I am getting ready for a train-based 3-week itinerary, Dresden to Regensburg, overnighting in Leipzig, Erfurt, Rothenburg, and Nuremberg. Mostly I'm following RS Guide itinerary, stopping in several towns, adding in Bamberg and Regensburg. If anyone has been in these areas recently I would love to hear some tips on Covid impacts, or places to visit that aren't highlighted in RS.
Thanks!
-- Ethan
I think you have a lot of interesting places to fill your 3 week itinerary. But if you want some more suggestions that are reachable by train from Leipzig in about 2 hours I’d recommend including the Harz mountain area of Wernigerode and Quedlinburg where we’ve spent a lot of time. Another city I can’t wait to visit but it’s a little bit of an effort is Görlitz by the Polish border, 2 hours east of Dresden. I almost made it there in 2021 but my flight and trip were cancelled.
Yes to Gorlitz and Quedlinburg.
Around Erfurt you have Weimar (Buchenwald concentration camp, later used to incarcerate enemies of the GDR, can be visited) and Eisenach (Wartburg Castle).
Görlitz is definitely a place I am excited about, along with Bautzen possibly en-route. I have 5 nights in Dresden which I had thought would be generous and now feels very tight! It's followed by two nights in Leipzig, and depending upon when I leave for Leipzig I have a "swing" day in either town.
One thing that's a shame about this plan is that I like food tours. But in these towns there just aren't many group tours in English, if any, and no food tours. As a solo traveler, I can't really do a private one either. Food tours are best with small groups.
And I'm definitely doing Wartburg. "en passant" from Leipzig I'll take the train to Eisenach, leave my bags, see Wartburg, then catch the train to Erfurt for three nights. Cameron Hewitt recently said that Erfurt is a town he'd like to have some extra time in to just "be".
Spent a couple of days in Bamberg back in Oct. If you like old churches, and quaint lanes filled with half-timbered buildings, then you will enjoy Bamberg. We got a bus pass for the day for 5€ and used it a lot as there were lots of hills and some sites were quite spread out. Didn't make it to any museums though. The town is definetely worth a visit.
Bautzen is both a cultural and historical site., worth visiting for these two reasons.
Historical since it was the scene of fierce fighting in the battles around Berlin in 1945, arguably Bautzen is the last German tactical victory in the East.
The memorial plaque to the Polish troops engaged in that fighting is there in Bautzen. In 1813 it was the Russians who met with defeat by Napoleon in the two day battle of Bautzen.
Erfurt
The Errinerungsort Topf und Söhne is a museum about an Erfurt manufacturing conglomerate that, as a small part of its business, built the ovens of Auschwitz. It's a well-done museum that explores how a "normal company" with "normal owners" (who shielded Jewish and communist employees from the Nazis) became involved in genocide. The descriptions are in English as well German, though all the written documents on display are in German. I thought a visit there was well worth my time and effort.
A great family-owned hotel right at the edge of Domplatz is Hotel Domizil. A room with a view of the Dom is worth the extra 10 euro per night. Great breakfast made by one of the owners who is a trained chef. https://hotel-domizil-erfurt.de/en/home.html
Leipzig
The Monument to the Battle of the Nations is in Rick's book, but I will emphasize it. It's one of the most impressive structures I have seen.
Dresden
If you like nature, look at some pictures of Saxon Switzerland to see if it is worth a day trip.
Hi Dave -- I already have the Topf on my list for Erfurt, AND I'm already staying at the Domizil with a Dom view. 8-) The Topf feels like something Rick should include in his guide.
By Dresden I already have a guide to take me around Saxon Switzerland. In Leipzig I wasn't sure whether to see the monument but I'll give it a second thought now.
Thanks,
-- Ethan
I’m glad you’ve already found my gems in Erfurt. Just curious… how did you find them? I think I found both on Trip Advisor.
As for the monument in Leipzig, if you liked the Lord of the Rings films, definitely go. It has grand “old warrior” imagery like that in the films, which makes me think much of that imagery is based on Prussian history/imagery. I felt like it was part monument, part holy place. It’s unlike anything I have seen. And you get to climb stairs in narrow winding corridors to get to the top — a bit of an adventure in itself.
Yup, TripAdvisor. I know Rick has lots of issues with it, and truthfully I also have tons of issues with it. But having used it since before it was commercialized, I'm used to how to find what I need.
@ Dave....Did you see the Museum at the Monument? The Monument went through refurbishing and all that prior to 2013 for its 100th anniversary. I last saw it a couple of years before 2013.
I thought the Museum itself in its historical presentation of this gigantic battle until that point in time in 1813, ie armies of 4 nations against Napoleon , was not as comprehensive and balanced (ausgewogen) as I had expected. Maybe that was unrealistic on my part.
That painting depicting the meeting of the 3 victorious monarchs, the Emperor of Austria, the Tsar of Russia and the King of Prussia after the battle, is also in Berlin and Vienna , (the German History Museum on Unter den Linden, and the Heeresgeschichtliches Museum (Army Museum). Leipzig is the third place I've seen that painting.
Good that you made it out there !
Fred... Yes, I went through the museum, too. I don't remember it impressing me strongly one way or the other.
Ethan... Yes, I have been using TA for a long time, too. I find it helpful for finding obscure things that may be of interest... and small, family-owned hotels in a city in which a certain unnamed European guru's book says there is a dearth of such establishments 🙂.
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/germany/day-trip-from-erfurt-ideas
Do not overlook the deconsecrated and very old Synagogue in Erfurt.
I agree with Tim on the synagogue... definitely worth seeing if not already on your list.
Depending on how much time you have in Dresden the little town of Meissen is nearby and accessible by train. We visited there as a day trip almost 20 years ago and enjoyed wandering around as well as stopping at the porcelain factory.
