The Swabian Alb, the limestone uplands south of town, are within easy reach by car or local train and contain some of the most spectacular caves and castles in southern Germany. Lichtenstein Castle, an extravagant 19th-century neo-Gothic confection on a cliff edge, is half an hour south. The Hohenzollern Castle, towering on a forested peak above Hechingen, is the other classic outing — 30 minutes by car and one of the most photographed castles in Germany.
Reutlingen, Stuttgart and Bebenhausen Monastery (5 km north of Tübingen, on the edge of the Schönbuch forest) all make easy half-day or day trips.