Greetings from Kulmbach: Shopping, Bratwurst, a Castle and the Rehturm

Greetings fromKulmbach

Kulmbach · Upper Franconia, Germany · October 2025

Shopping, a bratwurst on the go, a castle on the hill, and a tower you can only reach on foot.

GERMANY OCT2025

Kulmbach is one of my favorite towns in Upper Franconia. It's small enough to walk, it has a castle watching over it from the hill, and the food is exactly what you want after a morning of shopping. We packed a lot into one day, and it turned out to be one of the best days of the trip.

Our day, step by step

1. Shop Shopping at the Fritz
2. Eat Bratwurst downtown
3. Stroll The Marktplatz and old town lanes
4. Spot Thomas Gottschalk's house
5. Castle The Plassenburg
6. Hike Up to the Rehturm

first stop

Shopping at the Fritz

We started at the Fritz, Kulmbach's indoor shopping center right in town. It has stores like H&M and TEDi, and plenty of benches if someone in your group shops slower than you do. It's an easy, rain-proof first stop.

Ready to shop

Inside the Fritz

lunch on the go

A bratwurst downtown

You can't come to Franconia and skip the bratwurst. Two grilled sausages in a crusty roll with mustard, eaten standing on the sidewalk: that's lunch in Kulmbach, and it's perfect. Quick, cheap and exactly right.

Zwei im Weggla, with mustard

the old town

Exploring the Marktplatz

With lunch in hand we wandered through the old town. The cobblestone lanes wind between half-timbered houses, and they all lead to the Marktplatz, where the yellow town hall with its green tower stands at the end of the square. The flags of Bavaria, Germany and Kulmbach were hanging from the balcony the day we visited.

Cobblestones and half-timbering

The Marktplatz and town hall

a little star spotting

Thomas Gottschalk's house

Next we drove by the house of Thomas Gottschalk, one of Germany's best-known TV hosts, famous for the show Wetten, dass..?. He went to school here in Kulmbach. It's a private home, so we just looked from the street, but it was fun to see.

Fall sunshine through the oaks

the castle on the hill

The Plassenburg

Then it was up the hill to the Plassenburg, the castle that watches over Kulmbach. The grand entrance is covered in carved stone figures, and the courtyard inside is huge, with arcades along one side and red ivy climbing the walls in October. Today the castle is home to several museums. Walk around the castle walls too: the gardens were glowing gold the day we were there.

The grand entrance

Red ivy in the courtyard

Gold everywhere along the castle walls

you have to earn this one

Hiking to the Rehturm

We finished the day with a hike. From the Plassenburg, trails lead into the woods to the Rehturm, a 20-meter sandstone tower on the Rehberg. There's no road to it, so the only way there is on foot. The path climbs through beech forest, and then the tower suddenly appears above the trees. An outside staircase takes you to the top for the view over the hills around Kulmbach.

There it is!

Old stone, old stories: 1498

Tip: wear real shoes for the Rehturm. It's a forest trail, not a sidewalk.

Good to know

Getting around

The old town, the Fritz and the Marktplatz are close together and easy to walk.

The Plassenburg

Castle with several museums above the town. Check opening hours before you go.

The Rehturm

Only reachable on foot. A loop from the Plassenburg is about 10.6 km (6.6 miles), around 2 hr 45 min.

Eat

Grab a bratwurst in a roll downtown. Cheap, fast and very Franconian.

Best time to go

October was beautiful: blue skies, red ivy and golden trees.

Links

kulmbach.de · fritz-einkaufszentrum.de

Budget

$ Shopping aside, this is an inexpensive day out.

see you on the road

Have you been to Kulmbach?

Tell me your favorite spot in the comments, or send me a question if you're planning a trip to Franconia.

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