Charming old-world towns in Germany off the beaten path.
Less-touristed old-world towns in Germany, for travelers seeking fewer crowds but all the beauty.
Weilburg
A photogenic pocket-sized town in Hesse set on the Lahn river between the Westerwald and Taunus uplands, Weilburg was for centuries the residence of the Nass…
Eibenstock
A compact Saxon town in the forested Ore Mountains, Eibenstock pairs a Gothic church spire and ornate 19th-century civic buildings with a broad reservoir bac…
Bad Reichenhall
Salt production with a history stretching back four thousand years defines Bad Reichenhall, a spa town in the Bavarian Alps of Upper Bavaria whose Alpine sal…
Ochsenfurt
A well-preserved medieval town wall with numerous towers and gates rings the historic centre of this little Franconian town on the River Main, set deep in th…
Naumburg
Naumburg Cathedral, inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2018 for its role in shaping medieval European culture, anchors this walkable town in southe…
Schmalkalden
Town on the Schmalkalde river at the southern edge of the Thuringian Forest, Schmalkalden sits in mountain terrain with scenic viewpoints across the surround…
Landshut
Every four years, Landshut stages the Landshuter Hochzeit, a large-scale re-enactment of the 1475 wedding of Bavarian Duke Georg the Rich to Polish princess…
Sangerhausen
Town in Saxony-Anhalt at the southeastern edge of the Harz mountains, Sangerhausen served for several centuries as a centre of non-ferrous metal mining — cop…
Hausach-Dorf
A compact Black Forest town in a forested valley, with a large Gothic sandstone church anchoring its red-tile rooftops, half-timbered streetfronts, and woode…
Meissen
Meissen porcelain — the first European porcelain, produced here since 1708 — is the defining reason to visit this Saxon town on the River Elbe, a short dista…
Kronach
Birthplace of the Renaissance painter Lucas Cranach the Elder, Kronach is a town in Upper Franconia where three rivers meet at the edge of the Franconian For…
Oberstein
The Felsenkirche — a late 15th-century church built directly into a vertical rock face above the old town — is the defining landmark of Idar-Oberstein, a gem…
Annaberg-Buchholz
A mountain town in Saxony's Ore Mountains whose historic old town has been part of a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2019, alongside the surrounding histori…
Kulmbach
Plassenburg Castle, which houses the largest tin soldier collection in the world, rises above this Bavarian town on the Main river in Franconia, a short dist…
Rochlitz
Since June 2024, Rochlitz in Saxony has carried the official designation "Town of Red Porphyry," a nod to the distinctive volcanic stone that defines the area.
Bad Neustadt an der Saale
This walkable Bavarian spa town where the Franconian Saale and Brend rivers meet, Bad Neustadt an der Saale has a centre with several historic churches, café…
Perleberg
A compact Brandenburg town with a walkable central core of cafés and restaurants, Perleberg has held city rights since 1239 and serves as the district capita…
Mühlhausen
One of the largest surviving medieval city centres in Germany, Mühlhausen is a Thuringian town on the Unstrut river with eleven Gothic churches, a nearly com…
Einbeck
Bock beer takes its name from this former Hanseatic town in southern Lower Saxony, where a brewing tradition centuries old still defines the local identity.
Wasserburg am Inn
This modest Bavarian town whose historic centre occupies a peninsula formed by a loop of the river Inn, Wasserburg am Inn has a strong café and restaurant sc…
Coesfeld
A compact Westphalian town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Coesfeld's red-brick centre radiates outward from a prominent twin-towered church, with tree-lined stre…
Köpenick
A historic district in southeast Berlin where the rivers Dahme and Spree meet, Köpenick has a well-preserved medieval old town and a Baroque palace, both sit…
Wolfhagen
A small town in Hesse with a historic half-timbered centre, Wolfhagen carries the official designation "Hans-Staden-Stadt" — named after the German mercenary…
Herzberg
A cobblestone market square anchors this small Brandenburg town, where a grand red-brick Gothic church and a stepped-gable Renaissance town hall face each ot…
Dietkirchen
The Basilica of St.
Oschatz
A Saxon town between Leipzig and Dresden, Oschatz centres on a broad cobbled market square framed by a Renaissance town hall with stepped gables, an ornate f…
Bad Langensalza
This German spa town in Thuringia where a walkable old centre of half-timbered buildings and a tall church tower rising above cobbled streets meets riverside…
Lüneburg
This heritage-dense Hanseatic town on the River Ilmenau in Lower Saxony, Lüneburg carries a well-preserved medieval streetscape and a walkable centre with a…
Pirna
This sweep of red-tile rooftops and a commanding Gothic church tower define this Saxon town on the Elbe, set in hill country near Dresden with vineyards clos…
Frauenstein
A pocket-sized town in the eastern Ore Mountains of Saxony, Frauenstein sits in mountain terrain with scenic viewpoints and a castle northeast of the town ce…
Moritzburg
The Baroque hunting castle Schloss Moritzburg is the centrepiece of this tiny Saxon town between Meissen and Dresden, set on a lake and reached by a narrow-g…
Baiersbronn
Baiersbronn, a town in Germany's Black Forest, holds an outsized reputation for haute cuisine — accumulating eight Michelin stars across its restaurants, a c…
Zülpich
This Roman-founded town in North Rhine-Westphalia between Aachen and Bonn, Zülpich traces its origins to the 1st century BC under the Latin name Tolbiacum an…
Husum
Birthplace of the novelist Theodor Storm, who called it "the grey town by the sea," Husum is a walkable North Sea town in Schleswig-Holstein with a café-fill…
Rudolstadt
Castle Heidecksburg rises above the old town of Rudolstadt, a Thuringian town on the River Saale founded in 776 and once the capital of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt.
Kipfenberg
Claimed as the geographical centre of Bavaria, Kipfenberg is a tiny market town in the Eichstätt district where the Altmühl river runs through the centre and…
Nagold
This Black Forest-edge town in Baden-Württemberg where the River Nagold runs through a centre of half-timbered houses and modern architecture, with a walkabl…
Dinkelsbühl
One of only four towns in Germany with completely intact medieval city walls, Dinkelsbühl sits on the River Wörnitz along the Romantic Road in Central Franco…
Freiberg
Freiberg's entire historic centre — known as the Silver City — has been under monument protection since long before the town's mining heritage earned UNESCO…
Burg bei Magdeburg
Known as the "City of Towers" for its concentration of medieval churches and steeples, Burg bei Magdeburg sits on the Elbe–Havel Canal in Saxony-Anhalt, a sh…
Celle
With more than 400 timber-framed houses packed into a walkable Altstadt on the banks of the river Aller, Celle is one of the most photographed towns on the G…
Ludwigslust
Ludwigslust Palace, the neoclassical residence of the Dukes of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and sometimes called the Versailles of the North, anchors this small town…
Neustadt an der Weinstraße
One of Germany's central wine towns, Neustadt an der Weinstraße sits along the Deutsche Weinstraße in Rhineland-Palatinate and hosts the annual Deutsche Wein…
Pappenheim
A compact Bavarian town in the Altmühl valley where medieval stone walls, a Gothic church, and red-tile rooftops spread across a river bend, backed by wooded…
Mittweida
This compact Saxon market town with a cobbled central square, ornate stepped-gable facades, and a decorated stone obelisk, sitting close to the water and upl…
Eschwege
Walkable town in northeastern Hesse on the Werra river, Eschwege sits in hilly terrain with scenic viewpoints in the surrounding countryside and a centre wit…
Altrhede
Compact North Rhine-Westphalian town in the flat, green Münsterland, with a prominent church anchoring its brick-built centre, a moated manor house set in pa…
Wurzen
A Saxon town on the river Mulde, east of Leipzig, Wurzen has been recorded since 961 and carries a notable medieval core: a 12th-century cathedral that gaine…
Alzey
A wine-country town in Rhenish Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate, Alzey sits in a region ringed by UNESCO World Heritage sites and carries a walkable centre with c…
Bad Staffelstein
This small spa town in Upper Franconia, Bavaria, sits along the Main river and is anchored by three landmarks: the Basilica of Vierzehnheiligen, designed by…
Neumarkt in der Oberpfalz
This Bavarian town in the Upper Palatinate with a walkable old town whose skyline is defined by the towers of its historic churches, Neumarkt in der Oberpfal…
Unna
A broad market square lined with half-timbered buildings, ornate gabled facades, and open-air café seating gives this North Rhine-Westphalian town a walkable…
Quedlinburg
Quedlinburg's medieval old town, added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1994, holds more than 2,100 timber-framed houses spanning eight centuries, making…
Werdau
This Saxon town on the river Pleiße, Werdau has a compact centre with cafés and restaurants within easy reach of the water.
Ratzeburg
Surrounded by four lakes and connected to the mainland only by three causeways, Ratzeburg is a small island-town in Schleswig-Holstein whose old town sits en…
Zschopau
Motorcycle production has defined Zschopau since 1922, when the Zschopauer Motorenwerke began building bikes under the DKW brand — the world's first motorcyc…
Amorbach
Compact Bavarian town in the Odenwald uplands where a red-sandstone baroque church tower rises above a cobbled market square lined with traditional half-timb…
Lich
A cobblestone street lined with rows of well-preserved half-timbered houses with red-tile roofs gives this modest Hessian town a walkable old-town core worth…
Grimma
A Saxon town on the Mulde river southeast of Leipzig, Grimma has a walkable historic centre with a concentration of Gothic and Renaissance buildings and a ca…
Bad Sooden-Allendorf
This small spa town in Hesse straddling the Werra river, Bad Sooden-Allendorf drew its wealth from salt-brine extraction for centuries before reinventing its…