One Night at the Wartburg

I always wanted to visit the famous Wartburg in Eisenach! (Zum deutschen Blogpost.) It is situated very majestic on a mountain just over 400 metres above sealevel, high above the Thuringian Eisenach and it is full of history.

This blog post contains unpaid advertisement. This trip was paid by myself and all I have written is my personal opinion. You´ll find affiliate links. If you buy a product through this link, you´ll not pay more, but I’ll get a small commission, that helps to go on with my blog. 

In order to enjoy the stay as long as possible, we book one night in the 5 stars

Romantik Hotel Auf der Wartburg

Under the new Corona conditions, we are asked to announce our approximate arrival time. The parking lot is just below the hotel and you can register at the barrier. Then a shuttle bus comes to pick us up.

The driveway to the hotel is very narrow and I am glad that our driver reaches the courtyard of the hotel without scratches. Here we are right at the outdoor area of the restaurant, which is well visited.  Right next door, still slightly elevated, is the Wartburg.

We arrive in the early afternoon and our room is not yet available, so we drop off our luggage and set off on foot to Eisenach.

The way from the hotel to Eisenach

We are standing in front of the hotel: We have to follow the road downhill as we got  explained at the reception desk. First time to the general parking lot of the Wartburg, whichis even further below the hotel parking lot (there  a shuttle bus starts for the visitors of the Wartburg).

This is easy to find and then different paths are signposted. We don’t want to waste time and take the direct route to the city. This one actually goes straight and steep down  the mountain. Solid shoes are an advantage! Even when we arrive at the first houses, it goes downhill further on. Eisenach is located about 200 meters above N.N. , so we have to go back 200 meters uphill afterwards… In total, we are on the road for about 25 minutes.

Eisenach

We stroll a bit through Eisenach. On the  market square in front of the town hall, a flea market is in progress today. Despite the mask obligation,  hardly anyone wears one. In Thuringia there were only a few Corona cases, so maybe everyone here is   taking it a little relaxed.

I notice some beautiful, historic buildings, among them especially the Nicolaitor. It was built at the end of the 12th century together with the adjacent Nicolaikirche and  is thus also the last, still surviving city gate of Eisenach and even the oldest still standing city gate  of Thuringia.

We treat ourselves with an ice cream on the way and then start the way back.

Return from Eisenach to the Wartburg

Back we do not take the direct path over the Schlossberg, but a slightly less steep path, which starts at the “Little Neustadt” and passes the hotel “Hennesburg”. From here the signage is very poor and we are happy about our  Komoot-app, which shows us the right way.

Nevertheless, we still make a detour over the “Metilstein”,a mountain that is situated directly opposite the Wartburg. Also this  path is quite steep. But for this we get rewarded by a magnificent view of the Wartburg!

However, this also means down this mountain again, at least up to the half and on the other side uphill again. Quite so, I havn’t imagined the walk would be like this, but I have to go through that now.

In the hotel

There are still many excursion tourists at and in the hotel and in front of the entrance to the Wartburg. There is a queue, as only a few people are allowed into the castle itself at the same time.

So today we do not visit the castle and postpone it until tomorrowmorning. Maybe there is less going on on Monday morning.

We now move into our “tower room”. It is not really located in  a tower, but on a corner of the hotel, so that we have a magnificent view over Thuringia, but also of the hotel courtyard. In total, the room has  got seven windows and is actually very rustic and castle-style furnished. Add to that  two Petits  Fours and a pretty carafe filled with spring water as a welcome present from the hotel.

The hotel has been standing next to the Wartburg for more than 100 years and fits very well into the overall ensemble of the castle complex. One could almost think that it used to be farm buildings or the like.

We have booked the surprise three-course menu and will not be disappointed. The individual courses are absolutely not small but so big that I not able to eat up my delicious dessert. What a sin!

The service at dinner is just as good as the food. It’s a very successful evening! Next to us, the guests take the a la carte dinner and as it looks, this is also a pleasure! The guests there have some special requests, but the kitchen is flexible and can fulfill them.

In the late evening we are attuned to the night with a sensational sunset. Our room is ideal for this and I can’t  get enough of this wonderful sky spectacle.

Breakfast the next morning is served as a  buffet.  Disinfecting hands and wearing a mask is, of course, mandatory. Coffee comes to the table. Egg dishes can be ordered. Unfortunately, the service now is not as good as the evening before. But still very friendly! For me, breakfast leaves nothing to be desired and soon we are ready to explore the Wartburg.

Inside the Wartburg

The Wartburg is an UNESCO World Heritage Site and we did well to be among the first to visit the castle that day.

At the entrance, everyone can download a QR code and thus provided we start our  walk through the castle on our own pace. Detailed information is available for each room. At the same time, only a few people are allowed into the exhibition rooms, so that the obligation to distance can be guaranteed. Of course, a mask must be worn.

Tradition says that the Wartburg was founded in 1067, but the oldest part, the Palas, is from late Romanesque times, the 12th century.

Here the War of Singers was fought and St. Elizabeth  (of Thuringia)  spent part of her very short life here  (1207 to 1231). The room that is said to be hers is extremely sumptuously  equipped  and recreates her life on the pictures on the walls. It was decorated like this centuries after her death.

Everyone knows from the history lessons that Martin   Luther, as Junker Jörg, hid on the  Wartburg from 1521 to 1522  and translated the New Testament into German here.

There is nothing left of the original furniture in his small room, because his “fans” have stolen parts of it over the centuries. An ink stain on the wall attributed to Martin Luther has also been scraped off, renewed again and again, but has now  disappeared. It was said, he threw his ink pot after the devil, who haunted him in his room.

Again and again the castle was renewed or changed in parts. In the 19th century,the Wartburg was  restored on a large scale  and enlarged by new parts. In the last century, the ballroom was very lavishly decorated and has been the venue of many events. Very often for the Wartburg concerts in the summer months.

I was particularly fascinated by the part with the exhibits. Partly behind glass they show insights into the life and science of the  past centuries..

After leaving the Wartburg, we look around outside a little bit. Here we admire the equipment of craftsmen and farmers, as well as cannons from the last centuries.

Now we are finished and say goodbye to the historic Wartburg. Now it’s getting full and we’re glad that we have been here so early.

The area here is very suitable for hiking, mention only the Rennsteig!

Thank you for reading along! If you want more info then just subscribe to my Facebook page or my accounts on Instagram, Tripadvisor and Pinterest.

If you fancy a tour through Thuringia or the hotel on the Wartburg, just click here.

Another nice city in Germany is Fulda. Here comes the blog post!