Germany’s Romantische Straße (Romantic Road) is a themed route through western Bavaria and is more about the stops than the road itself. It is about 355 km (220 miles) of impressive castles, medieval villages and a perfect pastoral countryside.
When driving the Romantic Road, everyone knows how to walk through the walled city of Rothenburg ob der Tauber. The UNESCO site of Würzburg Residenz is legendary. And the end point of Schloss Neuschwanstein in Füssen is one of the top destinations in all of Germany.
But these destinations can be invaded by tourists. Buses unload their cargo and thousands of people descend on these picturesque sites, detracting from their charm. This is why you should get off the beaten track and visit the hidden cities on the German Romantic Road.
Dinkelsbühl
Rothenburg ob der Tauber is a picture-perfect city with its storybook buildings and wonderfully preserved wall, but the signs in English and Japanese can disturb the illusion that you’ve entered the Middle Ages.
Just 30 minutes away is Dinkelsbühl, with many of the same charming elements and thousands of fewer visitors. It also has an intact city wall and adorable half-timbered houses. The big advantage is that you don’t have to co-ordinate between 100 people to take a photo.
The city’s beginnings have its roots in a 10th-century fortress. Like neighboring cities, it prospered with the cloth trade, but suffered during the Thirty Years’ War. Frozen in time, the Bavarian King Ludwig I protected it by forbidding the destruction of the city walls and towers. It also escaped severe damage during WWI and WWII.
Visitors must walk up the wall and mark each of its sixteen towers. There are four entrance gates ( Wörnitztor is the oldest and the gate that is entered from the Romantic Road) leading to the old town with the impressive Münster Sankt Georg . From the towers, visitors have panoramic views of the city. In the Market Square there are bakeries and shops and the intricate wooden façade of the Deutsches Haus.
For a guided tour, visit the Tourist Information Office which organizes morning and afternoon tours from April to October. If you want things to get even more picturesque, take a carriage ride through the old town.
Wallerstein
Wallerstein, in the Ries-Danube region, is a quiet neighborhood with an outstanding view. People leave the path to climb the path up the rock and enjoy spectacular views of the countryside.
It was ruled for generations by the House of Oettingen-Wallerstein, finally included in the Kingdom of Bavaria in the early 19th century. They built a fantastic castle that sat on a huge rock until 1648, when it was destroyed in the Thirty Years’ War. The castle has been rebuilt nearby, but the real attraction is the massive 65-meter (213-foot) Wallerstein Rock.
Tauberbischofsheim
Situated at the western end of the Taubertal liebliches ( “charming Tauber valley” ), Tauberbischofsheim is one of the oldest towns in the area. It is one of the first stops on the Romantic Road heading south from Würzburg.
Located in the countryside, its main landmark is Kurmainzisches Schloss (castle), which is also home to the Tauber-Franconia Rural Museum. Look for the Türmersturm (tower), symbol of the city. And as you stroll, look for the Glockenspiel in the city’s Gothic Rathaus (town hall).
Bad Mergentheim
Every time you hear a German city with the name “Bad,” you know there is a spa involved. Bad Mergentheim is one of the largest cities in the Tauber Valley and is known for its restorative waters.
Solymar is a world-class spa destination, whether you take the Romantic Road or not, and a drink from the salty waters of Trinktempel (Temple of Drinking) is supposed to cure stomach and intestinal problems. These spa facilities led to a boom in tourism and even protected it during the war as it was used as medical facilities to care for wounded soldiers.
The city is also famous for being the home of the Order of the Teutonic Knights from 1526 to 1809. They were located in Deutschordenschloss , a 12th century castle that was expanded in the 16th century. They erected the impressive Rococo Schlosskirche (Castle Church) with two massive towers. Both buildings are still open to visitors with the castle housing the Deutschordensmuseum Bad Mergentheim (Museum of the Teutonic Order).
Landsberg on the Lech
Landsberg on the Lech in southwestern Bavaria was once an influential stop on the Via Claudia Augusta, a Roman trade route from Italy to Augsburg. Travelers were able to ford the River Lech here and fortifications were developed. It survived wars, plagues, and notoriety.
Landsberg Prison is where Adolf Hitler was detained in 1923 after his failed coup and began his memory, Mein Kampf . The city was a National Socialist fortress with plans for a youth parade center that, like much of the Nazi plans, were never realized. One plan that came to fruition is the construction of the largest concentration camp on German soil on the outskirts of the city. Of the approximately 30,000 people who arrived at the camp, 14,500 died of childbirth, illness or death marches.
Due to the city’s close association with the darkest moment in German history, it is fitting that it is also home to the European Holocaust Memorial. It was created from the remains of earthen bunkers that held prisoners in the field. The monument is accessible at all times and guided tours are available by appointment.
Weikersheim
Weikersheim is just a small town, but it is home to a magnificent landmark. Schloss Weikersheim is a large 12th century Renaissance palace. The ideal estate, visitors can walk where the royals walked with a tour of the Schloss, as well as the baroque garden filled with fanciful statues.
Inside the city, there is a large market square, and if you venture into the surroundings, visit the many vineyards that extend to the following cities.
Creglingen
Creglingen is a fun little town, known for its fun little things. For example, it has a Fingerhutmuseum (Thimble Museum) that claims to be the only one of its kind in the world with over 3,500 items on display.
Among its beautiful half-timbered houses, it also has the Lindleinturm Museum . This quirky landmark is one of those half-timbered houses, apparently placed by a giant on top of a medieval stronghold. Now it is a small museum open to the public: maximum six people at a time.
Better known than any of these attractions, Creglingen is world famous for the Herrgottskirche and the Marienaltar. The church was built in the mid-14th century after a farmer found an undamaged communion host in a field. The 1510 alter is a masterpiece of late Gothic sculpture, Tilman Riemenschneider, and was kept in excellent condition, as the wings were kept closed until 1832.
Nordlingen
Nördlingen was first mentioned in 898. The city features another impressive wall, but all it does is that the city has been built inside one of the largest craters in the world.
This is noticeable in the almost perfectly circular design of the intact wall. Visitors can walk along the entire wall and admire every angle of the city. While we have already mentioned two cities with intact walls, that does not mean that this is a common feature. Along with Rothenburg ob der Tauber and Dinkelsbühl, Nördlingen is the only other.
If you want to know more about the crater, the Rieskrater Museum has exhibits featuring meteorites, rocks, and fossils with the ability to book field trips. Although they are not visible to the naked eye, you should also be on the lookout for small diamonds lodged within the graphite used in local stone buildings.
