Some visitors react with horror, others wish for a gift shop.
#Medieval city full#
Rothenburg's Medieval Crime and Punishment Museum, all explained in English, is full of diabolical instruments of punishment and torture. There's a thousand years of history packed between its cobbles. Today, it's the country's most exciting medieval town, enjoying tremendous popularity with tourists without losing its charm. In the Middle Ages, when Berlin and Munich were just wide spots in the road, Rothenburg was Germany's second-largest city, with a whopping population of 6,000. Make sure you plan for Rothenburg ob der Tauber (on the Tauber River) people really do sometimes drive or ride the train to other, nondescript Rothenburgs by accident.
![medieval city medieval city](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/d1/f8/30/d1f830ef907080211d76574f93110daf--carcassonne-torres.jpg)
Save time and mileage and be satisfied with the winner.īy the way, there are several "Rothenburgs" in Germany. Even with crowds, overpriced souvenirs, and a nearly inedible pastry specialty (the over-promoted, fried ball of pie crust called a Schneeball), Rothenburg is still the best. Countless travelers have searched for the elusive "untouristy Rothenburg." There are many contenders (such as Michelstadt, Miltenberg, Bamberg, Bad Windsheim, and Dinkelsbühl), but none holds a candle to the king of medieval German cuteness.
![medieval city medieval city](https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cBPDPj2LX-U/TrDd2N0zmdI/AAAAAAAAAmE/VOXzYynymHE/s1600/scan0027.jpg)
Today its barns are hotels, its livestock are tourists, and Rothenburg is well on its way to becoming a medieval theme park.īut Rothenburg is still Germany's best-preserved walled town. At that time, the town still fed a few farm animals within its medieval walls. As a young backpacker, I first fell in love with the picturesque village of Rothenburg, in Germany's Franconian heartland.