Rothenburg ob der Tauber: top attractions & road trip guide
Rothenburg ob der Tauber is a walled Bavarian town whose half-timbered old town survived largely intact, making it one of the best-preserved examples of a medieval German settlement. Its market square, town hall tower, and encircling ramparts draw visitors year-round, and the town is closely associated with its Christmas market and year-round Christmas shop.
Top attractions
Marktplatz and Town Hall
The town's central square, framed by the Gothic-Renaissance town hall whose tower can be climbed for views over the rooftops.
Plönlein
A picturesque fork in the road between two towers and a half-timbered house, one of the most photographed spots in Germany.
Rothenburg Town Walls
A largely complete circuit of medieval walls with a covered walkway that can be walked almost entirely around the old town.
St. Jakob's Church
A Gothic church housing the carved wooden Holy Blood Altar by Tilman Riemenschneider, a major work of late-medieval German sculpture.
Medieval Crime Museum
A museum tracing a thousand years of German legal history through torture devices, punishment tools, and courtroom artifacts.
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