Neuenmarkt’s railway history extends beyond the museum: close to the German Steam Locomotive Museum stand a Catholic and a Protestant railway workers’ church. The railway planned both, and railway workers built them through voluntary effort. Alongside the railway history at the museum, you can therefore discover churches built by railway workers.
Railway History in Neuenmarkt
The railway line between Neuenmarkt-Wirsberg and Marktschorgast stations is also part of the history of the railway. It was built between 1844 and 1848. Visitors can take a tour of the exhibition at the German Steam Locomotive Museum. In the wider travel destination of Kulmbach, the museum in Neuenmarkt also preserves more than 30 steam locomotives in a historic railway landscape that has developed over time.
A different perspective is offered by the roughly three-kilometre walking tour of Neuenmarkt. From the perspective of a railway enthusiast, it explains features of the history of the railway village to participants. To arrange your preferred date, contact the museum at least two weeks in advance. For booked group tours of the exhibition, the operator asks that you register at least one week beforehand. The two formats therefore differ both in subject matter and in how far ahead you need to book.
Village Walk or Main Cycle Route?
The Main Cycle Route along the White Main runs from Himmelkron through Neuenmarkt, past Wirsberg towards Kulmbach and on to Mainleus. While the walking tour focuses on the history of the railway village, the cycle route places Neuenmarkt within a route that passes through several named places. For planning your trip, these offer different focal points: you can follow the local history or the course of the cycle route.
Kulmbach as a Broader Theme
In the wider travel destination of Kulmbach, the German Tin Figure Museum at Plassenburg Castle displays more than 300,000 individual figures arranged in around 150 dioramas. Zwernitz Castle in Wonsees was first mentioned in official records in 1156 as the ancestral seat of the Walpoten family. You can climb its tower for a sweeping view across the Franconian Switzerland Nature Park. The Sanspareil Rock Garden lies directly beside the castle. The Rock Theatre in the grove, the Oriental Building and the Kitchen Building have been preserved there. Thus, in the context of Kulmbach, displays of collections and historic castles and gardens offer distinct cultural highlights alongside Neuenmarkt’s railway theme.
Hiking trails are also part of the wider travel destination of Kulmbach. The nature trail on Kulmbach’s Rehberg is about four kilometres long and has 21 learning stations. The Frankenwaldsteigla “Rehbergweg” is an eleven-kilometre circular route from Plassenburg Castle to Rehberg, through Kulmbach’s old town and back to the starting point. The two options differ in length and format: a nature trail with stations or a circular route following a described path through the old town. It is worth checking current trail conditions before setting out on the Frankenwaldsteigla.
Another distinct highlight in the wider travel destination of Kulmbach is the Bavarian Brewery Museum. It devotes more than 3,000 square metres of exhibition space to the history and art of brewing beer. A visit ends with a taste from the Glass Museum Brewery. This adds a museum dedicated to brewing to the railway and architectural history.
Discover more destinations: Himmelkron, Marktleugast, Wonsees, Kasendorf, Neudrossenfeld, Mainleus, Wirsberg, Thurnau.
Go to the broader travel overview: Kulmbach.
