Grounded in 1899 as an artist's colony, here is a bit from the Darmstadt web site to whet your…read moreappetite:) Paris, Brussels, Vienna, Glasgow, Barcelona and Darmstadt! This Hessian city made a name for itself among the Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) metropolises of Europe. In 1899, Grand Duke Ernst Ludwig founded the first artists colony with seven artists, architects, painters and sculptors: J. M. Olbrich, P. Behrens, P. Huber, H. Christiansen, P. Bürck, L. Habich and R. Bosselt. Their first task was to design and build their own living and working quarters and present them to the public. So works of art surround you here as the houses, park and other buildings all belong to the total concept.

The Mathildenhohe is one of the highlights of Darmstadt. There's an interesting permanent…read moreexhibition of Art Nouveau in the museum with a nice little gift shop, and regular more contemporary art exhibitions are held in the main building (I had my first introduction to Hundertwasser here), but they don't always provide English translations. The romantic Russian chapel is in the grounds, and talking of romance many people get married in the Hochzeitsturm (the symbol of Darmstadt), as long as a wedding isn't on you can pay to go to the top of the tower and get a view of Darmstadt. In the summer you can even play petanque in the shade of the plane trees. If you're hungry or thirsty there's a small bistro, with an outside seating area in the summer (you don't have to pay to get into the bistro). It's also worth leaving the grounds and exploring the area a bit, as there are some stunning houses with unique architectural features. Basically if you're in Darmstadt, you must go here.

Not the best for real bowling fans, cause the lanes are extremely oily, best to bring a towel for…read morethe balls. The shoes are very wide and the sizes are partially screwed up (45 AND 46 = size 11??). The prices are acceptable and even the F&B prices (2,90 for a large drink or 2,60 for a beer) are ok. I'm definitely not a first time bowler, but that floor is slick! There was a group of us and a lot of us fell down the first few times. It's ok once you get used to it. We were a group of 12 one of which came later, but It was easy enough to add him.

Bowling fans will be delighted to hear that finally there is an alternative to the bowling center…read morein Gräfenhäuserstraße. I've heard the 24 new alleys are very nice to play. My experience here wasn't that positive though. I came to play some pool. 8 euros on a sunday night isn't that cheap, and I'd surely expect some more than (just enough!) crooked queues, old balls and used tables from a newly opened place. They advertise with 5000m (53820 sq.ft.), but in my opion the space is their biggest problem. There wasn't much going on on a sunday night, and so it felt cold and uncomfortable. The fact that they don't have a restaurant yet, and they were unable to serve any cocktails didn't leave a very good impression either. The interiour looks very cheap, painted brick wall, a cheap carpet and the ceiling painted in a dull green all doesn't look very inviting. It feels like cheap mass processing that comes with high prices. So, unless you want to have nice game of bowling here, I really can't recommened the place.

From the owner: Licht-Jongleur und Lightpainter Till Pöhlmann bietet:…read moremoderne LED-Jonglage und Logo-Jonglage, Live-Lightpainting-Shows, Feuer-Shows, Comedy, Hochrad-Artistik, Walk-Acts, Moderation, interaktive Lightpainting-Aktionen für Veranstaltungen jeder Art, wie Gala, Dinner-Show, Varieté, Messen, Stadtfeste, Festivals, Incventives, Kreuzfahrten, uvm.

From the owner: Seit dem 25. März 1999 spielt die Musik in der Centralstation. Das ehemalige Elektrizitätswerk ist…read morezum Kulturwerk geworden. Auf drei Ebenen - in der Halle im Erdgeschoss, im Saal in der oberen Etage sowie in Lounge dazwischen - gibt es tagsüber hochwertige Gastronomie in der Kulturkantine und abends Konzerte, Theater, Lesungen und Ausstellungen und Club-Events: von Rock bis Pop, von Jazz bis Weltmusik, von Klassik bis A cappella. Die Veranstaltungen sind so vielfältig wie die Besucher: Jung und alt aus nah und fern treffen sich in der Centralstation.