of the iconic vehicles that Mercedes-Benz have produced. From the very first horse and buggies, to safety and utility vehicles, racing cars and everyday vehicles for the masses – there’s plenty to see. Posters and artwork adorn the walls of the museum, taking you through the time-line of the vehicles that you see, helping you to understand which world-events were happening in relation to the vehicles on display.

Without rushing, we took about four hours to go through the museum and that included stopping for a reasonably-priced lunch. The tour ends on the ground floor at the gift shop where you can purchase everything Mercedes-Benz. Prices start at €1 and climb to several thousands of Euros for unique one-of-a-kind items.

Opening hours are: Tuesday-Sunday 9am-6pm (closed Mondays).
For more information visit http://www.mercedes-benz-classic.com

There is a Mercedes-Benz plant right next to the museum that offers separate tours for those interested in watching some of those luxury cars being built, but we saved that tour for another trip, at another time. Also close by is Wilhelma – the Stuttgart zoo (which I understand is awesome), the training facilities and stadium (Mercedes-Benz Arena) for the local soccer team (VfB Stuttgart), and if you’re in Stuttgart at the end of September/beginning of October you HAVE to visit the second-largest Oktoberfest in the world – the Volksfest – it’s an experience you’ll never forget.