The Swiss city of Basel, located around the Rhine River, borders both Germany and France. In fact, you can easily switch countries within just a few minutes. Here is the Basel Travel Guide: The Best Day Trip from Stuttgart!
Basel Travel Guide: The Best Day Trip from Stuttgart
Basel is a city that you can explore in just one or two days. If you have the opportunity to stay a little longer, you’ll have the chance to visit a few interesting places outside the city as well. In our Basel travel guide, we cover how to get to Basel, places to visit, dining options, and day trips from Basel.
Transportation to Basel
You can reach Basel by plane, train, bus, or car. If you’re flying, you should look for flights to EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg. There are also numerous flights to Basel from many cities in Germany. Some of the cities with direct flights to Basel include Hamburg, Berlin, Frankfurt, and Munich, with flight durations ranging from 1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes.
From Turkey, you can find direct flights to Basel from cities like Istanbul, Izmir, and Antalya. Airlines such as EasyJet and Pegasus offer round-trip tickets for a single passenger in the price range of €120 – €150.
There are also many options for traveling to Basel by train. Since Basel borders Germany and France, it is especially easy to reach from these countries. From Stuttgart, you can take a train to Basel in approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes for €20 – €25.
Another option is traveling to Basel by bus. You can purchase a ticket from FlixBus to reach Basel. A one-way FlixBus ticket from Stuttgart costs around €20, but keep in mind that this journey takes about 5 hours with a transfer. Given the minimal price difference, taking the train is a much more convenient and reasonable option compared to the bus.
You can reach Basel from Stuttgart by car in approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes. The route is very convenient as it follows the highway. However, since you will be using Swiss highways for a short portion of the journey, you will need to purchase a Vignette (toll sticker). You can buy this at a gas station before leaving Germany or from the ADAC website.
We also shared a parking spot in Basel below. We paid €14 for about 8-9 hours, which is quite reasonable for Basel. Since this parking area is within walking distance of the city center, it was very convenient.
📍 Google Maps: Parkhaus Drachencenter
Places to see in Basel
Holbeinstrasse
You can start your trip by walking along Holbeinstrasse, which is close to both the train station and the parking spot mentioned above. As you stroll through this street, known for its beautiful houses, you can head towards Spalentor.
📍 Google Maps: Holbeinstrasse
Spalentor
Spalentor is one of Basel’s best-preserved city gates, dating back to the 1400s. Originally part of the city’s defensive walls, it once served as a key entry point for goods and supplies from Alsace, France. With its towering structure, intricate craftsmanship, and colorful patterned tiles, Spalentor is truly a sight worth seeing.
📍 Google Maps: Spalentor
Heuberg & Spalenberg
Heuberg is a charming street lined with rows of houses featuring colorful shutters, a perfect addition to your travel itinerary. We also recommend visiting the nearby Spalenberg street, which runs parallel to Heuberg. It’s a great spot to enjoy some time exploring the quaint boutique shops.
📍Google Maps: Heuberg & Spalenberg
Rathaus
Rathaus des Kantons Basel-Stadt is Basel’s city hall, located at Marktplatz. The building’s red facade and tower make it impossible to miss. We highly recommend exploring its courtyard, which is stunning with its magnificent frescoes and distinctive architecture. The entrance to the courtyard is free, and you can even climb the stairs to get a closer look at the frescoes. If you wish, there are also tours available to explore the interior of the building. It’s one of our favorites in Basel’s travel guide.
📍Google Maps: Rathaus des Kantons Basel-Stadt
Mittlere Brücke
Mittlere Brücke is a bridge dating back to 1226 and is one of the oldest bridges over the Rhine River. On the bridge, you’ll find the Käppelijoch chapel, which in the Middle Ages served both as a place for passing travelers to worship and as a site for carrying out executions.
📍Google Maps: Mittlere Brücke
Viewpoint Altstadt Kleinbasel
Viewpoint Altstadt Kleinbasel is a scenic spot where you can relax, enjoy the view of Mittlere Brücke and Basler Münster, and soak up the sun. It’s also a great place for a small picnic, especially in summer. Our suggestion is that to grab your wine, grapes, and cheese, and enjoy the moment!
📍Google Maps: Viewpoint Altstadt Kleinbasel
Basler Münster
Basler Münster was the most impressive building in our Basel travel guide. With its red sandstone walls, colorful patterned tiles, and an incredible courtyard that will take your breath away, this cathedral has a unique atmosphere. Usually, European churches don’t catch our attention because they all look similar, but this one is different. Built between 1019 and 1500 in Romanesque and Gothic styles, the cathedral also offers stunning views of the Rhine River.
📍 Google Maps: Basler Münster
Basel Pfalz
Basel Pfalz is located just behind the cathedral and offers stunning views of the Rhine River and Mittlere Brücke. It’s a perfect spot to capture impressive sunset photos of the bridge. You can relax and spend time sitting on the benches along the platform, which is situated well above the river level. If you plan to get closer to the river, it’s important to avoid the stairs next to the platform, as they lead only to properties with views of the river.
📍 Google Maps: Basel Pfalz
Augusta Raurica
Augusta Raurica is an archaeological site and open-air museum from the Roman era, located about half an hour by train from Basel. Here, you can explore the ancient theater, the remains of a Roman villa, ancient baths, and the marketplace. Additionally, the on-site museum displays daily life objects, jewelry, and coins from the Roman period. Since we visited Basel on a day trip from Stuttgart, we didn’t have the chance to see this site, but we definitely need to make our way back here soon! 😊
📍 Google Maps: Augusta Raurica
Eat & Drink in Basel – Basel Travel Guide
Läckerli Huus
Basler Läckerli is a traditional biscuit in Basel that we highly recommend trying. Made with honey, almonds, hazelnuts, and a mix of spices including cinnamon, this biscuit is perfect to enjoy with a cup of coffee. What sets it apart from regular biscuits is its soft texture. We absolutely loved it, so it’s an easy recommendation from us. You can find this biscuit either at the Läckerli Huus store or in any market around Basel.
📍 Google Maps: Läckerli Huus
Unternehmen Mitte
Unternehmen Mitte is a café located in the old city center. The building has a bakery section on the right side of the entrance, and on the left, there’s a café area where you can work on your laptop. If you walk straight through the building and head to the back, you’ll find a café area with a beautiful high glass ceiling, which we especially loved. While we think it’s a lovely café overall, we weren’t particularly impressed with the breakfast – specifically the scrambled eggs, which lacked flavor.
📍 Google Maps: Unternehmen Mitte
Huguenin
Huguenin is a charming café located in the heart of the city, right at Barfüsserplatz. It’s often quite busy, but it’s the perfect spot for a short break during your exploration. If you visit, don’t miss the chance to have a chat with the waitress working there – we really enjoyed the conversation with the waitress there. All of waitresses there are very friendly!
📍 Google Maps: Huguenin
Tibits
Tibits is a vegetarian restaurant near the train station. It had great reviews, and we had marked it as a spot to try for breakfast. However, we eventually decided to go somewhere more central and didn’t get the chance to visit. Maybe it will be on your path next time! 🙂
📍 Google Maps: Tibits
Day Trips from Basel
Since Basel is very close to Alsace in France, you can easily reach Strasbourg in 1 hour 20 minutes or Colmar in 45 minutes by train. This region is especially famous for its Christmas Markets, so planning a trip around the end of November to early December would be ideal to experience them. You can check the exact dates for the Alsace Christmas Markets on the Noel Alsace website.
With that we reached the end of our article Basel Travel Guide: The Best Day Trip from Stuttgart.
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Also read: How to Spend 4 Days in Paris in Winter, Nice Travel Guide: The Pearl of The French Riviera, The Best Restaurants in Stuttgart From Local, Amsterdam Travel Guide: Places to See in Amsterdam, A Complete Hamburg Travel Guide: Top Places in Hamburg
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