It hosts major editorial and production capacities of the South German Radio and Television Network. The town centre is situated in a narrowing side valley to the large Rhine river valley under the Northern Black Forest’s slopes, its southern suburbs cuddle up to the famous Riesling and Pinot Noir vineyards of the Ortenau region. Nearby lies the Iffezheim racing course with its magical atmosphere of neck and neck racing and the most glamorous hats ever seen.

The town looks back to a history as Roman spa, as medieval residence of the catholic Baden Margraves (with a legacy of two castles in Baden-Baden, two further baroque castles in Rastatt, all of them becoming somewhat redundant after the merger with the protestant Karlsruhe family line, which had several castles of its own), as the 19^th century “summer capital of Europe” especially for French, Russian and German aristocracy, the headquarter of the French occupation army after World War II, later relabeled as “French Troops in Germany.” Today, the French soldiers have gone, but still French and Russians are among the largest visitor groups.

Further details may be looked for under the Menue "Links" at this Homepage..

The Rotary Club Baden-Baden Merkur was chartered in 1975, is the second eldest in town, with its today 66 (male) members from Baden-Baden and the adjacent towns of Rastatt, Bühl, Gaggenau and Gernsbach. The local industries and trades encompass media (Baden-Baden), financial services (Baden-Baden), county administration (Rastatt), forestry and agriculture and special paper production (Gernsbach), and automotive industry (Rastatt, Bühl and Gaggenau). Te unemployment rate is lower than in most other parts of Germany. The geography, the Black Forest (up to 3,000 feet) on the East and the Rhine River with few bridges only in the West, dictates the population and industrial development in a rather narrow North-South corridor with further places in the side valleys to the Rhine river, like in Baden-Baden.

The club’s local activities focus on the professional formation of pupils with programs for elementary schools and secondary schools. Internationally, the club partners with the Rotary Club Reims-en-Champagne, France, furthers the districts activities in Ukraine and sponsors (as member) the Rotarian Action Group For Population Growth and Sustainable Development.

The Rotary Club Baden-Baden Merkur friendly competes with two other Rotary clubs in the area (which lead to a good “penetration”) and several other service clubs. The club is liaised with a (female) Inner Wheel Club by the fact that a significant part of its members’ wives inaugurated the latter club.

The club actively promotes friendship among its members by offering a wide variety of events outside the official meetings, among them opera visits, hiking tours, sailing trips, etc.

The Rotary Club Baden-Baden Merkur covenes weekly at the Kulturhaus LA8, Lichtentaler Allee 8, 76530 Baden-Baden (see tab “Kulturhaus LA8” under Menue "Links") on Tuesdays either at 12.30 PM or 7.00 PM (details see Menue “Termine”).