Rothenburg ob der Tauber is a well known travel destination for tourists from all over the world.

It is famous for its medieval old town with its town wall. The town is located at the Romantic Road (Romantische Straße) on a plateau overlooking the Tauber River in the district of Ansbach in Middle Franconia, Bavaria.

Plönlein©flickr/Alaskan Dude

No other town in Germany brings you closer to the Middle Ages than Rothenburg. You can either walk through the cobbled lanes lined with half timbered houses or walk on the town wall and have a great view over the town and the Tauber valley. During the Middle Ages Rothenburg used to be one of the most important cities in the South of Germany.

One of the landmarks and a must-see of the town is the Plönlein fork. It is one of the most taken pictures of Rothenburg.
St. Jakob Church is one of the major German pilgrimage sites. The Holy Blood Altar (Heilige Blut Altar) was carved by Tilman Riemenschneider and it is said that it contains a drop of Christ’s blood.

If you are more interested in the Thirty Year’s War, you should visit the historical vaults of the town hall with dark dungeons and exhibitions.

The Criminal Museum also is a place of interest. Here you can learn about the dark side of the Middle Ages and see the instruments of torture, items used for executions and weapons.

Rothenburg ob der Tauber©flickr/khloges

The historic festival called the ‘Meistertrunk’ takes place several time each year. You can see it for example at Whitsun. With the ‘Meisertrunk’ an event is celebrated that took place in 1631. The mayor of Rothenburg saved the town by drinking 3.25 litres of wine in one gulp. You can also see knights on horses and on the Middle Ages Market you can get special food.

All year you can purchase Christmas decoration items in the Käthe Wohlfahrt shops. You find handcrafted items made of wood and glass, twinkling lights nutcrackers and many other souvenirs. The prices are fairly high though but if you travel to Germany in summer these might be the only typical German Christmas decoration you get.

And last but not least one thing you shouldn’t miss is a walk at night with the night watchman. Especially by night you can get an impression of what life might have been like in Rothenburg ob der Tauber during the Middle Ages. From March to Christmas the walks with the night watchman take place each night at 9:30 pm and last for about an hour. Meeting point is the market place in front of the town hall.

From 1864 to his death in Lake Starnberg in 1986 Ludwig II. was the King of Bavaria.

In 1868 he started to make plans for Linderhof Palace and it turned out to be the only large palace of his he ever saw completed after a long period of building and rebuilding.  Linderhof Palace developed around his father’s old forester’s house and within the years became a real Palace. And the fact that the “Alpine Hut Building” became a Palace made it necessary to also create a landscape park.

Linderhof Palace © Julia Höfer-von Seelen

The first you can see when you come into Linderhof Palace is the “Spiegelsaal”, the Hall of Mirrors. From there you can walk around the whole palace in a circle.

There are of course guided tours only as can be expected. The rooms are marvellously furnished and especially the large bedroom, the largest room in the palace is very impressive.

In the park you can find two of King Ludwig’s special refuges, the artificial Grotto, an artificial dripstone cave, with colourful electrical illumination, lakes, and waterfalls and the Moorish Kiosk, which was originally built in 1967 as the Prussian contribution to the World Exhibition in Paris.
The castle and park are really magnificent not only in summer but also in winter with snow everywhere.

You can get to Linderhof castle from Munich, Bavaria by car on the A95 motorway and the road B2 to Oberau. From Oberau you take the road B23 to Ettal and from Ettal the road ST2060 to Linderhof. Or you can also get there by train to Oberammergau and from there take the bus to Linderhof.

Linderhof Park © Julia Höfer-von Seelen

Moorish Kiosk/Maurischer Kiosk © Julia Höfer-von Seelen

Bavaria

Berchtesgaden:

Salzbergwerk

In the salt mines you can see where the famous Bad Reichenhall brand salt comes from. We cannot live without salt. www.salzzeitreise.de

München:

BMW Museum

Since 2008 you can see here BMW cars, racing cars and motorcycles. www.bmw-museum.de

Deutsches Museum

The Deutsches Museum probably is the most famous German museum. You can experience science, technology, materials and production, transportation and much more here and in the in the Verkehrszentrum with lots of vintage cars and at Oberschleissheim airfield with the aviation collections. www.deusches-museum.de

Nördlingen:

Bayerisches Eisenbahnmuseum

Here in the railway museum you can see steam and diesel engines and the old restored running shed. www.bayerisches-eisenbahnmuseum.de

Nürnberg:

Museum Industriekultur

In the Museum for Industrial Culture you can experience the technical, social and cultural history of Nuremberg. www.museen.nuernberg.de/industriekultur

Verkehrsmuseum

Here you learn a lot about the post and telecommunication as well as the history of German railway. You can see a reproduction of the first steam engine going from Nurembert to Fürth in 1835. Don’t miss it. www.museumsstiftung.de, www.dbmuseum.de

Heilig-Geist-Spital/Holy Spirit Hospital © Julia Höfer-von Seelen

Nuremberg, Bavaria is located in the administrative region of Middle Franconia, about 170 km north of Munich.

It is situated on the River Pegnitz and the Rhine-Main-Danube Canal. It is the largest city of Franconia with a population of more than 500,000 inhabitants.

The most famous building and on many post cards certainly is the Nuremberg Castle. The “Heilig-Geist-Spital” (Holy Spirit Hospital) founded in 1332 was one of the largest hospitals in the Middle-Ages. With all its sights Nuremberg is one of the largest tourist draws in Germany. Albrecht Dürer lived here and you can learn more about his works in the Albrecht Dürer House, which now is a museum. The Hauptmarkt is the main market square and here you can visit the Frauenkirche , Our Lady’s Church, which dominates the Hauptmarkt.

Nuremberg also is famous for the Nürnberger Bratwurst, small sausages, and for the Nünrnberger Lebkuchen, a special kind of gingerbread that is very popular in Germany during Christmas. The first German railway line from Nuremberg to Fürth was opened in 1835; you can see a reproduction of the first steam engine amongst others in the Verkehrsmuseum, the German National Railway Museum.

Something you shouldn’t miss is the Ehekarussell, the Mary-Go-Round of a Marriage, set up in 1984, and located in front of the White Tower in the city centre, and the magnificent Gänsemännchenbrunnen made in 1550, situated in front of the guildhall. And of course you get good food and find good shopping facilities in the city, as to be expected in a city of this size.

The city though is not as hectic as could be expected and is surrounded by the splendid Franconian landscape. You can go on day trips to Ansbach, Bamberg, and Bayreuth or to the Franconian lake district. When the weather happens to be not so good, you can visit one of the many museums or exhibitions in the city.

City and Castle © Julia Höfer-von Seelen

Ehekarussell © Julia Höfer-von Seelen

Gänsemännchenbrunnen © Julia Höfer-von Seelen