Germany (Lonely Planet, 6th Edition) - Andrea Schulte-Peevers [545]
From Hanover, you can take the B3 28km south or alternatively the A7 south and exit 62 to Hildesheim. Take the B1 out of Hildesheim and continue 7km until you come to Mahlehrten. Turn right for Nordstemmen and you should see the castle. By public transport, the best way out is by occasional direct bus 300 to the stop ‘Marienburg Abzweig Nord’. A more frequent connection is to take bus 300 to the stop ‘Pattensen’, then change to bus 310 to stop ‘Marienburg Abzweig Nord’. From there it’s 1.5km to the castle (day card €6.60).
Dino Park Münchehagen (Dinosaur Open Air Museum; 05037-2073; www.dinopark.de; adult/under 12yr €9.50/8; 10am-6pm Mar-Oct, last entry 1hr before closing) has more than 200 life-size dinosaurs (Brontosaurus, T rex, raptors and so on) arranged around a walking trail where real dinosaurs once roamed.
By car, follow the A2 west of Hanover and take the No 40 exit to Wunstorf-Luthe. Continue along the 441 out of Wunstorf and you’ll reach the park before Locum. By public transport, take S-Bahn 1 or 2 from Hanover to Wunstorf (€3.50, 19 minutes), then bus 716 to Saurier-Park (€2.10 one way, 30 minutes to one hour). Buses run more frequently at weekends; for timetable information check www.regiobus.de or call 0511-3688 8723.
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FAIRY-TALE ROAD – SOUTH
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This stretch of the Märchenstrasse (Fairy-Tale Road; www.deutsche-maerchenstrasse.de) is one of the prettiest. Connecting Hamelin, Bodenwerder and Bad Karlshafen, it hugs the Weser River for much of the way and is one of Germany’s most popular cycling routes. South of Bodenwerder, the river is flanked to the east by the Solling-Vogler Naturpark, which is a great spot for hikers, too.
Hamelin is charming, if touristy, Bodenwerder is worth a quick stopover and Bad Karlshafen’s a sleepy beauty.
See the boxed text, Click here, for more information about this part of the Fairy-Tale Road.
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Getting There & Away
What is a simple journey by car – take the B83 to/from Hamelin or Bad Karlshafen – requires a little planning with public transport. From Hamelin’s Hauptbahnhof, bus 520 follows the Weser to/from Holzminden (€11.05, 1½ hours) via Bodenwerder (€5.15) hourly from 6.50am to 7.50pm during the week and every couple of hours on weekends. From Holzminden three to five trains leave daily for Bad Karlshafen (€7.05, 45 minutes), with a change at Ottbergen. Direct trains run every two hours from Bad Karlshafen to Göttingen (€9.05, one hour).
From April to October, boats operated by Flotte Weser ( 05151-939 999; www.flotte-weser.de, in German) also travel from Hamelin to Boden-werder on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday (€12.50, 3½ hours). Boats also do the run Fridays in the season in the downriver direction from Bad Karlshafen to Bodenwerder (€29.50, 6¼ hours).
Details of the much-loved Weser Radweg (Weser Cycle Path; http://weser-radweg.de, in German) can be found online. Click here for details on bike hire.
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HAMELIN & AROUND
05151 / pop 58,600
If you have a phobia about rats, you might give this picturesque town on the Weser River a wide berth. According to The Pied Piper of Hamelin fairy tale, in the 13th century the Pied Piper (Der Rattenfänger) was employed by Hamelin’s townsfolk to lure its nibbling rodents into the river. When they refused to pay him, he picked up his flute again and led their kids away. In the meantime, the rats rule again here – rats that are stuffed, fluffy and cute rats, wooden rats, and even little rats that adorn the sights around town. In 2009 the