150-fold enthusiasm for Heidelberg CastleWith castle guidesExperience history live

Their enthusiasm for these old walls, which they bring to life, is reflected in their faces. Countless palace guides who work for the State Palaces and Gardens in our monuments combine passion with expertise.

Exploring with castle experts.

150 ambassadors in the monuments of the Electoral Palatinate

Heidelberg's Service Center works with 150 palace guides, offering tours in 20 languages in Heidelberg Castle, Mannheim Palace, and Schwetzingen Palace and Gardens. All in all, there are more than 450 ambassadors in Baden-Württemberg, between the Electoral Palatinate and Lake Constance, across 60 of the State Palaces and Gardens of Baden-Württemberg's monuments. Every year, castle guides share the history of this state with guests from across the globe.

FASCINATING LIVING HISTORY

At Heidelberg Castle, as at many other of the state's monuments, tour guides wear historical costumes. For example, Liselotte von der Pfalz reads from her letters to her aunt Sophie, complaining about the strict etiquette at the French royal court. This requires a great deal of acting ability. As ambassadors, all castle and monastery guides are able to impart a monument's historical significance in an unparalleled way.

The magnificent historic costumes worn by Heidelberg's castle guides are always eye-catching.

HOW DOES ONE BECOME A Castle TOUR GUIDE?

Working as a tour guide in castles in the Electoral Palatinate requires a certificate from the state of Baden-Württemberg. The Heidelberg Castle Service Center offers courses toward this certification. Qualified applicants undergo a three-month training program. Applicants come from all different backgrounds: art historians and historians, but even journalists or biologists. In addition to practical experience, presentations and theater studies are also part of the training program. After passing the exam, the newly minted castle ambassadors are deployed.

Castle guides bring history to life in these old walls.

MEET TWO OF OUR TOUR GUIDES

Susanne Späinghaus-Monschau dreamed of owning a time machine as a child, that is how much history and the past fascinated her. Her childhood enthusiasm became expert knowledge: She studied art history. She's been a castle guide since 2003. She finds the interactions with guests from across the globe especially fascinating. Ukrainian Oksana Braun came to Heidelberg after completing her university studies. The translator and interpreter decided to complete the castle guide training program. Because of her previous experience in student theater, which included writing her own plays, historical roles are a particularly good fit: as painter Maria Dorothea Therbusch, royal painter at the court of Carl Theodor, as well as in many other roles.

Susanne Späinghaus-Monschau, tour guide at Heidelberg Palace

Oksana Braun, tour guide at Heidelberg Palace

Susanne Späinghaus-Monschau and Oksana Braun inspire visitors with their expertise and conversation.