Discover Vohenstrauß: Castle, Nature and Culture
Accommodation in Vohenstrauß
Friedrichsburg Castle, a nature and history trail, and special collections give Vohenstrauß a varied character. You can focus your trip on architecture and town history, spend time outdoors, or combine both. Which holiday apartment in Vohenstrauß suits your plans also depends on which of these experiences you want to shape your stay.
Schloss Friedrichsburg gilt als Wahrzeichen Vohenstraußs.
Photo: Richard Huber via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
Renaissance at Friedrichsburg Castle
Built between 1586 and 1593 by Count Palatine Friedrich, the castle is the town’s landmark and closely connected with the history of Palatinate-Neuburg. It is one of the most remarkable castle buildings in the Upper Palatinate. The three-storey Renaissance building, with its steep gabled roof and five round towers topped with pointed roofs, offers a tangible starting point if you are interested in architectural history and historic townscapes.
Friedrichsburg Castle is also a venue for cultural events held there throughout the year. Its rooms host exhibitions by regional artists and performances by the Vohenstrauß town theatre. An annual classic car gathering takes place on the castle grounds, which also host a romantic Advent market. The site therefore combines architecture with a range of cultural and seasonal events.
Local History and Minerals
The Vohenstrauß local history museum is housed in a former farmer-citizen’s house dating from the 18th century. Its collections cover everything from past living and working conditions to town and industrial history, including the role of glass and porcelain. Agriculture, religious folk art and archaeological finds in and around Vohenstrauß round out the themes. Visitors looking to learn about different aspects of local history will find more than just a single historical focus here.
The local history museum offers guided tours for groups and school classes by prior arrangement through the tourism office. You can register by calling 09651/922230. The “Treasures of the Upper Palatinate” gemstone museum offers a distinctive focus on minerals from the Upper Palatinate, including fluorite and barite from the Wölsendorf fluorspar district. Other specimens include red, yellow and green garnet crystals, the Hagendorf local collection, rose quartz from Pleystein, and beryl, described as a precursor to emerald.
Nature Park and Trails Around Vohenstrauß
The entire municipal area lies within the Northern Upper Palatinate Forest Nature Park. One of the aims of the nature park designation is to make suitable parts of the landscape accessible to the public for recreation and enjoyment of nature, where the natural environment and landscape can withstand it. If you would like to combine nature with cultural history during your stay, consider the Pfalzgraf-Friedrich Trail.
The Pfalzgraf-Friedrich Trail is a 16.5-kilometre nature and history trail dedicated to the builder of Friedrichsburg Castle. Six information boards along the route explain natural and cultural landscape factors that influenced historical settlement. These include drinking water supply, energy resources and transport links. The circular hike therefore takes in not only the landscape but also the conditions under which people settled here.
Important for planning your route: choosing Friedrichsburg Castle as your starting and finishing point adds 3 kilometres to the total distance. Take this extra length into account when planning your day. If you would rather explore a cycling route with several church stops, Route 9 of the Simultankirchen cycle route starts at the Evangelical Town Church in Vohenstrauß. It first leads to St. John the Baptist Simultaneous Church in Altenstadt, then follows the Bockl cycle path to Flossenbürg and its Simultaneous Churches of St. Pancras, before returning to Vohenstrauß via Waldkirch and Pleystein.
Water and Activity
Vohenstrauß Natural Outdoor Pool offers various ways to be active in and around the water. Facilities include a water slide, a sand and water playground, a water trampoline, a diving board and two beach volleyball courts. The separate areas are also useful to know about when planning a swim. The swimming area is 50 metres long; the water depth is 0.10 to 1.20 metres in the non-swimmer area and 1.20 to 3.80 metres in the swimming area.
If you are looking for a holiday apartment for a stay with varied interests, you can factor these highlights into your choice of location: the castle and museums offer a cultural focus, the trail combines natural and settlement history, and the outdoor pool adds water-based activities and play facilities.
More places to discover: Böhmischbruck, Kirchenthumbach, Kohlberg, Eslarn, Neustadt An Der Waldnaab, Kirchendemenreuth, Vorbach, Schirmitz.
Back to the main travel overview: Neustadt An Der Waldnaab.
