From long-distance hiking to day excursions, recreational activity holidays are once again on the cards. A commonplace, no doubt, but nonetheless true: exercise – as well as food and drink – is necessary to keep body and soul together. Exercise in a natural environment strengthens the immune system, raises energy levels, promotes mental health – and offers welcome relief, particularly now, after a period of enforced isolation.
And the many and varied facilities for walking and hiking along the Romantic Road from Würzburg to Füssen provide the perfect opportunity to leave the times of the corona virus behind. Germany’s most famous and most popular, high-quality holiday trail can, as of now, look forward to an abundance of guests seeking top-flight recreation, active recuperation and freedom to exercise.
The good news from Bavaria and Franconia is that there will be a staged opening of beer gardens, restaurants and hotels again in May, subject to appropriate hygiene measures and distancing rules, so that travellers will, once again, be able to plan – and, above all, enjoy – short breaks and longer stays on the Romantic Road. That fits in well with current trends, as people do not need to go far to spend this year’s holidays in their own country while travelling sustainably and remaining close to nature.
The numerous itineraries and opportunities for active holidays along the Romantic Road not only include the Romantic Road’s long-distance hiking trail from the river Main to the Alps, a 500-kilometre stretch of hiking pleasures with unmissable towns, villages and scenery; it also includes plenty of shorter, individual stages and day excursions to delight the hearts of walkers old and young. For those who enjoy collecting certificated evidence of their walks, there is the Romantic Road Hiking Card with a Bronze Award for 10 places visited, Silver for 20 stages and Gold for all 29.
And it is not only the attractive countryside that brings a successful walking trip to life: it’s also the fascinating stories that go with it. The journey of one town mayor from palace to dungeon is, for instance, brought vividly to life in the Topplerschlößchen to be found on the walk round the Rothenburg Mill Trail. There is no better subject matter for an exciting drama than this: birth date unknown, exact circumstances and day of death unknown, yet between the two a life that could hardly have been more dazzling. Renowned, decried, beset by feuds, even perhaps murdered by the citizens and council members of his own town, Heinrich Toppler remains, even today, the subject of scholarly controversy. But of one thing there is no doubt: Rothenburg ob der Tauber would not be what it is now without Heinrich Toppler: the very essence of the romantic middle ages, in which, oftentimes, things occurred that were not in the least romantic! Born in Rothenburg sometime between 1345 and 1350, the son of an old-established dynasty of council members, he was elected Mayor for the first time as a young man in 1373, in which office he served the interests of then Free Imperial City of Rothenburg and, as many say, those of his own pocket in particular. At all events, with skilful policies involving alliances and marriage, he was very successful in extending the power and influence of Rothenburg and in asserting its position in the conflicting priorities that existed between Würzburg, Nürnberg and the Swabian League of Cities. From 1384 until his death in 1408, he was re-elected again and again, an unusual phenomenon at the time. But, the bigger they come, the harder they fall! And this was never more true than of Rothenburg’s most powerful and most famous son: in the end, his fate became entwined in a web of intrigue, he was accused of treason and thrown into the dungeon beneath the town hall, where he most probably died on 26 May or 13 June 1408. What many found particularly hard to swallow was the construction, begun in 1388 of ‘Rosenthal’, a palatial summer and secondary residence beneath the town on the banks of the river Tauber. With its defensive tower, complete with drawbridge, floodable moat and living quarters above, it is a tangible reminder of a mediaeval world in which even the mayor was not safe. Immediately opposite lies the historic Fuchsmühle Mill, part of the Rothenburg Mill Trail, which dates from the 15th century and is now a hotel offering bed and breakfast for overnight guests.
Further information on the Romantic Road can be found at: www.romanticroad.de You can also download the brochure ‘Long-distance hiking trail along the Romantic Road from the river Main to the Alps’ together with more detailed information on other available trips.
