The Imperial Castle in Nürnberg was one of the most important fortified imperial palaces of the old Holy Roman Empire. The incredible rocky structure holds myths, legends and a dazzling history of power and pride. Considered to be a settlement around the year 1,000, the castle in its current form was built only in the 13th century, when the Imperial Free City of Nuremberg was settled, and used to be called the Luginsland Tower.
Kaiserburg, Burg 13, Nürnberg, Germany, +49 0911 2446590
A typical medieval wine warehouse, the Weinstadel is one of the city’s most important urban structures in the heart of its historical area. A stop-off on the Historical Mile in Nuremberg, Weinstadel is located on the river side and represents a masterpiece in terms of traditional architecture, as the half-timber framed façade meets the sandstone brick ground floors. Pure beauty.
A charming street with impressive, half-timber, multi-colored housing, the Weißgerbergasse is nowadays a famous area for relaxation in a complete fairy-tale medieval landscape. The street-wide ensemble of houses holds plenty of history and tradition, all built to the same height, similar themes but in different styles. A testimony of wealth and craftsmanship in Nuremberg’s medieval times, these faces boast Baroque and Rococo additions, along with some seriously spectacular inner gardens.
Weißgerbergasse, Weißgerbergasse, Nürnberg, Germany, +49 0911 23360
A recently restored building, the house of the Middle Age painter and graphic artist Albrecht Durer is now a museum dedicated to the artist’s life and work. His works are currently presented in every corner of the world and even on chocolate bars or money bills, and Durer is widely regarded as having changed the course of art history in terms of meticulousness, mania for perfection and bringing technology to the medium of engraving. The timber-framed house now has sketches and engravings of the man himself and is definitely worth seeing.
Albrecht Durer House, Albrecht-Dürer-Straße 39, Nuremberg, Germany, +49 0911 2312568
This monstrous structure is what remains from the megalomania of the National Socialist regime and most of all of the materialization of architectural and ideological ideas of Adolf Hitler in Nuremberg. The unfinished Congress Hall is a vivid reminder of the period, covering 11 square kilometers and designed for 50,000 spectators. The Nazi Party Rally Grounds are widely explorable and represent one of the only remaining mass architectural pieces left intact after the Second World War. ‘Fascination and Terror’ is one of the 19 thematic exhibitions on site.
Documentation Centre Nazi Party Rally Grounds, Bayernstraße 110, Nuremberg, Germany, +49 0911 2317538
Considered the oldest bratwurst restaurant in the world, the sausage tradition here is unbeatable. Without pre-cooking or boiling the meat ahead of time, the fresh sausages are grilled here after being marinated, smoked and prepared at a special butchers. The most famous restaurant in Nuremberg, Zum Guldenen Stern offers incredible meals straight out of the Middle Ages, hand-crafted and done according to traditional recipes only. The steaks and sausages are sided by fasskraut, a mild, ready-to-serve sauerkraut, baked homemade potato salad and freshly grated horseradish or creamed horseradish.
Zum Guldenen Stern, Zirkelschmiedsgasse 26, Nuremberg, Germany, +49 0911 2059288
The fascinating underground chambers of Nuremberg are a labyrinth of rock and corridor and dungeon that are spectacular and certainly a place for the adventurous. The former usage of these passageways was a jail for prisoners who were sentenced to death and were awaiting their capital punishment. Macabre and sinister, the tunnels also contain old torture rooms to boot.
Historische Felsengänge, Bergstrasse 19, Nuremberg, Germany, +49 0911 2449859
St. Lorenz Church is a gothic masterpiece in the center of Nuremberg; the former imperial city used to be complete with the Church of St. Sebald. Holy Lorenz is the name of the religious protector of the place, constructed in the 13th century and it represents a serious heritage of protestant architectural and institutional greatness in Nuremberg. The church choir was made only in the next century after its building was complete, but the spectacular trading of concerts and ecumenical events is still a landmark for the spectacular church.
Address: Lorenzkirche, Burgstraße 1, Nürnberg, Germany, +49 0911 2142500
Considered one of the largest hospitals from the Middle Ages still standing, The Hospital of the Holy Spirit was established between 1332 and 1339 by the wealthy patrician Konrad Gross for the purpose of taking care of the needy and elderly. Also known as the largest private institution that belonged to the Holy Roman Empire, this is one of the key structures of the German tradition in Nuremberg. During the Second World War, the hospital was hit almost to ashes, yet a rebuilding during the 1950s is what visitors see today.
Hospital of the Holy Spirit, Spitalgasse 16, 90403 Nürnberg, Germany, +49 0911 221761