Frankfurt Airport to Wurzburg and Rothenburg: Day trip

‘If I could choose my place of birth, I would consider Wurzburg’, wrote the author Hermann Hesse, and it’s not difficult to see why. This scenic university city located on the Main River in Bavaria is rich with churches, cathedrals and other historical buildings built in Baroque, Rococo and Gothic style where the huge Residential Palace takes pride of place. Over 85% of the town was damaged or destroyed in World War II and Wurzburg became a symbol of German recovery when, over the next 20 years, the historical buildings were painstakingly and lovingly restored. Today, all traces of destruction have long gone. Downtown Wurzburg is a spectacularly pretty part of the city to spend a little time checking out some of the churches, museums and historical buildings that contain great art. After savoring the wealth of attractions on offer then there are few who would dispute Hesse’s perspective of the town.

Seeing Rothenburg ob der Tauber's forty-two gates and towers etched against the unspoiled countryside from a distance, you'd swear you were looking at the Fifteenth Century through field glasses. Inside, the town's almost completely intact walls and carefully-preserved half-timbered houses truly do bring visitors back in time. But the past isn't all pretty buildings. Stop by the Medieval Crime Museum to see the horrific reality of medieval correctional methods lovingly detailed in the vaults. A whole department is dedicated to witchcraft and witch-hunting in Bavaria. Back in the light of day, the Town Hall Tower beckons with its fine views of the town and the idyllic surrounding countryside. A walk around those intact town walls is also a temptation to fully surrender to.