Wuerzburg

Introduction

Würzburg lies in the north of Bavaria, on both banks of the Main river, and serves as the administrative seat of Lower Franconia. Within Franconia it is the region's second city after Nuremberg.

Before you go

Würzburg is a historic Franconian city that foreign visitors often overlook, so it rewards some preparation before you arrive. Bear in mind that a large share of the population are students at the city's colleges, which gives the place a lively streak and a wide choice of cheap non-German food alongside the local culture. The city is also a common stop on Main River cruises and the Romantic Road excursion, and the tourist information office at the Falkenhaus next to the Maria Chapel sells tickets for the latter as well as a multi-day travel pass and a wine pass.

Set your expectations for the architecture: a wartime bombing raid in 1945 destroyed most of the city, and the rebuilding was not always painstakingly faithful to the original style, so you will see restored historic buildings standing beside post-war modern ones. The city remains very safe by Bavarian standards; at most, the areas near the Hauptbahnhof and in Grombühl can attract rowdy crowds, who usually keep to themselves. Use ordinary common sense and you will have no trouble.

Getting there

Most travellers reach Würzburg by train, and the main station sits at the southern end of Germany's first high-speed line built for the ICE, so connections are straightforward. Direct ICE services run hourly to Frankfurt, Cologne and Düsseldorf to the west and to Hannover and Hamburg to the north, while Munich and Nuremberg are served half-hourly. Fares are steep unless you book well ahead, and the cheapest tickets on popular routes and times sell out first. Stuttgart is the exception among major cities, reached by an express regional train every hour. Internationally, a Nightjet sleeper runs twice a week north via Frankfurt airport and Cologne to Brussels and south to Vienna, Munich and Innsbruck, and daytime ICE trains run to Vienna every three hours. Regional trains link Würzburg to Schweinfurt, Bamberg, Aschaffenburg and Nuremberg, and the Bayern ticket covers regional rail across Bavaria plus local public transport for a day.

If you fly, Frankfurt and Nuremberg are the closest airports. Frankfurt is the easier connection: it has a dedicated long-distance station where you can board an ICE to Würzburg's main station in about ninety minutes, at least hourly. From Nuremberg you must transfer to the main train station, where you can choose between a fast express train and a slower, cheaper regional service; if time is not your priority, the Bayern ticket covers the regional rail between the cities. Munich Airport is geographically close, but you first face a S-Bahn ride into downtown Munich before catching an ICE, which makes the connection tedious. Long-distance and regional buses use the Busbahnhof on the left side of the main train station, and from April to October a shuttle runs between Würzburg and along the Romantic Road to Füssen. By car, the A3, A7 and A81 all pass or reach the city, and cruise ships along the Main often stop at a dock next to the city centre, arriving in the morning so passengers can spend the day in town.

Getting around

Most of what you'll want to see in Würzburg sits inside the Ringpark, the ring of parkland circling the Innenstadt up to the Main, so walking covers the centre well. The retail area runs mainly alongside the tram lines and along the pedestrian-only Spiegelstraße and Eichhornstraße, just past the Marian chapel at the city square. A non-stop walk from the main train station to the south end of the Ringpark at the Sandering tram stop takes only about half an hour, and apart from the steep climb to the Marienberg Fortress and the Käppele you can expect flat ground on the inner side of the Ringpark. The surrounding districts are easy to tell apart: Sanderau lies immediately south of downtown, Frauenland a short distance east of the park, Zellerau across the river to the west, and Grombühl northeast of the station across the bridge over the tracks.

• Five tram lines (Straßenbahn, or "Straba" locally) plus a handful of bus routes, some running all night, connect the centre with the suburbs; the trams share a corridor between Hauptbahnhof in the north and Sanderring in the south, and most buses stop or terminate at one of those ends.
• For the Marienberg Fortress, bus Route 9 runs from the Mainfranken Theater and the Residenz, but only from Easter to mid-October; otherwise cross the old bridge from the centre and walk up, roughly 30 minutes.
• Buy tickets from the machines at tram stations or from bus drivers, who give change; a six-ride ticket can be split among a group, and a day ticket covers one person or two adults with up to two children. The Bayern ticket and Deutschlandticket are also accepted.
• A car isn't needed in the centre, where many roads are closed to traffic, but helps for the fortress and for areas north of the Hauptbahnhof and east of the highway, which are bus-only with waits of at least 20 minutes. Parking includes the Marktgarage by the city hall and the free open-air Talavera lot on Mainaustraße, sometimes closed for fairs and events.
• Taxis are provided by a single city operator, with a flagfall plus per-kilometre fares and a flat fee for trips beyond the immediate area.

Where to stay

Würzburg's sleeping options cluster conveniently around the main railway station and the city centre, with a handful of budget addresses on Haugerring opposite the station itself. Among them you'll find a hostel with rooms ranging from one to ten beds, where reception can help tailor itineraries for do-it-yourself tours and the restaurant offers breakfast and packed lunches, plus a simple hotel with singles through to a four-person apartment with shared bathroom. East of town, just off the motorway, a small budget chain property with double and triple rooms has good bus connections into the city. South of the centre, below the Marienberg fortress, a HI youth hostel reached via tram to Löwenbrücke and a short walk north offers rooms of one to eight beds, an inclusive breakfast buffet and packed lunches on request.

Mid-range choices sit mostly in the centre: a small hotel on Semmelstraße with single and double rooms and a cosy breakfast room decorated with the owner's teddy bears, a hotel on Franziskanerplatz, and one on Domstraße a minute from the Main riverbank. The largest hotel in the city, near the Congress Centre and Friedensbrücke, has a splendid view over the centre and the river, suites with dedicated turndown service and multilingual staff. For a splurge, consider a hotel above the Steinberg, a classic century-old four-star close to both the centre and the station, or a riverside hotel on Kärrnergasse with a wonderful view of the Main and the Marienberg Fortress, spacious wooden-floored rooms and complimentary breakfast.

Food & drink

Würzburg sits in Bavaria, but don't come expecting white sausage and brown pretzels — the kitchen here is Franconian, and even that is an umbrella term with local variations. In Würzburg itself, look for fish from the Main and sausage made with a wine blend. The city's young, multicultural student population also supports a handful of Asian and southern European places, so you won't go hungry if you want something other than Franconian cooking.

For a quick bite, head to the Marktplatz, where a small wooden stand with a yellow awning near the church entrance draws a fast-moving lunchtime queue for one thing: Franconian roasted sausage in bread. Order it by saying "eine mit" for mustard or "eine ohne" without. Döner and kebab shops in the centre stay open late, and a café on the main square to the right of the Falkenhaus is known for its desserts, ice cream, pastries and coffee. For something more substantial, you can choose between an Italian place with a blue grotto in its basement, a Greek restaurant with plenty of vegan options, a café famous for its spaghettieis, and a Mexican spot serving tacos, burritos and cocktails in portions big enough for two. In the town centre, several restaurants serve excellent Franconian food in rustic settings at reasonable prices; one on the Mainkai also runs a street-side kiosk where you can sip wine on the Old Bridge.

Wine is the drink of choice in this stronghold, and wineries here outnumber the local breweries. On the Alte Mainbrücke and along the Main, cafés let you drink wine straight from the glass outdoors — just remember to return the glass to get your deposit back. If you order a Hefe, you'll get the local wheat beer, named after a 1600s bishop of Würzburg and poured in almost every bar. A beer garden by the Alter Kranen has benches next to the river with views of the Old Bridge and the Marienberg Fortress.

What to see and do

Würzburg's history centres on its former prince-bishops, and the two sights that best tell that story are the Residenz and the Marienberg Fortress. The Würzburger Residence is a Baroque palace with a grand staircase beneath the largest fresco in the world, painted by Tiepolo, plus a chapel decorated by the same artist; the surrounding Court Garden, laid out in Rococo style, wraps around three sides of the building. Across town, the Festung Marienberg was the prince-bishops' seat from the 11th to the 18th century and sits on the city's highest point, with a view over the whole town that locals still come up for. Its inner court holds a keep and a church with a Renaissance interior touched by early Baroque. Below, the pedestrian-only Old Main Bridge carries statues of kings and saints and is a spot to linger with a glass of wine while looking out at the fort and river.

In the centre, nine Catholic churches stand within easy walking distance of one another, each with a different facade and altar. The Würzburger Dom is Romanesque, with a centuries-old bronze baptismal font and an expressionist bronze portal; the red-painted Marienkapelle dominates the market square with a gold-covered statue of Mary on its tower; and the Neumünster hides a Baroque interior behind a narrow pink Romanesque front. The Käppele, a hillside church near the fortress, holds a large collection of life-size statues and is a popular wedding and pilgrimage church, with the Stations of the Cross arranged on five floors behind it. For something livelier, the Mainfranken Theater stages opera, plays, dance and orchestra, and in summer the city's wine culture takes over: the Würzburger Weindorf fills Market Square at the end of May, the Hofgarten Weinfest spreads through the Residence's Court Gardens in July, and the Weinparade returns to Market Square at the end of August. Cellar tours and tastings at Juliusspital, the Franconian wine producer founded in the 16th century, run on Saturdays from March to December.

Three days in Wuerzburg

Day one: Arrive by ICE from Frankfurt, Cologne, Düsseldorf, Hannover, Hamburg, Munich or Stuttgart, or internationally by Nightjet from Brussels, Vienna or Innsbruck; regional trains also connect Würzburg with Schweinfurt, Bamberg and Aschaffenburg. From the Hauptbahnhof, head into the city and get your bearings along the Main, the river that shapes Würzburg and the wider region of Lower Franconia in Bavaria. Take a first look at the Falkenhaus and the Maria Chapel, and use the day to settle into the unhurried rhythm of this Franconian city.

• Arrive by ICE or regional train; the Hauptbahnhof is your starting point.
• Walk along the Main and orient yourself in the city centre.
• See the Falkenhaus and the Maria Chapel.

Day two: Give the day to the river and the city's place on the Romantic Road, the route that carries travellers through this part of Franconia. Wander the neighbourhoods and note the contrast between the historic centre and Grombühl, and take your time over the Main rather than rushing between sights. In the evening, eat and drink in the city, where the Franconian character of the region is part of everyday life.

• Follow the Romantic Road through the city.
• Explore the centre and the Grombühl neighbourhood.
• Spend time by the Main.

Day three: Use your last day to connect Würzburg with the wider region. Regional trains make it easy to reach Schweinfurt, Bamberg or Aschaffenburg, while Nuremberg lies within Franconia for those heading onward. If you are leaving Germany, the Nightjet to Brussels, Vienna or Innsbruck is an option, and ICE services run direct to Frankfurt, Cologne, Düsseldorf, Hannover, Hamburg, Munich and Stuttgart. Check fares and times before you set out, and leave time to return to the Hauptbahnhof.

• Take a regional train to Schweinfurt, Bamberg or Aschaffenburg.
• Continue within Franconia to Nuremberg.
• Depart by ICE or by Nightjet to Brussels, Vienna or Innsbruck.