This area is known locally as KMC (Kaiserslautern Military Community), and has a lot to offer, whether you’re visiting family at the base or planning a road trip across southern Germany.
Enjoy art and nature in ‘K-town’
The city of Kaiserslautern will appeal not only to lovers of art and history, but also those who like to get out and enjoy nature at its finest. A look around the city’s impressive Palatinate Gallery of Art (Museum Pfalzgalerie Kaiserslautern) is a great way to spend a few hours. Focusing on German art from the 19th century through to the present day, it has numerous paintings by German impressionist painters, as well as sculptures and contemporary art.
To the east of the city is the wild and beautiful Pfälzerwald Nature Park, part of the vast Palatinate Forest. As well as the panoramic views, castles and ancient ruins hidden among the trees, the park also offers many outdoor activities such as swimming in natural pools, cycle paths, horseback riding, fishing, canoeing and kayaking.
See Roman ruins in Homburg
About 20 minutes west along the A6 is the picturesque little town of Homburg, best known for its ancient caves, the Schlossberghöhlen, which lie below the ruins of the 12th century Hohenburg Fortress. The caves date from the 17th century when they were opened to mine quartz, and are fascinating to explore.
Homburg stood at the crossroads of two important Roman trading routes and the town’s wonderful, open-air Roman museum shows the remains of a Roman vicus (country town) which existed from the start of the first millennium until its destruction in 275 A.D.
Enjoy the best of art and architecture in Saarbrücken
Just under 40 miles west of Ramstein is the lovely historic town of Saarbrücken, full of beautiful Baroque palaces, churches, squares and fountains designed by the famous architect of the time, Friedrich Joachim Stengel.
Start in the handsome Ludwigsplatz, which is framed by stately Baroque town houses, and the glorious Ludwigskirche, a Protestant church built in 1775 and rebuilt after World War II.
Next to Saarbrücken castle is the deceptively small-looking Saar Historical Museum which takes you through centuries of regional history in a series of underground chambers and tunnels. One of the town’s cultural highlights is the Saarland Museum’s Moderne Galerie which displays European art from the 19th century to the present day and features excellent collections of German and French Impressionism.
Have a blast at a 19th-century ironworks
Don’t miss the short trip to the 19th-century Völklingen Ironworks, closed in 1986 but since reopened as a UNESCO World Heritage monument and a science museum.
This gigantic industrial plant can be explored along three miles of walkways. You can climb up to the 120-feet-high viewing-platform for a bird’s eye view, see the six massive blast furnaces and then learn all about the plant processes at the Science Center Ferrodrom.
Car rental in Ramstein gives you the freedom to see more of this fantastic corner of Germany, and beyond.