Germany (Lonely Planet, 6th Edition) - Andrea Schulte-Peevers [230]
North of Divi-Blasii-Kirche, via the pedestrianised Linsenstrasse, is Kornmarkt and the Kornmarktkirche ( 404 684; Ratsstrasse; adult/concession €3/2; 10am-5pm Tue-Sun), which is no longer a church but a museum about the German Peasants’ War and the Reformation.
The tourist office is just north of Kornmarkt in the handsome Rathaus ( 4520; Ratsstrasse 19; adult/concession €1/0.50; 10am-4pm Tue-Sun), an architecturally intriguing hotchpotch of Gothic, Renaissance and baroque styles. Inside, pay special attention to the Great Hall and the Councillors’ Chamber.
Continuing north, you reach Obermarkt, lorded over by the five-nave Marienkirche (St Mary’s Church; 870 023; adult/concession €3/2; 10am-5pm Tue-Sun), incidentally Thuringia’s second-largest church after the Dom in Erfurt. It’s now used as a memorial museum to Thomas Müntzer who preached here to his rebel followers in 1525 before the disastrous Schlachtberg battle.
Go west along Herrenstrasse to the Inneres Frauentor, where you can access a 330m walk-able stretch of the 12th-century town wall ( 816 020; adult/concession €3/2; 10am-5pm Apr-Oct). Stroll as far as the Rabenturm, where you can chart the rest of your explorations of Mühlhausen’s fascinating web of medieval lanes from the viewing platform.
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Sleeping & Eating
DJH hostel ( 813 318; www.muehlhausen.jugendherberge.de, in German; Auf dem Tonberg 1; under/over 26yr incl breakfast & dinner €20/23; ) This small hostel is about 2.5km west of the Hauptbahnhof. Take bus 5 or 6 to Blobach, then walk 500m.
An der Stadtmauer ( 465 00; www.hotel-an-der-stadtmauer.de; Breitenstrasse 15; s/d Mar-Oct €56/77, cheaper Nov-Feb; ) The tasteful fittings, comfort and old-town location make this a very good choice. Some rooms open onto a courtyard, and there’s a small bar and beer garden as well.
Brauhaus zum Löwen ( 4710; www.brauhaus-zum-loewen.de, in German; Felchtaer Strasse 2-4; s/d €60/90; ) Conversation flows as freely as the beer at this classic brewery-pub, where you can get fed and fuelled among the copper vats before retiring to boldly pigmented, country-style rooms. Still in a party mood? Join the local cool kids in the adjacent Leo disco (Wednesday to Saturday), the kind of place where, on some nights, ‘ladies’ get more free drinks the shorter their skirts.
Postkeller ( 889 812; Steinweg 6; mains €4.50-12.50; lunch & dinner) Another food-and-party combo: fuel up on regional food served in the lovely wood-panelled restaurant, decorated with a tiled stove and an entire flea market’s worth of knick-knacks; then go dancing and flirting in the PK cocktail bar-cum-club (open Wednesday, Friday and Saturday).
Landhaus Frank ‘Zum Nachbarn’ ( 812 513; Eisenacher Landstrasse 34; mains €12-20; 11.30am-10pm; ) One of the top local restaurants, Zum Nachbarn has moved to new digs on the outskirts of town. It’s still worth the trip, however, to indulge in upmarket regional and international cuisine, including specialities such as stuffed rack of lamb paired with herbed tiger shrimp and honey-sage jus.
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Getting There & Away
Trains links Mühlhausen with Erfurt (€11.30, 45 minutes) and Gotha, where you have to change if headed for Eisenach (€11.30, 50 minutes). Mühlhausen sits at the crossroads of the B249 from Sondershausen and the B247 from Gotha.
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AROUND MÜHLHAUSEN
Hainich National Park
About 15km southwest of Mühlhausen, the Hainich National Park (Nationalpark Hainich; 03603-390 70; www.nationalpark-hainich.de) protects the largest continuous deciduous forest in Germany. There’s hiking and cycling, of course, but the main reason for swinging by is to take a walk through the tree tops on the Baumkronenpfad (Tree Top Trail; adult/student/family €7.50/5/20; 10am-7pm Apr-Oct, 10am-4pm Nov-Mar). Two wooden paths meander some 44m above ground, giving you a unique perspective on the forest’s