Visiting Rothenburg ob der Tauber

Rothenburg ob der Tauber is a gorgeous, traditional German town. It's so picturesque and definitely the place you want to visit if you'd like to experience a picture-perfect, historical German place! It's quite far from Mannheim but you can get there by bus or train, and it's definitely worth the journey.

Food and drink

There are plenty of bars, cafes and restaurants in Rothenburg. I would recommend checking out a traditional German restaurant and trying one of the specialties in order to really make the most of your experience, but if that doesn't appeal to you, there are plenty of more modern, non-German options! Prices range, but there are several moderately-priced, great value options around.

Whatever you do, you should definitely try a 'Schneeball' (or 'snowball'). A Schneeball is strips of shortcrust pastry rolled up into the shape of a ball, usually dusted with icing sugar (although nowadays there are plenty of exciting variations on the standard Schneeball). They're very particular to Rothenburg, and taste pretty good too!

Things to do

Aside from looking at all the pretty houses and buildings, there are actually quite a few other things worth seeing in Rothenburg. For example, you can walk around parts of the old castle wall, which gives you great views.

For even better views, try going up the church tower. Fair warning - these steps aren't for the faint-hearted (or those who are scared of heights); they get very narrow and winding in places! Fortunately, you don't have to pay the entrance fee until you actually make it to the top, so if you change your mind halfway up, it's not going to cost you. If you do make it to the top though, you get some great all-around views of the town and surrounding area so it's definitely worth it.

Rothenburg also has some pretty interesting museums, notably the torture museum and the Christmas museum (slightly different subject matter but both entertaining in their own way). 

Photos