Arlesheim Travel Guide

 Kathrin_E Says:  Nature has invaded the landscape garden. It is buzzing with life. I visited in May and lots of wildflowers in all colours were in bloom everywhere. Birds and waterfowl like the ponds and the forest areas. May meant little fluffy ducklings around...The ponds are used to breed... 

 Kathrin_E Says:  Ermitage park has, as the name implies, a hermitage and a resident hermit. The hermit's cell is a little chapel-like building in a small garden on the steep rocky hillside. It is built from wood and covered with bark to make it look more rustic. The hermit inside is not a... 

 Kathrin_E Says:  Walking Ermitage park is already romantic in itself, you'd think trees and lakes and flowers and little buildings, that's enough. However, they do indeed provide their visitors with an overkill of Swiss romantic, it's all there... What does it need for an overkill? Yeah... 

 Kathrin_E Says:  Arlesheim's main treasure, in addition to the cathedral, is the park known as Ermitage. The Ermitage is described as the largest English landscape garden of Switzerland (which means there cannot be many others). The park is located in a small side valley among rolling hills... 

 Kathrin_E Says:  Birseck castle is located on a small hill by the entrance to Ermitage gardens, overlooking the village. The castle has medieval origins. In those times it belonged to the Bishops of Basel. It was destroyed in the revolution wars at the end of the 18th century and refurbished... 

 Kathrin_E Says:  The square in front of the cathedral shows the cityscape like in a planned baroque city. The 'square' is a rectangle with buildings along three sides. The front of the church occupies the short side. The two long sides hold two buildings each that used to be the residential... 

 Kathrin_E Says:  Arlesheim has a cathedral, despite being a rather small village. Not one that's named "Dom" because of its size or whatever, but a real one. Ia cathedral is, by definition, the church of a bishop.How come?After the reformation, the Bishop of Basel and the canons left the... 

 Kathrin_E Says:  What is a "Trotte"? A wine press. This building gives testimony of the times when Arlesheim was a village of vintners. The big press in the village centre was used by all of them. Winemaking is hard labour but pays off well, which explains a certain wealth already in past... 

 Kathrin_E Says:  When walking the streets of the old village, the gardens around the houses are worth noting. Even the smallest patch of land between house and street can be turned into a garden which is both pretty and useful. Photo 2 shows that even a kitchen garden can look romantic,... 

 Kathrin_E Says:  My host told me Arlesheim is the most beautiful village in the region around Basel - I cannot tell whether this is justified or not because I have seen too few places in the area, the old village centre it is surely pretty. The finest area is around the cathedral and North... 

 Kathrin_E Says:  Arlesheim is easy to reach from Basel. The tram line 10 takes you there in some 20 minutes. This tram passes through the city centre of Basel and stops in front of Basel SBB train station. I was very much impressed by this service: Even mid-afternoon on a Sunday this tram...