Text and photo: Jonathan Gharbi de Maré
If you like castles, palaces and medieval towns, you should travel along the Burgenstrasse (Castle Road) in southern Germany. There are over 60 castles to visit here, spread across a number of locations. One of the most famous medieval towns is Rothenburg, which has a vibrant medieval culture that blooms several times a year.
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Burgenstrasse is divided into smaller routes
The whole Burgenstrasse is divided into five smaller sections and there are plenty of brochures, maps and suggestions for accommodation and restaurants along the route. The road passes through lots of small beautiful villages and towns in medieval style with half-timbered houses.
They are either in their original condition, but many have also been carefully restored to preserve the medieval style. Several castles along the route were built as early as the 11th century, but even among these there are those that are in their original condition and those that have been rebuilt in stages over the centuries.
The medieval town of Rothenburg
The correct and long name is Rothenburg ob der Tauber, as the Tauber River flows past outside the city center. The city is beautifully surrounded by a solid wall with lots of towers. The tallest tower is from the late 9th century and several of the others were built over the next two hundred years.
The wall itself is around three and a half kilometers long and you can walk around the city on top of the walls. Once where soldiers tramped around during the Thirty Years' War.
The inner part of the town, where about 3,000 inhabitants live, consists mostly of half-timbered houses in the Baroque style. Although the town burned down a few hundred years ago and was also bombed during World War II, the style has been preserved, which has also contributed to Rothenburg being Germany's most fascinating medieval town.
Pentecost Medieval Festival in Rothenburg
There are several medieval-themed festivals in Rothenburg, the locals love their parties so there are a few throughout the year. The one I visited is called Pentecost and was between May 22-25, the festival has been organized every year since 1881 to commemorate the year 1631 and the Thirty Years' War. It lasted from 1618 to 1648 and was mainly a war between Catholics and Protestants.
The Swedish garrison outside Rothenburg
There was also a Swedish camp at the festival with soldiers wearing blue uniforms. They were part of the Swedish garrison that was outside Rothenburg in 1631.
Gustav II Adolf and his armies fought on the side of the Protestants in the Thirty Years' War. So the Swedish soldiers play an important role during the games, but not only in Rothenburg but also in many other cities, Sweden played an important role four hundred years ago.
With contemporary clothes
Several hundred of the city's residents dress up in period clothing and then walk around in it from morning to night. There is a large fenced-in area where only the city's costumed residents are allowed to stay and they live as contemporary as possible with food and drink from that time, meat and beer or wine diluted with water.
There is also a bigger festival in September and other events all year round. What is surprising is that the city doesn't attract many foreign tourists so it's mostly Germans who are there. But many come from other cities and just enjoy walking around in medieval clothes in a medieval city. A bit like the medieval week on Gotland. Rothenburg is part of beer-loving Bavaria which is great to see, beer is drunk everywhere from early morning until late at night.
Christmas shop, museum and Jewish history in Rothenburg
What really surprised us in the summer heat was the enormous Christmas shop in Rothenburg. Käthe Wohlfart is a German chain focused on Christmas products, but the store in Rothenburg has a large exhibition and museum. Among other things, a 5.7-meter-high Christmas tree and several others fit into the nooks and crannies of the store, which is teeming with Christmas decorations.
The city also has a Jewish history and several neighborhoods where Jews lived during the Middle Ages. There are guided tours, both in German and English, so you can learn more about the city's historical heritage.
There is a museum where you can see how the city was destroyed during World War II. Many people also visit the medieval crime museum where you can learn more about how prisoners were treated during the Middle Ages, not so cheerfully of course.
St. James' Church is very large in relation to the city's surface area but bears witness to how rich and important the city was. It took four hundred years to build it but only takes fifteen minutes to walk around and look around, so it is a must in Rothenburg.
Festivals and events in Rothenburg
On August 6-8, the Taubertal Music Festival is celebrated, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. The following week, August 12-16, there is a wine festival and the region's winemakers gather in Rothenburg. The Rothenburg Imperial City Festival is one of the largest festivals and is a historical medieval celebration, September 4-9. On each occasion, around 900 of the city's residents usually participate in period clothing, so it is truly a folk festival.
After traveling around for a week along Burgenstrasse, my personal favorite is Rothenburg, not only for the medieval style but also for the nice atmosphere in town.
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Erik Begtsson says:
Interesting read! I didn't know about Rothenburg at all before, but now it feels like a city I definitely want to visit. Nice description of both the history and the atmosphere during the festival.
04 June 2026 - 11:41
Jonathan says:
Yes, if you like medieval week on Gotland, Rothenburg is paradise 😃
04 June 2026 - 12:54
Karolina says:
What an exciting city, will have to put it on the list of upcoming destinations!
04 June 2026 - 11:53
Jonathan says:
Yes, if you time it for one of their festivals, it's really great. But otherwise too, very beautiful houses and lots of walls and towers!
04 June 2026 - 12:56
Pontus says:
Fascinating with so many well-preserved old buildings. Just think, some of the masonry is over a thousand years old and still stands. And then the beer culture on top of that! It will probably be worth a visit no matter what.
05 June 2026 - 1:08
Jonathan says:
Yes, it is really beautiful and really well-built. If you like building, there is decoration so there is enough and there is leftover 🥳
05 June 2026 - 9:44
Lena - gott för själen says:
The Germans really know how to party and celebrate! Many people seem to like Rothenburg. I've seen many people visit it. However, I didn't know about the festival. It seems really lovely! Thanks for the tip!
/Lena
August 04, 2026 - 18:43