Walk the City Wall

Rothenburg’s old quarter has no less than 42 towers. Most are along the city wall, at the six gates into the city and along the fortifications. Inside the old quarter, you can find the towers of the first city wall, the City Hall tower and the towers of St. James. Many sections of the Tower Trail lead along the top of the city wall while a small part also leads around it. In about 2.5 hours, you can find out everything about the city’s defense system during a stroll along the four-kilometer Tower Trail. Photographers can enjoy numerous unique subjects here, such as the Gerlachschmiede or the views of the Tauber Valley from the Spital quarter.

Rothenburg’s Tower Trail is open around the clock. Just like on a pedestrian path, just follow the circuit around the old city, where you’ll pass the plaques with information about the next attractions. A brochure in German and English also gives you information about the total of 22 stations. You can also complete the Tower Trail in stages. Stairs at various points enable you to exit the passages on the city wall. A visit to the Röderturm in the east of the old quarter is not to be missed. In addition to a beautiful view of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, the Röderturm hosts an exhibit on the reconstruction of the eastern old city after the destruction in World War II. To this day, there are donors in Rothenburg and from all over the world who give money to the preservation of the old quarter. Their names are memorialized on the plaques that can be found along the Tower Trail at the city wall.

If you would like to follow the Tower Trail in Rothenburg ob der Tauber with a tour, you can do this with Karin Bierstedt. In the tour “Sind Sie heute schon getürmt?” (Have you climbed any towers today?), the expert provides useful information on the history of the city wall and the meaning of the fortification system for the city. The Wolfgang’s Church is one of the special locations along the city wall. It is clearly discernible as a church from the city, but on the outside it is part of the city’s fortification and battlements. On the Tower Trail, you also pass the Castle Garden with its magnificent view of the Tauber Valley. The castle gate is one of the six entrances to the city. At each of these entrances, you can access a short informative video with spectacular city images via the QR code on the info panel. Or you can access the six clips directly via www.turmweg.info. The Spital quarter  bastion in the south of the city is particularly impressive in these videos: this most recent part of the city’s defenses appears in the shape of an eight in aerial pictures.