Rothenburg; Saturday, 16 December, 2023

Whilst the hotel was very comfortable and warm, and the breakfasts were excellent, the pillows or more importantly pillow was a major downside. Thin with almost no support to it and singular in it’s supply it didn’t make for the most restful of nights sleep. But after a hearty breakfast and a very strong coffee I was ready to head out into town for a day of exploration.

I walked back towards town the way I’d headed in the previous day, but at the Röderbastei I took a turn and headed up the steps by the Röderturm and onto the city walls. Almost the complete city walls exist encircling the city – mostly due to financial hardships after the 30 years war meaning the city never really grew enough to be hemmed in by its walls, so never felt the need to fully demolish them. By the time the city was growing enough it was being fuelled by tourism and the walls were a distinct bonus for the fairytale image. The walls fall into three main sections – a set of high walls to the East and north of the city which you can walk along the top of, high above the road below, a set of walls built along the steep cliffs that fall away from the city on the Western side so you walk along a wall path that’s high above the outside roads, but not that far off the ground inside the city, and then a section of walls that are built up from the sheer cliff, requiring no need to extend above waist height as they provided more than enough protection.

I headed up onto the walls and walked the first long section of the high walls all the way round to the Spitalturm taking in some impressive views of the city along the way. At the Spitalturm the high walls finish, but you can continue through the grounds of the local council and pick up the lower walls, or like me, divert off and have another look around the Spitaltor.

The Spitaltor is a major barbican gate that protected the southern entrance to the city, with the gate itself almost a small fortress. You can go into the inside of the gate and wander around the inner parts that look down on both sides of the roadway that weaves its way through the complex – clearly making it easy to defend the city, even if attackers breach the initial outer part.

From the Spitaltor I wandered around the corner to pick up the walls again and followed them north towards the Kohlgate, stopping along the way to take in some pretty amazing views across the valley and towards the rest of the city and it’s walls.

At the Kohlgate the walkways up on the walls stop as the natural geography of the land has the city high up on cliff overlooking the Tauber river which means sheer walls up to the start of buildings were enough to defend this part of town, and you can wander alongside them, the walls coming up to hip height.

The walls led me round to the site of the former Imperial palace which has long since disappeared with just a small chapel remaining what is now called the burggarten. From there it was back through the burgtor and carry on following the walls – though here a significant part of the walls have been incorporated into the outside walls of buildings built upon them, so you can’t get particularly close to the edge – the biggest offender being the former Dominican convent, which is now the city museum. A short walk further and you reach the Klingentorbastei protecting the northern entrance to the city and as part of it the Klingentor and the start of the high walls again.

From here I followed the high walkway back along the walls to where I’d started my walk at the Röderturm some 3½ hours earlier. I arrived back to find that the tower was now open to visit, so despite being quite tired after a lengthy walk I hauled my way up the 100-odd steps to the top of the tower to take in the views over the city.

Back down at ground level I headed into the centre of town to grab a very late lunch in the Christmas Market and then headed on over to the city museum to have a look around their exhibitions on the history of the city and the Dominican Convent that the museum is housed in. After taking in the exhibition I then headed back to the hotel to freshen up and rest my weary legs, heading out a little later to grab a quick dinner before an early night.