Harburg travel guide

Harburg, Germany

By the Travel Wiki editorial team

Harburg

Introduction

Harburg is a borough of Hamburg, Germany, lying on the southern banks of the river Elbe. It also gives its name to the Harburg quarter within the borough, which was once the capital of the Harburg district in Lower Saxony. The borough stretches across parts of the port of Hamburg as well as residential and rural areas, so your sense of the place shifts depending on where you are.

Before you go

Before you go, it helps to know what kind of place you are visiting: a historic old town full of picturesque corners and lanes, best explored on foot. The market square, the old stone bridge and the village churches all invite you to walk in the traces of history, so plan your time around wandering rather than rushing between sights. The old stone bridge is a natural starting point. From it you can walk into the picturesque old town, which sits between the castle hill and the river Wörnitz.

Getting there

To reach Harburg by train, use the town's railway station, which sits to the east of the town. The town lies on a regional rail line that generally connects to the main rail hubs through Donauwörth to the south and Nördlingen to the west, and Go Ahead Bavaria operates train service to Munich, Augsburg and Stuttgart. If you are flying in, Munich Airport is the closest intercontinental airport, with good road and train connections onward to Harburg. Nürnberg and Stuttgart airports are options for domestic European flights.

Getting around

Harburg is very small and can be covered on foot, so walking is the natural way to get around. The main sights, the centre and the railway station all sit within comfortable reach of each other, and for most day-to-day movement you will not need a ticket, app or timetable.

Cycling is also an option if you want to extend your range beyond the town centre while keeping things simple. For longer journeys, head for the railway station east of town: the town sits on a regional rail line that connects to the main rail hubs through Donauwörth to the south and Nördlingen to the west, with services to Munich, Augsburg and Stuttgart operated by Go Ahead Bavaria. No local bus, tram or metro network is described within the town, and no specific taxi or ride-hailing arrangements are noted, though a taxi may be worth considering for reaching the railway station with luggage or for late arrivals. There is no airport in Harburg; you will arrive via a larger regional airport and continue by road or rail, with Munich Airport offering the closest intercontinental connections and Nürnberg or Stuttgart useful for domestic European flights.

Where to stay

Harburg keeps its sleeping options close to the Marktplatz, so you can base yourself right in the middle of town. The Gasthof zum Goldenen Lamm and the Pension Moserhaus both sit on the square itself, while the Hotel-Restaurant Straussen is on the Marktplatz as well, pairing rooms with its own restaurant. If you would rather stay up by the castle, the Schlosshotel Harburg occupies a spot on Burgstraße, putting you within easy reach of the fortifications above town. Between the inns and the pension, the choice comes down to whether you prefer a guesthouse atmosphere or a hotel with dining on site.

Food & drink

For traditional Bavarian cooking, head to the marketplace, where Gasthof zum Goldenen Lamm and Hotel-Restaurant Straussen both serve hearty regional fare, the former with a beer garden. Swabian-Bavarian cuisine is on the menu at Wirtshaus zum Kratzhof, while Waldschänke Eisbrunn sits in the forest and also has a beer garden. On Harburg Castle itself, Fürstliche Burgschenke offers another beer garden setting. If you fancy Italian instead, Hertle Haus and La Locanda both serve Italian cuisine. Note that many of these places close on one or two days of the week, so it is worth checking ahead.

What to see and do

Harburg Castle is the centrepiece of a visit: an extensive mediaeval complex from the 11th–12th century, built as a Staufer castle and later owned by the princely House of Oettingen-Wallerstein, it ranks among the largest, oldest and best preserved castles in southern Germany. Guided tours run daily from mid-March to the beginning of November and last about an hour. Within the castle, St. Michael can be visited during castle opening hours; it is the oldest church in Harburg, dating back to Romanesque times, became the first Protestant preaching place in the region during the Reformation, and was rebuilt in Baroque style in 1720. Below the castle hill, next to the town hall, stands St. Barbara, built in 1612 as a Protestant parish church, with a large fresco commemorating its construction that was uncovered during renovation in 1988 and a tower partly integrated into the surrounding rock. The neo-Gothic Herz Jesu, a Catholic parish church, was built in the early 20th century. Walking into the old town, you cross the Old Stone Bridge, an arched structure of stone blocks with seven yoke and covered crusher piers, built in 1729 after a devastating flood, which carries you dryly over the River Wörnitz. The Geopark Ries info point is open around the clock and provides information in English about the formation of the giant Ries crater, its geology, and the connection of the Geopark Ries to ESA and NASA space missions, along with an overview of the city's history and sights. An audio tour spreads through the old town, with stations offering stories, anecdotes and excerpts from the city's history; it starts nearly by the old stone bridge, takes about three hours in total, and its individual episodes of roughly five minutes each can be followed independently by scanning a QR code with your tablet or smartphone — mobile data must be enabled, as the files are streamed, and an English version is offered.

Three days in Harburg

Day one: Arrive in Harburg and orient yourself around the Marktplatz, the natural starting point for exploring the town. From there you can walk the lanes near Burgstraße and get a feel for the place before settling in. For your first night, choose among the Schlosshotel Harburg, the Gasthof Goldene Lamm, or Pension Moserhaus, and eat at a Swabian Wirtshaus or the Restaurant Straussen.

Day two: Give the day to the countryside around Harburg. The Kratzhof and the Waldschänke Eisbrunn make good stops, and the area rewards slow travel on foot or by bike. If you want a longer outing, the Elbe and the routes toward Nördlingen and Donauwörth lie within reach, and the Wörnitz is part of the wider landscape.

Day three: Use Harburg as a base for a wider Bavarian day. Munich, Augsburg, Stuttgart and Nürnberg are all connected by rail, and Munich Airport is the main gateway if you are flying out. Before you leave, take one more turn through the town and a final meal at a Gasthof or Wirtshaus.

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