Rothenburg ob der Tauber

That little town on the Romantic Road is for tourists the epitome of German cities. The Altstadt (Old town) of Rothenburg is a patchwork of winding cobbled lanes lined with picturesque half timbered houses. Massive towers like Röderturm and the intact city walls form a ring around Rothenburg and you can walk on top of it to get great views over the city and the Tauber valley.

No other town in Germany brings you closer to the spirit of the Middle Ages - especially the medieval festivals like the so called “Master’s draught” let you truly get in touch with its moving history. What makes Rothenburg in Germany even more exciting is its reputation as town of eternal Christmas. All year round lots of shops offer beautiful handcrafted Christmas gifts and souveniers. In December the town gets realy crowded, because nobody wants to miss the famous Christmas Market, one of the most romantic in Germany.

• Airport Nuremberg is closest airport to Rothenburg, being just 90 km away

• Other Airports surrounding Rothenburg: Munich International Airport (241 km/150 miles) or Frankfurt International Airport (118 km/117 km)

• Rothenburg is close to Autobahn the Würzburg-Ulm A7 just 2 km (1.3 miles)

• Rothenburg travel and tourist information: Tourist Office at Marktplatz in the Ratstrinkstube, 91541 Rothenburg

• Leave your car outside the walls of Rothenburg, there are lots of signed car parks to avoid traffic in Rothenburg

• The tourist office of Rothenburg offers guided walking tours (90min) in English

• Take the Night Watchman’s Tour at 8pm meeting at Town Hall. It’s a great tour with plenty of Rothenburg’s history

• See the Plönlein, that scenic fork in the road is the landmark of Rothenburg and one of the most photographed spots.

• Head for the market place and climb the platform of the nice Town Hall to get impressive views. Then you should’t miss the idyllic Burggarten (castle garden) from where you can watch the sunset.

• A major pilgrimage site of Rothenburg in Germany is the gothic church Jacobskirche. Its main attraction is the carved Heilige Blut Altar (Holy Blood altar) said to contain a drop of Christ’s blood.

• Dive into the time of Thirty Year’s War by visiting the historical vaults of the Town Hall with dark dungeons and exhibitions or go to the Crime Museum, which shows the Middle Ages from the dark side with instruments of torture, execution items, weapons etc.

• Make a day trip from Rothenburg ob der Tauber to the beautiful city of Nuremberg (112km, 1 hour by car)

• visit the baroque city of Wurzburg, it’s also on the Romantic Road and just 70km from Rothenburg ob der Tauber in Germany.

• Crime Museum at Street Burggasse 3, Rothenburg: impressive exhibition on 4 floors showing instruments of torture, execution items, weapons etc.

• The Doll & Toy Museum at Hofbronnengasse 13 houses an amazing collection of doll’s houses, teddy bears and toy carousels

• German Christmas Museum at Herrngasse 1 depicts various Christmas customs as they developed through the ages. prices and opening hours: here

• The historic festival “Meisterdrunk” (on Whitsuntide) takes you back in the Middle Ages with parades in traditional costumes, a medieval market and a field camp. They celebrate the event from 1631, when the city council rescued the town by taking the challenge to empty 3 1/4 liter of wine in one gulp!

• The main shopping street is the Schmiedgasse with lots of gifts and souvenirs

• B+B Aparthotel Benji - 5 min. to Rothenburg, 2 min. to the Romantic Road

A very silent place to stay after the hussle and bussle of the large cities. At the green country side with beautiful garden. They have nice rooms and comfortable apartments. Very clean and friendly hosts. The best breakfast I ever had in Germany and the only one in the area with aircondition. I would highly recomend this B+B.