Bus from STUTTGART to PLITVICE LAKES

Stuttgart  is the capital of the German state of Baden-Württemberg with its population of more than 620,000 inhabitants. Stuttgart is the political center of the state, the seat of the state government of Baden-Württemberg and the state parliament, as well as the seat of numerous state authorities.

Art, culture, sport or architecture - the state capital of Baden-Württemberg offers something for everyone. The range of events and attractions is vastand includes the following:

Mercedes-Benz Museum Stuttgart: Visit the only place in the world that can present the history of automobile history from day one: the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart. Go on a time travel and head to the elevator at 34 meters high - back to the year 1886. Here starts the myth with the groundbreaking invention of Gottlieb Daimler and Carl Benz - the automobile. Hardly any other invention has shaped mankind to this day to this extent. Two interconnected tours lead you through the eventful history of the Mercedes-Benz brand in the architecturally spectacular building - combined with exciting themes of the times, past supersports cars, silver pillars and wing-doors. Both routes lead to one goal: the innovations of the present. Here, in the field of fascination technology, there are insights into current topics from research, design, development and production. Nine levels present 16,500 square feet of 160 stunning vehicles and more than 1,500 exhibitions. The exhibition is divided into myth and collection rooms. The myth rooms tell the story of the Mercedes-Benz brand and divide them into themes and epochs. The collection rooms show thematically arranged abundance and variety of the vehicles of the brand.

Großcomburg Swabian Hall - former monastery of the Benedictine monks: Großcomburg in Swabian Hall, a former Benedictine monastery, was founded in 1078. The castle-like structure with its walls, towers, chapels and buildings experienced its first flowering during the Staufer period. At the end of the 15th century, it was transformed into a choir house. The outdoor complex of Großcomburg is freely accessible and the 420 m long walkway offers wonderful views of the town of Swabian Hall and the Blickberg Einhorn (510 m high).

Residenzschloss Ludwigsburg: The Ludwigsburg Palace is one of the largest remaining baroque castles in Europe, and it is also one of the largest cultural centers with three new museum pieces - the Baroque Gallery, the Fashion and the Ceramics Museum. But it is not just the size and the new brilliance that justify the international popularity of this building. It is also unique for its princely apartments from the times of the Baroque, Rococo and the Empire that are preserved as a unity of space, together with wall decoration and rich furniture. Three generations of rulers, builders, artists and craftsmen have designed the rooms. The richness of creative ideas, which were realized in the style of that time, will make your visit to the castle an unforgettable journey.

The Tomb Chapel on the Wirttemberg (die Grabkapelle auf dem Württemberg) in Stuttgart was built by King William I as an eternal proof of love for his newly deceased wife Katharina. The architectural monument with its charming architecture is therefore regarded by many as the most romantic place in the country - with a magnificent view over Stuttgart. The Tomb Chapel lies in an exposed position above the Neckar valley and was built between 1820 and 1824. King Wilhelm deliberately chose the location of the former tribal castle of the dukes of Württemberg for his memorial. It was one of the favorite places of his late queen.

"Love never ceases" - The inscription above the main entrance is a promise which King William I made with the construction of the tomb chapel. After the sudden death of his wife, Queen Katharina, on January 9, 1819, King Wilhelm opened a competition for the construction of the chapel. He chose the design of the court architect Giovanni Salucci. Later the king and his older daughter Marie Friederike Charlotte of Württemberg also found their final rest here.

The Blühende Barock Ludwigsburg: Around the Residenzschloss, the Blühende Barock offers around 30 hectares a unique park landscape. Splendid gardening of different epochs and regions awaits visitors. From roses to the pharmacy garden, from the Japanese to the award-winning Sardinian garden - refined arrangements catch your eye at every corner. The colorful flower and gravel coils in the south of the complex invite you to a leisurely stroll. In addition, constantly changing exhibitions and flower displays are interesting highlights, especially the pumpkin exhibition in autumn. Even the little ones will not be bored: the fantastic magic world in the fairytale garden with its countless attractions is a fascinating place for children.

The Urach waterfall: The Urach waterfall, probably the most beautiful waterfall of the Swabian Alb, is situated in the beautiful Cornish valley on the outskirts of Bad Urach. The karst spring falls here from 37m height in the free fall into the depth and flows another 50m over a steep sloping. Particularly nice at the Urach waterfall is that you can look at it from different perspectives. From below you can see how the waterfall first falls 37 meters into the depth and then flows in cascades further down into the valley. As you climb the steep steps on the side of the falls, you will always get new impressions of this nature play.

Plitvice Lakes National Park is one of the oldest national parks in Southeast Europe and the largest national park in Croatia. The national park is world-famous for its lakes arranged in cascades, and 16 lakes can be seen from the surface.

The national park was founded in 1949 and is situated in the mountainous karst area of central Croatia.

The Plitvice Lakes originate in the south of the park area at the confluence of Bijela Rijeka (English White River) and Crna Rijeka (English Black River). These rivers originate south of the municipality of Plitvički Ljeskovac and unite at one of the bridges in this village.

In 1979, Plitvice Lakes National Park was added to the UNESCO World Heritage register.

The protected area extends over 296.85 square kilometres (73,350 acres). About 90% of this area is part of Lika-Senj County, while the remaining 10% is part of Karlovac County. The lakes are separated into an upper and lower cluster formed by runoff from the mountains, descending from an altitude of 636 to 503 m (2,087 to 1,650 ft) over a distance of some eight km, aligned in a south-north direction. The lakes collectively cover an area of about two square kilometres (0.77 square miles), with the water exiting from the lowest lake forming the Korana River.

The name Plitvice was first mentioned in a written document in 1777 by Dominik Vukasović, the priest of Otočac. This name was designated due to natural phenomena that have created the lakes. Nature formed shallow basins (Croatian pličina or plitvak, plitko means shallow), which have been filled with water. For centuries, water has changed the limestone and thus the landscape of this area.

The overall water body area of the national park is about 2 km2 (0.77 sq mi). The two largest lakes, Prošćansko jezero and Kozjak, cover about 80 percent of the overall water body area. These lakes are also the deepest, with a depth of 37 and 47 metres (121 and 154 ft) respectively. On Lake Kozjak, low-noise and ecologically-friendly electric boats are being used. None of the other lakes in the park exceeds 25 metres (82 feet) in depth. The altitude drop from the first lake to the last is 133 metres (436 feet).

The 16 lakes that can be seen from the surface are grouped into the 12 Upper Lakes (Gornja jezera) and the four Lower Lakes (Donja jezera).

The Plitvice Lakes national park is heavily forested, mainly with beech, spruce, and fir trees, and features a mixture of Alpine and Mediterranean vegetation. It has a notably wide variety of plant communities, due to its range of microclimates, differing soils and varying levels of altitude.

Scientists have so far listed 1,267 different plants out of 109 species that can be found within the area of the national park. 75 plants are endemic, which means that they have first been defined and classified in this area of the world or not far from it.

For reasons of the poor industrial development of this region and early introduced protection measures, a nearly untouched landscape has been preserved. In the partially primeval beech and fir forests various rare species, such as the brown bear have survived. At the Plitvice Lakes, all species continue to exist that have already existed before the coming of man. This is a rare case worldwide.