Gary (our videographer) and I went to discover Regensburg as visitors of Germany Vacationer Board, a college metropolis hailed as the perfect preserved medieval metropolis in Germany, providing a heady mixture of a lovely skyline, spectacular historic monuments and legendary Bavarian hospitality.
Though Bavaria lives as much as all its fantastic cliches of lederhosen, dirndls and naturally, its beer-swigging, jolly festivals, in my view, the Southeastern state of Germany provides far more than only a superb place to get drunk!
What’s so particular about Regensburg?
It’s a spot the place pristinely shiny landscapes are punctuated with story-book castles, conventional church buildings and neat and medieval cities which go about their time-warped enterprise in a peaceable, pristine form of means.
A few of my household dwell in Bavaria, so it’s a area that has at all times held a particular place in my coronary heart and I felt a novel reference to it as quickly as I arrived there.
The Outdated City of Regensburg (with Stadtamhof) is a UNESCO World Heritage website and over the a long time town has risen by means of the affluence stakes to turn into one of the vital sought-after locations to dwell in Bavaria.
Exterior Germany although, it’s a spot that continues to be very a lot beneath the vacationer radar and I consider it’s a metropolis vacation spot that deserves much more consideration. Right here’s what I recommend to do in Regensburg in 48 hours if you happen to go to at Christmas…
Watch: Our Cinematic Christmas Weekend in Regensburg Video with drone footage (which went viral)!
1. Wander the Lovely Lanes within the Outdated City
Packed filled with magnificent medieval buildings, Regensburg wears its UNESCO badge with lots delight. I really like that it takes its heritage extraordinarily significantly—for instance, most of its buildings at the moment are formally preserved and shielded from alteration, so if a resident needs to repaint a home, for instance, its color has to evolve to these used up to now!
I discovered it to be a rare place with a comfy, quaint vibe with a mixture of superb historic buildings, trendy eating places and cosmopolitan bars, and a seemingly limitless community of slender, atmospheric cobbled lanes lined with beautiful boutique shops from stylish garments boutiques to outlets promoting artisan-made picket items.
I liked simply wandering by means of the winding cobbled streets, absorbing the pristine medieval attraction of the place. It felt so untouched by tourism, and for a second, I might virtually think about myself as a neighborhood, absolutely immersed in its timeless magnificence.
At Christmas, I liked that the charming ambiance within the lanes turns up a number of notches. That is when the elegant buildings are adorned with a whole bunch of twinkling lights and when the outlets begin promoting beautiful handcrafted Christmas decorations, which I spent hours gazing at!
2. Go for a drink in one of many cosy bars
This time of 12 months, Germany appears to be experiencing its personal model of “Hygge”, and I feel there’s no higher place to expertise this than in one in every of their bars or eating places.
I spent my time wandering town centre’s quaint, cobbled lanes, gawping on the Christmas lights, after which buying and selling at the hours of darkness, chilly winter night time for a comfy drink or two at one of many inviting bars, which had been usually illuminated by mushy, heat lighting.
Consuming in Regensburg continues to be as conventional and laid-back as you’d anticipate it to be in Bavaria but additionally exceptionally elegant. My private favorite bars included Orphée, Kaminski, and Hemingway’s and I discovered them lurking within the heady maze of alleys between Haidplatz and Neupfarrplatz.
3. Discover the Romantic Christmas Market!
I’d by no means skilled a Christmas Market as atmospheric and mysterious as this one! Regensburg’s Outdated City was stuffed with a whole bunch of listed buildings however this palace and its grounds had been most undoubtedly the jewel within the crown. In the course of the center of the 18th century, the princes of Thurn and Taxis turned a former monastery into a lovely palace residence.
From the twenty ninth of November to the twenty third of December annually, the palace turns right into a magical Christmas Market, which I believed might have been plucked straight from a Bavarian storybook!
Identified regionally because the ‘Romantic Market,’ the doorway was actually jaw-dropping – all of it felt very Sport of Thrones with a path impressively illuminated by flame torches resulting in a big array of conventional stalls and huts. These had been adorned with freshly lower pine and spruce branches, providing winter rugs, Christmas ornaments, clothes, and handcrafted metalware. All of this was encircled by a sea of glowing lights. Wow!
Smaller illuminated pathways led to alfresco champagne bars perched excessive on a hill, right down to picturesque conventional kids’s fairground rides, or towards cosy Glühwein stalls.
I liked that it was a visible feast for all of the senses. Smoke from open campfires billowed into the frosty darkness, whereas the aromas of burnt sweet and caramelised almonds permeated the air. The regal sounds of bugles signalled the beginning and finish of the festivities. To me, it was pure perfection in a Christmas market!
4. Dine out in Stadtamhof
Stadtamhof is a small Bavarian neighbourhood in the course of the unbiased metropolis of Regensburg. I reached it simply by strolling over the stone bridge that crossed the Danube River (the oldest preserved bridge in the entire of Germany).
It’s a spot the place residents benefit from the peacefulness of its offset location on the banks of the Danube, but they had been nonetheless solely a stone’s throw from town. I liked the relaxed, cosy vibe there.
I discovered it to be a chic and picturesque neighborhood, lined with a superb assortment of bars, eating places, and small outlets nonetheless run by the identical households. With its nice alternative of eating places that exude an actual native vibe, I personally assume it’s among the best areas to eat out within the metropolis!
5. Discover the Creation Christmas Market
This time of 12 months, Regensburg hosts at least 4 separate Christmas markets, and in my view, every is a must-see! After I final visited Regensburg in the summertime, this space reworked into a lovely beer backyard with a much-envied spot on the Danube River.
I really like how, throughout the winter, it transforms right into a magical Christmas market. I particularly adored the fantastically illuminated cathedral and the gathering of conventional stalls, flanked by open campfires and a towering Christmas tree. With extra freshly made culinary delights and Glühwein than one might presumably bask in, it was pure bliss!
6. Keep on the Inexperienced Spirt Design Resort
The Inexperienced Spirit Resort was our lodging throughout our keep, and it completely captured town’s distinctive, new boutique vibe. Set in a historic 18th-century constructing that when served as a brewery—a really Bavarian contact—it now features as a classy resort with a contemporary annex.
The stylish eating room, fashionable but quirky minimalist decor, and an exquisite courtyard backyard full with a greenhouse (the place greens and herbs utilized by the resort chef are grown) made it completely lovable!