Göggingen: Castle Chapel and Living Tradition

The castle chapel in Horn and the municipality of Göggingen’s cattle festival give the area two distinct cultural points of interest: a Baroque chapel with elaborate furnishings and a tradition that continues to this day. Together, they make Göggingen an appealing destination for anyone who considers cultural history and local customs when choosing a holiday apartment.

The Castle Chapel in Horn

Built in the Baroque style, the castle chapel was completed in 1758 outside the castle walls. Its furnishings include artistic treasures, stucco work and frescoes, as well as stone Rococo figures. An image of the Madonna is located at the altar. The construction date and furnishings offer different points of interest: the Baroque style defines the building, while the individual works of art and decorative elements give the interior its distinctive character.

A Cattle Festival with a Long History

The municipality of Göggingen’s cattle festival has been celebrated for over 300 years and continues to this day. Unlike the chapel’s specific year of construction, it points to a tradition carried on through many generations. If you want to plan your trip around this event, check the date in advance.

Local maps and the Grüner Pfad cycling map are available free of charge at the town hall to help you find your way around. The cycling map shows a variety of routes in the Leintal valley and on the Frickenhofer Höhe plateau, as well as the sights there. Check that it is currently available before basing your plans on it.

Cycling and Hiking in the Ostalbkreis

There are three “grüner pfad – Erlebnistouren” in the Ostalbkreis: “Im Ellwanger Seenland,” “Rund ums Leintal und Frickenhofer Höhe,” and “Härtsfeld.” With its routes and sights in the Leintal valley and on the Frickenhofer Höhe plateau, the Grüner Pfad cycling map offers a regional perspective on these landscapes. Another cycling route, the Ostalb-Radrunde, covers around 305 kilometres. It is divided into six stages and nine connecting routes that can be combined to suit your preferences, and also extends beyond the boundaries of the Ostalbkreis: through the districts of Heidenheim and Rems-Murr and as far as the Bavarian district of Donau-Ries.

The Limes also adds a distinctive historical dimension to the Ostalbkreis. The Upper German-Raetian Limes has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2005 and crosses the municipality of Rainau through the districts of Buch, Schwabsberg and Dalkingen for about six kilometres. Important sections and individual monuments are preserved in a particularly high concentration in Limes-Park Rainau. A reconstructed watchtower offers panoramic views over the Ostalb; the Limestor Dalkingen is an extraordinary structure along the entire Limes route between the Rhine and the Danube.

For a hike, the signposted Limes circular trail near Rainau provides specific guidance: it is about eleven kilometres long and takes approximately two and a half hours on foot. The route runs from the Limes wall and Limes tower between Buch and Schwabsberg, through the Mahdholz forest along the Limes, to the southern edge of Schwabsberg. The Wental offers a different nature experience: a hike towards Steinheim is particularly suitable for families; from the trail, you can spot gnarled trees and bizarre rock formations in which, with a little imagination, you may recognize fairy-tale characters and animals.

Choose a Holiday Apartment to Suit Your Travel Interests

When looking for a holiday apartment in Göggingen, your preferred focus is a useful starting point: would you like the castle chapel in Horn and Göggingen’s tradition to shape your trip, or would you like to include other cultural and natural attractions in the Ostalbkreis? The regional examples in Rainau and the Wental offer different experiences from the history of the chapel and the cattle festival.

Discover more destinations: Westhausen, Täferrot, Schechingen, Leinzell, Stödtlen, Eschach, Jagstzell, Waldhausen.

View the main travel overview: Ostalbkreis.