The 10 Best Things to Do With Kids in Stuttgart

Wilhelma records approximately two million visitors every year, and not without reason. Other than being the only combined zooand botanical garden in Europe, Wilhelma is home to 1,000 species of animals, one of the highest numbers in the world. The animals, reptiles, aquatic creatures and birds at Wilhelma are housed in separate themed areas; the ultra-modern Ape House is always a big hit with children. The botanical garden boasts almost 7,000 varieties of plants and Europe’s biggest magnolia grove.

For a large dose of quirky fun for the family (especially Peppa Pig fans), head to the Schweinemuseum, which has an unbeatable collection of 45,000 objects, paintings, trinkets, photographs, cartoons, piggy banks, and more—and all pig-related! Along with lots of giggles, the museum promises fascinating information about pig-based rituals, boar hunting and pig worship across different cultures. The pig theme continues to the beer garden of the museum, which offers delicious pork dishes.

The sprawling Killesberg Park is the green lungs of Stuttgart and offers lots of activities for the entire family. Children can have a blast watching something in the theater, playing in the delightful playgrounds, and getting up close to animals in the petting zoo. A narrow-gauge steam railway takes visitors on a nostalgic ride around the park, and the 20-meter-high (65.6 feet) Bismarck Tower invites everyone to enjoy great views of the city. There is also a pool and several cafés in the park, ensuring a complete family day out.

The glitzy Mercedes-Benz Museum would wow anyone interested in automobiles. As an added bonus, they have superb activities specially designed for children. In the Fascination of Technology area, children are encouraged to conceptualize and sketch their dream car and see it gradually take the shape of reality with the help of experts at the museum. It also has awesome packages for celebrating a child’s birthday, complete with guided tours and the chance to disassemble an engine! Children up to 14 years of age visit the museum for free, and children up to 7 years of age get a free meal at the museum restaurant.

If your kids are dinosaur fans, as so many children are, head to the State Museum of Natural History, which displays a whopping 11 million scientific objects, including over four million fossils of plants and creatures. The prosauropod dinosaur Plateosaurus, ichthyosaurs, pliosaurs, plesiosaurs, sharks, and much more are sure to have the imagination of children running wild.

One of the most spectacular automobile museums on the globe, Porsche Museum, is waiting to sweep you off your feet in Stuttgart. The museum houses stunning beauties on wheels, including internationally known models belonging to the iconic brand, and features multi-media installations. For children, the museum provides a booklet called the Kids Rallye (charged extra), filled with riddles, puzzles, trivia, and jokes, which encourage close inspection of the automobiles on display. A special audio guide for children in several languages is also available.

The eight swimming and bathing pools at DAS LEUZE Mineralbad adds up to hours of fun for the family. The Kinderland LEUZE section has been designed with little guests in mind and offers a paddling pool for the smallest ones to splashing pools for older children. While the kids enjoy fun aquatic games and activities, parents can take turns relaxing at the sauna, adventure showers or the steam room.

The Linden Museum infuses a generous dose of culture into your holiday. It houses artifacts representing varied cultures, lifestyles, rituals, and religions around the world, including those of Southeast Asia, India, Pakistan, the Far East, Africa, China, Japan, Inca, and many others. The museum is extremely child-friendly, and most displays captivate young guests. Visting this institution is a great way of teaching your kids about ethnicity and how children on the other side of the world live.

Kindermuseum Junges Schloss is a cheerful museum designed to capture the attention of children aged four and up. The institution aims to teach children regional history through a hands-on approach, costumes, and active participation so that children not only learn but also experience fascinating historical facts.

Spend quality family time under the stars at the Carl-Zeiss Planetarium. This attraction sweeps visitors off on a wonderful journey across the solar system and tells stories about the stars, time travel, space journeys, cosmos, and astronauts through spectacular light and laser shows and live music. The program is as entertaining for adults as it is for children. On weekends, the planetarium holds special programs for children aged four to nine.