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Wartburg |
Goethe Schiller |
Thuringia Forest |
Weimar, Wartburg, Erfurt, Thuringa Forest, |
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Wartburg |
Goethe Schiller |
Thuringia Forest |
Weimar, Wartburg, Erfurt, Thuringa Forest, |
Unesco Heritage Sites: Classical Weimar, Wartburg in Eisenach wartburg-eisenach.de,
National Parks: Hainch nationalpark-hainich.de,
Scenic Routes: Klassiker Route (Info: thueringen-tourismus.de,) Porzellanstrasse (porcelain route) (porzellanstrasse.de),Spielzeugstrasse(toy route) from Nuremberg/Bav.(spielzeugstrasse.de)
going there
by train bahn.de to Erfurt or another town, by plane to Erfurt or to Altenburg/Leipzig by Ryanair ryanair.com,
Towns
Weimar (pop ~65.000) weimar.de,
is a cultural town, for it was the home of many famous people in its history. The most famous were the German writers Johann-Wolfgang Goethe (1749-1832) and Friedrich Schiller (1759-1805). The Ilm park is an Uneso World Heritage Site. In the park is the "Goethehaus" (where the play Faust is said to be written) and the Römisches Haus (roam House) and the Liszt house.
From interest is also the Bauhaus Museum (Entrance 4,50 € kids 3,50 €) and the Amalia Bibliothek (Entrance 6,50 € kids 5,50 €), a fine old bibliothek in Rokokko Style, which is now restored after it was burnt in 2004 klassik-stiftung.de.
for more about the architectural Style Bauhaus look: Dessau in Saxony-Anhaltina,Goethehaus
Schillerhaus
Schiller and Goethe
are the most famous classical writers, who have a reputation in Germany like Shakesspear in Britain. First they were rivals but later turned to friends and exchange more than 1.000 letters. Read "Faust" from Goethe and the "die Räuber = the band of robbers" from Schiller. The litarature of these poets was bourgoise and marked by liberal thinking, somehow still up to date for the people who often persist in the authoritarian habitus of the post-stalin area before the fall of the wall.Concentration Camp Buchenwald
is about 15 km north of Weimar. There is a local bus connection. About 56.500 people (200 per day) died under torture or were murdered there by the Nazis. It was not an extermination camp like Auschwitz, but a camp for political opponents, among them the social democrats Ernst Thälmann.Erfurt (pop ~200.000) erfurt-tourismus.de,
Erfurt is capital of Thuringia. It has a well rebuilt and preserved old city center. The most known sight is the Krämerbrücke, a medieval merchant bridge, which is lined by 32 of old houses, somehow (a bit) like the Pont Vecchio in Florence. At the Domberg dom-erfurt.de is the ensemble of the cathedral and the church Severi worth a look. The Fischmarkt is the central market place with some outstanding houses in Renaissance and Patrician style.You can also visit the "Zitadelle Petersberg" a fortress built 1665-1707 with nice views down to the town, visit the Augustiner monastery, where Luther studied and stroll in the "Egapark" a garden park. The pub quarter of the university town is around the Michaelisstrasse."Domplatz"
"Krämerbrücke"
Eisenach (pop ~45.000)
The main attraction of Eisenach is the Wartburg Castle the only German castle which is an Uneso World Heritage Site.
The town itself has a nice city center, with some half timbered houses among them the Lutherhaus, where Luther lived for some years in his youth and the Bachhaus, where the composer Bach was born in 1685 and the Reuter-Wagner Museum.
Johann Sebastian-Bach 1685-1750 jsbach.org, bach.de,
was born in Eisenach. Many experts count him as the most important musician ever lived. He earned his money working at several places in Thuringia and Saxonia, so in Weimar, Mühlhausen, Arnstadt, Köthen/Anhaltina and for a long time in Leipzig/Saxony). He composed many fuges, cantatas and concertos, which are still world music today. if you have no idea you might here the Brandenburger conzerts (concert means the instruments compete with each other or the famous "air on g string" BW 1068Wartburg Castle (open all year, entrance castle outside free, inside 7 adultes /kids 4 Euro ) wartburg-eisenach.de,
the castle, enthroned on a mountain and built in 1067, was the hideout of Martin Luther in 1521, who was excommunicated and put under papal ban. As Junker Jörg he translated the bible from Greek into German. The castle was also the residence of the Holy Elisabeth in the 13th century, who was a wife of Thuringian landgrave and who devoted her live to the poor. It is also the place of the legendary medieval singer-contest "Sängerkrieg"(Walter von der Vogelweide was one protagonist) from 1206, which is the story in Richard Wagner's opera Tannhäuser.A superb hiking day trip is along the Wartburgpfad, which leads through the "Drachenschlucht", a narrow ravine to the "Sängerwiese" (singer meadow) and futher on to the Wartburg and back to town. (2 hrs without visiting time at the Wartburg). Starting point is the parking place at the road B 19 "Hohe Sonne". Take the bus to Blankenstein (1,30 Euro) from one of the two central bus stations.
Gotha (pop ~45.000)Drachenschlucht
there is the huge palace Friedensstein (built 1643-54, Entrance 8 €) in early Baroque style, a market place with a fountain and a racetrack eventpark-boxberg.de nearby.Schloss
Rathaus
Jena look Saale Valley,
North Thuringia
look also the neighboured : Harz Mountains,Mühlhausen (pop ~39.000)
it has the best preserved historical city center in Thuringia, more than 400 houses are listed. Thomas Müntzer, a priest and leader of the peasant's war in the 16th century, who was executed. There is a spa nearby with whirlpools, Sauna and a 75 long chute (thueringentherme.de).Bad Frankenhausen (pop ~.000) bad-frankenhausen.de,
Most people visit the the huge (14x123m) painting fromWerner Tübke, who painted it (1975-1987) in order of the former sozialist government and which matters with the peast uprising of the year 1525 panorama-museum.de(entrance 5 €, kids 1 €)
The town has - like in Pisa and Suurhusen in East-Frisia- a leaning steeple, which is 4,40m out of plumb. The reason for that are soda springs in the ground.Sondershausen (pop ~.000)
there is an amusement mine park, nice and a bit pricey (entrance 18 Euro, kids 13 erlebnisbergwerk.com)Kyffhäuser kyffnet.de/,kyffhaeuser-tourismus.de, kyffhaeuser-denkmal.de,
the Kyffhäuser memorial, built in 1896 as a mighty symbol for the German Emperors, is devoted to a legend of Emperor Barbarossa. Nice views from there. A nice walk (15km) is going from there to Bad Frankenhausen by passing the cave Barbarossahöhle, which is Europe`s biggest (13.ooo m3) anhydrite plaster cave.Kyffhäuser statue
West-Thuringa
Nationalpark Hainich nationalpark-hainich.de,
a protected mixed forest with many beeches. The attraction is a 300m long high walking path through the treetops (entrance 6 €, kids 4 €)"Drei Gleichen" drei-gleichen.de, veste-wachsenburg.de, muehlberg-online.de, muehlberg.info,
en ensemble of three castles built (8th -12th century) for the purpose of besieging an enemy's castle, the Mühlburg, Wachsenburg and the Burg Gleichen.A hiking trail of 17km pass all three castles
Thuringian Forest thueringer-wald.com,
The Thuringian Forest is a 140 km long and 35 km wide hilly forest area, one of the biggest in Germany, suitable for day and long distant hikes. Everywhere are well-marked hiking trails. The most famous is the the Rennsteig (sign "R"). It is Germans most traditional (very nice, but not the most spectacular) long distant hiking trail (169 km). It was mentioned even then in 1330 as the Rynnestig, which served as a path for couriers and soldiers. The Rennsteig starts in Hörschel, which is 15 km from Eisenach at the Hessian border and ends in Blankenheim near Bavaria.
It is going all the way through forest up and down the hilly mountains. You can get to the trailhead with bus or train.
Links: rennsteigportal.de, rennsteig.net, rennsteigtip.deOberhof (pop .000)oberhof.de,
is a ski resort and a wintersport venue for biathlon, contry cross skiing and bog sledge. You can take a trip down the bob slegde run with an experiement trainer, but it is often full booked.Schmalkalden (pop .000) schmalkalden.de,
a pretty small city full of medieval (17/18th century) half-timbered houses and the Renaissance palace Wilhelmsburg (built 1585-90, entrance 5/6 €).Vessertal
no highlights but a nice valley midst in forests. Hiking trails go up to the RennsteigMeiningen (pop 22.000) meiningen.de,
some parks and two palaces and a renowed theater. Nearby is the palace Schloss Landsberg, today a Hotel and Restaurant.Oberweissbacher Bergbahn oberweissbacher-bergbahn, ( 18min trip 5,90 Euro)
The world steepest funicular railway, which manages a difference in altidue of 330m with a gradient of 25 in 100.Wasungen (pop ~.000)
is famous for the carneval in Feburary karnevalwasungen.de, karnevalthueringen.de,Suhl (pop ~.000)
small former work and living houses of the gunsmiths and the St. Marien Church (1487-91) with fine Rokokko interieur. There is also a motorbike museum fahrzeug-museum-suhl.deEntrance 4/3 €,
Saale Valley blaues-band.de/saale,
240 km long is the part of the river Saale in Thuringia. A superb view on the mäandering Saale is from the Teufelskanzel near.
Nice is the well marked bike-trip along the Saale saale-radweg.de,Burgk (pop ~.000)
nice medevial palaceBleilochtalsperre
the 28 km long an artificial lake built by damming the river Saale is the biggest water reservoir in Germany. Boat trips are offered (saalburg.de, saalburg-ebersdorf.de, saaletal-schiffe.de, In Saalburg-Ebersdorf is a fairy tale park.Saalfeld/Feengrotten
nice town, but the highlight are the nearby Feengrotten feengrotten.de, Entrance 7 € Kids 4 €, which are the ilumniated alum-salte cave-like galeries have a colourful grotto, all is a result of mining of alum in this area.Rudolstadt (pop ~28.000)
Rudolphstadt has a nice old city, which was said already be Schiller, who married Charlotte von Lengefeld, who lived there. Look also at the Handwerkerhof an ensemble of craft shops and the museum of thuringia traditional farm houses. Above the town is the baroque castle Heidecksburg (entrance 6/5 €, link: heidecksburg.de), which can be visited.Kahla (pop ~.000)
old town center, enthroned with the very impressive castle Leuchtenburg,Jena (pop ~105.000) jena.de,
University town, where the opticians Carl Zeiss, Ernst Abbe and Otto Schott developped the optical precision technology. Many philosophs and other famous persons lived in Jena, among them Schiller, Goethe and Feuerbach.University Tower
Planetarium
Worth a visit might be the Optical Museum optisches-museum.de and the Zeiss Planetarium (ticket for film is 8/6 Euro pp., planetarium-jena.de ), which is one of the world oldest Planetariums (1926). You can visit also the plattform on the Jena-University-Tower (fee is 3 Euro pp.) , the only scycraper in Thuringia with 29 floors and have a superb view at the town and surroundings.
Dornburger Schlösser
small but pretty old medieval palaces
East Thuringia
Gera (pop ~) gera.de, gera-tourismus.de, haus-schulenburg-gera.de,
nice arund the market with Renaissance town hall, some old subterranean deposits for beer and a nice garden park.
The Villa Haus-Schulenburg is a museum, which dedicates too the designer and Bauhaus architect Henry Van der Velde (1863 - 1957).
Not far in the north of Gera is the village Bad Koestritz. It is famous for the "Koestritzer" a Schwarzbier that is a sweet dark beer. Some sugar is added and it's the exception of the traditional law that beer should only be made by yeast, malt and water, but it tastes good! koestritzer.de,Ronneburg (pop ~)ronneburg.de, themenpark-weltentor.com,
a medieval theme and garden park is plannedAltenburg (pop ~) altenburg-tourismus.de,
here was in 1813 the card game "Skat" invented, which is German's most popular game. Altenburg ia also the seat of the "Skat" arbitration panel. A "Skat" fountain is situated at the long stretched market place, where is also at its end a cloister church and above the town the 1000 year old castle Schloss Altenburg. You can visit the Skat and a beer museum brauerei-altenburg.de,Altenburg-Nobiz airline:ryanair.com,
there is an old military airport at Altenburg Nobitz, today called Altenburg/Leipzig. It is used today only by Ryanair with flights to London-Stanstead and Girona/Spain in summer. Fares are exceptional low, but with many restrictions, what is added to the ticket price. But it is often still the cheapest way to reach Thuringia and Saxony from abroad. After each flight is a bus shuttle to the Altenburg railway station in town.Greiz (pop ~) greiz.de,
two palaces the "Obere Schloss" and the "Untere Schloss" (entrance each 2,50 €) are the remaining relicts of the nobel dynasty "Reuß".
Activities and leisure:
Biking trails: thueringen-tourismus.de, maps: gruenes-herz.de,
Saale Radwanderweg 198 km Spamberg-Kaatschen (mountainous), saale-radwanderweg.de,
Werratal Radweg: 200km Rennsteig-Treffurt, werratal.de,
Rennsteig Radwanderweg 195 km,
Ilmtal-Radwanderweg (Kaatschen-Weichau), Thüringer Städtekette 240 km Altenburg- Creuzburg), ilmtal-radwanderweg.de,
Thüringer Städtekette: (225 km seven towns: Altenburg, Gera, Jena, Weimar, Erfurt, Gotha, Eisenach) thueringer-staedte.de,Hiking trails:
Rennsteig 168 km Hörschel-Blankenheim links, thueringer-wald.com,
Wartburgpfad and Drachenschlucht: daytour eisenach-tourist.de,
Goethe-Wanderweg Ilmenau-Stützenbach 16,5 km ilmenau.de/goewan,
Klassikerpfad Ilmanau-Arnstadt 25km arnstadt.de,
Barbarossa Wanderweg 326 km (156 km in Thuringia) thueringen-tourismus.de,
Olitätenrundwanderweg: 44 places of herbal gardens or herbal places connect this trail (Bad Blankenburg/Großbreitenbach, Lichte) olitaeten.de,Sport event:
running Marathon or 50 km Rennsteiglauf at end of Mai: rennsteiglauf.de,Spa pools
Bad Salzungen: keltenbad.de, Bad Liebenstein bad-liebenstein.de, Masserberg: badehaus-masserberg.de, masserberg.de, Bad Sulza: bad-sulza.de, toskana-therme.de,
Food
the most known Thuringias spezialities are the "Thüringer Bratwurst" which is a fried sausage (made by minced pork meat, onions, garlic, caraway,majoram) and "Thüringer Klöße", which are potatoe dumplings (made by 2/3 of raw grated potatoes and 1/3 cooked gartes potatoes).
There are two "Kloss" museums one in Großbreitenbach and one in Heuchelheim and a Bratwurstmuseum in Holzhausen
links: klossmuseum.de, bratwurstmuseum.net,
Links:
Links in English: itcwebdesigns.com/tour_germany/thuringia.htm,
others: thueringen-tourismus.de, thueringen.de, urlaubsland-thueringen.de,
mail me:
Feedback, corrections, news, critics, links and suggestions are welcome !!
mail me:Excuse my English, thanks!
English is not my native language, there will be mistakes in writing and grammar. It would be kind to mail me 1-5 mistakes you found, if you think this side is helpful for your trip. Thanks!
