The 20 Most Beautiful Fairytale Towns in Germany

Walled market towns, crooked timber-framed lanes and castle-topped river villages, from postcard favourites to quieter corners locals guard. Which one would you pick for a weekend? Cast your vote!

1. 1
   Bacharach

   Small Rhine Gorge town of half-timbered houses, vineyard slopes and Stahleck Castle.
   1000pts
2. 2
   Rothenburg ob der Tauber

   Bavarian walled town famous for its intact medieval ramparts and half-timbered lanes.
   965pts
3. 3
   Nördlingen

   Bavarian town built inside a meteorite crater, with a fully walkable medieval wall.
   657pts
4. 4
   Celle

   Lower Saxon town with over 400 restored half-timbered buildings and a ducal castle.
   639pts
5. 5
   Monschau

   Eifel town of slate-roofed timbered houses squeezed along the Rur river.
   639pts
6. 6
   Michelstadt

   Odenwald town with a 1484 half-timbered town hall on its market square.
   579pts
7. 7
   Rüdesheim am Rhein

   Rhine wine town known for the narrow Drosselgasse and vineyard terraces above the river.
   511pts
8. 8
   Marburg

   Hessian university town with steep lanes climbing to a landgrave's castle.
   511pts
9. 9
   Meersburg

   Lake Constance town with a stacked medieval old town and a castle that is still inhabited.
   511pts
10. 10
    Bamberg

    Franconian city of seven hills, a riverside old town and a town hall built on a bridge.
    511pts
11. 11
    Goslar

    Imperial-era Harz town with slate roofs, a Kaiserpfalz and UNESCO mining heritage.
    432pts
12. 12
    Wernigerode

    Colourful Harz town crowned by a hilltop fairytale castle.
    432pts
13. 13
    Lindau

    Island old town on Lake Constance with a harbour lighthouse and Bavarian lion.
    341pts
14. 14
    Schwäbisch Hall

    Kocher river town with a wide stairway to St. Michael's and a compact timbered core.
    341pts
15. 15
    Miltenberg

    Main river town with a timbered market square and the Riesen inn.
    232pts
16. 16
    Görlitz

    Saxon border town with thousands of listed buildings that often double as a film set.
    232pts
17. 17
    Bernkastel-Kues

    Moselle wine town with a crooked-house market square and a castle ruin above.
    232pts
18. 18
    Cochem

    Moselle town beneath a restored hilltop castle, ringed by vineyards.
    232pts
19. 19
    Quedlinburg

    Harz town with more than 1,300 half-timbered houses and a UNESCO-listed old town.
    0pts
20. 20
    Dinkelsbühl

    Romantic Road town with a nearly complete medieval wall and pastel gabled houses.
    0pts

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