Discover Ringelai: Churches, pilgrimage and Celtic village
Accommodation in Ringelai
Ringelai combines distinctive church architecture with a December pilgrimage tradition and hands-on activities at the Gabreta Celtic village. These themes offer different ways to plan your holiday: you can explore building periods and traditions or consider a holiday programme featuring craft and nature activities.
Churches from different periods
The parish church stands on a hill in Ringelai. Church architect Michael Kurz from Augsburg designed and built it in 1919/20. St. Michael’s, by contrast, was built as a new church in the centre of Ringelai between 1749 and 1752. These dates mark two distinct historical reference points: one church from the early 20th century, the other from the mid-18th century. If you are interested in architectural history, you can use these dates as a guide and place the two churches in the context of the town’s history.
Christkindl pilgrimage in December
The Christkindl pilgrimage is an established tradition in Ringelai and takes place in December. In 2024, the 30th pilgrimage weekend was held. During this pilgrimage, participants walked by candlelight, in prayer and song, from the school to the parish church, where they attended a pilgrimage service. This specific programme is part of the documented 2024 pilgrimage. Together with its churches, this tradition also makes Ringelai appealing to travellers who want to focus on religious customs and their historical development.
Hands-on activities at the Gabreta Celtic village
The Gabreta Celtic village offers a changing programme of hands-on activities during the school holidays. In the 2026 holiday programme, they are scheduled from Wednesday to Friday, from 2 to 4 p.m. Activities listed include pottery, archery, bread baking and herb walks. The selection ranges from practical crafts to activities centred on herbs. As the programme is tied to the school holidays and may change, check the dates and activities for your travel period before visiting.
Freyung-Grafenau as a wider perspective
The Bavarian Forest National Park offers a distinct natural focus in the wider destination of Freyung-Grafenau. It extends into Freyung-Grafenau district and opened on 7 October 1970 as Germany’s first national park. Nature zones account for 75.37 percent of its area. In the Buchberger Leite wild stream gorge, steep rock ridges force the boulder-strewn, cascading Wolfsteiner Ohe into a deeply constricted bed. Remnants of primeval forest survive in the moss- and fern-rich gorge woodlands.
An eight-kilometre themed hiking trail runs through the Buchberger Leite between Freyung and Ringelai. Information boards and an accompanying brochure provide additional information along the route. Traces of human activity also shape this landscape: historic timber-floating walls, tunnels cut into the rock and above-ground canals bear witness to centuries of activity. In the wider destination, natural features and historic land use stand side by side, while the churches and pilgrimage offer their own cultural points of interest in Ringelai.
Another cultural attraction in Freyung-Grafenau is the Schramlhaus in Freyung. Built around 1700, the house is now the oldest farmhouse in Freyung and, in its original state, one of the oldest in the district. It houses the Wolfstein Local History Museum, whose collections include more than a hundred original examples of reverse glass painting, a form of sacred folk art.
When choosing a holiday apartment in Ringelai, you can start by considering which of these local interests will shape your stay: church architecture, the December tradition or the holiday activities at the Celtic village. If you would also like to explore the landscapes and culture of the wider destination of Freyung-Grafenau, the regional themes can help with further holiday planning.
Discover more destinations: Sankt Oswald, Spiegelau, Hohenau, Neuschönau, Zenting, Eppenschlag, Schöfweg, Grafenau.
View the wider travel guide: Freyung-Grafenau.
