Bordering both France and Switzerland, Weil am Rhein is a small German town on the east bank of the Rhine River. It has existed since the 8th century and was predominantly an agricultural region before a railway connected it to Basel in 1913. Today, Weil am Rhein is the most southwesterly town in Germany and also a suburb of Basel.
Things to do in Weil am Rhein
North of Weil am Rhein is the Vitra Design Museum, which is dedicated to modern furniture and interior design. It occupies a striking, whitewashed building envisioned by Frank Gehry in a Deconstructivist style. It boasts one of the world’s largest collections of modern furniture design and represents all major periods from the 19th century to the modern day.
On the southern edge of Weil am Rhein is Laguna Badeland, a family-friendly aquatic centre with wave pools, a children’s play area and several saunas. It’s located adjacent to the leafy walking trails of the Platz der drei Länder and the former cement mixing plant-turned-art gallery of the Kunstraum Kieswerk. Films are screened in the summer months at the Kieswerk Open Air Cinema.
Spanning the Rhine River west of Weil am Rhein is the Three Countries Bridge, which was designed by the Franco-Austrian architect Deitmar Feichtinger in the 2000s. Stretching 248 metres, it is the longest single-span bridge in the world designed for the exclusive use of pedestrians and bicycles and is atmospherically illuminated at night.
Getting around Weil am Rhein
Weil am Rhein is around 15 minutes’ drive from the centre of Basel and the same distance from EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg, which has flights to destinations across Europe and North Africa. Regular trains connect to the Weil am Rhein railway station and buses travel throughout the town.