21 learning stations over about four kilometres: the nature trail on Kulmbach’s Rehberg combines exercise with insights into nature. If you’re looking for a longer hike, the “Rehbergweg” Frankenwaldsteigla trail is an 11-kilometre circular route. It leads from Plassenburg Castle to the Rehberg, through Kulmbach’s old town and back to the starting point. The different route lengths provide a concrete guide for planning; check current trail conditions before setting out.
Hiking trails and tours in the Kulmbach region
Elsewhere in the region, too, you can easily compare routes by length. The official hiking guide lists an 11-kilometre circular route between Thurnau and Kasendorf. In Wonsees, it recommends the 13.5-kilometre Große-Wonsees-Erlebnisrunde. Both figures refer to circular routes, but the routes differ in length. This lets you base your choice on the distance available and the places you’d like to include along the way.
The Rotmainauen hiking trail has a different focus: it runs from the former state horticultural show grounds in Bayreuth via Heinersreuth and Neudrossenfeld to Langenstadt. For a two-wheeled journey, the “Rund um Kulmbach” motorcycle tour starts and ends in Kulmbach and is just over 200 kilometres long. The Kulmbach region offers hiking, cycling and motorcycle tours across terrain ranging from gently rolling to challenging. This variety makes the tours different ways to explore the region’s landscape.
Castle, garden and collection history
In Wonsees, Zwernitz Castle is right next to the Sanspareil rock garden. The castle was first mentioned in official records in 1156 as the ancestral seat of the Walpoten family. You can climb its tower for sweeping views across the Franconian Switzerland Nature Park. In the adjoining rock garden, the rock theatre in the grove, the Oriental Building and the Kitchen Building have all been preserved. The castle and garden thus bring together a historic landmark and three distinctive buildings and features.
At Plassenburg Castle, the German Tin Figure Museum is dedicated to a collection of more than 300,000 individual figures arranged in around 150 dioramas. The dioramas place the individual figures in larger scenes, making the extraordinary collection accessible as a series of carefully composed displays. The German Steam Locomotive Museum in Neuenmarkt offers a different way to engage with history: it preserves more than 30 steam locomotives in a historically developed railway setting.
Beer culture and living traditions
The Bavarian Brewery Museum devotes more than 3,000 square metres of exhibition space to the history and art of brewing beer. The visit ends with a sample from the Glass Museum Brewery. Alongside the historical and craft themes, beer itself is also in the spotlight. If you’re interested in regional customs, Limmersdorf has an open-air exhibition about dancing linden trees and the traditions and customs that have developed around them.
Landscape and orientation
The Steinach Gorge near Presseck is an approximately 300-metre-long section of a natural monument between Neumühle and the former Waffenhammer. Its clearly named endpoints and approximate length provide a concrete sense of this stretch of landscape without suggesting that it is a longer route.
An official public transport service runs from Kulmbach via Thurnau, Sanspareil and Wonsees to Hollfeld and Ebermannstadt. Check the timetable for your travel date. Whether you’d rather spend your time on hiking trails, historic sites, railway history or brewing culture, the region’s diverse places and themes offer different starting points for exploring the Kulmbach area.
Discover more destinations: Kasendorf, Presseck, Wirsberg, Trebgast, Thurnau, Mainleus, Kulmbach, Neudrossenfeld, Marktleugast, Himmelkron, Stadtsteinach, Untersteinach, Neuenmarkt, Wonsees, Marktschorgast, Grafengehaig.
See the main travel overview: Bavaria.
