Discover Erfurt: Old Town, Gardens and Citadel

Medieval heritage and distinctive buildings

The UNESCO World Heritage Site of Jewish-Medieval Heritage lies in the heart of Erfurt’s Old Town. It comprises the Old Synagogue, the mikveh and the Stone House—rare and exceptionally well-preserved examples of Jewish buildings in Central Europe. The Old Synagogue displays evidence of Erfurt’s medieval Jewish culture. A visit to these historic buildings can therefore also offer insight into the city’s cultural history.

The Krämerbrücke is one of Erfurt’s landmarks. It is Europe’s longest bridge that is continuously lined with houses and inhabited. Tastings are offered at Goldhelm, right on the bridge. Those with a particular interest in religious architecture will find several building phases at St Mary’s Cathedral: a High Gothic choir, a Romanesque tower area and a Late Gothic west hall. The central tower houses the Gloriosa, the world’s largest medieval free-swinging bell.

St Severus’ Church also offers specific details of artistic and architectural history. This five-aisled Gothic hall church was the collegiate church of a community of canons from the 12th century onwards. Its artworks include the Severus sarcophagus from 1365, whose side panels depict the saint’s life, a stone Madonna from 1345 and a 15 m-high baptismal font from 1467. From Cathedral Square, a flight of 70 steps leads up to the Domberg, where the cathedral and St Severus’ Church stand.

Gardens and wildlife

At egapark Erfurt, a range of garden and educational attractions sit side by side. The park includes the Danakil Desert and Jungle House, themed gardens, the Wissenswald and the German Horticultural Museum. Its ornamental flower bed is remarkable in scale: at 6,000 m², it is the largest of its kind in Europe. Thuringia’s largest playground is also in egapark and covers 35,000 m². Families can plan the park as a focus of its own alongside visits to the Old Town.

The Thuringian Zoo Park Erfurt offers a different perspective on nature. It covers around 63 hectares and is home to more than 1,000 animals from around the world. Some enclosures can be entered, and the zoo also takes part in breeding programmes for endangered species. If you’d like to include gardens, wildlife and historic buildings in your trip, you can consider them as different day-trip destinations when choosing accommodation, without limiting your stay to a single theme.

Views over Erfurt

The Petersberg Citadel is one of the largest and the only largely preserved Baroque city fortresses in Central Europe. Its elevated position offers several viewpoints with sweeping views over the city. Sunsets can be seen from the western Bastion Michael. The panoramic route to the citadel starts at Cathedral Square and can be walked independently, without any additional equipment. This makes Petersberg a viewpoint of its own to include in your exploration of Erfurt.

Getting here and choosing accommodation

Erfurt Central Station is an important hub in Deutsche Bahn’s ICE network. It connects long-distance and regional services with the city’s public transport. This is a useful point of reference when planning your journey and deciding which of Erfurt’s attractions you’d like to focus on. A holiday apartment in Erfurt can serve as a base for a stay that takes in the Old Town, Domberg, Petersberg and the larger green spaces.

You can also explore Salomonsborn, Alach and Ermstedt as destinations in their own right within Erfurt.

For the full travel overview: Erfurt.

More destinations

More places within the same destination:

Tiefthal, Frienstedt, Kerspleben, Molsdorf, Kühnhausen.