# 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!

*By YPB Team · Published September 30, 2026 · https://youpick.best/ranking/the-20-most-beautiful-fairytale-towns-in-germany*

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## Current results (no votes yet)

1. **Bacharach** — score 1000/1000
   Small Rhine Gorge town of half-timbered houses, vineyard slopes and Stahleck Castle.
2. **Rothenburg ob der Tauber** — score 965/1000
   Bavarian walled town famous for its intact medieval ramparts and half-timbered lanes.
3. **Nördlingen** — score 657/1000
   Bavarian town built inside a meteorite crater, with a fully walkable medieval wall.
4. **Celle** — score 639/1000
   Lower Saxon town with over 400 restored half-timbered buildings and a ducal castle.
5. **Monschau** — score 639/1000
   Eifel town of slate-roofed timbered houses squeezed along the Rur river.
6. **Michelstadt** — score 579/1000
   Odenwald town with a 1484 half-timbered town hall on its market square.
7. **Rüdesheim am Rhein** — score 511/1000
   Rhine wine town known for the narrow Drosselgasse and vineyard terraces above the river.
8. **Marburg** — score 511/1000
   Hessian university town with steep lanes climbing to a landgrave's castle.
9. **Meersburg** — score 511/1000
   Lake Constance town with a stacked medieval old town and a castle that is still inhabited.
10. **Bamberg** — score 511/1000
   Franconian city of seven hills, a riverside old town and a town hall built on a bridge.
11. **Goslar** — score 432/1000
   Imperial-era Harz town with slate roofs, a Kaiserpfalz and UNESCO mining heritage.
12. **Wernigerode** — score 432/1000
   Colourful Harz town crowned by a hilltop fairytale castle.
13. **Lindau** — score 341/1000
   Island old town on Lake Constance with a harbour lighthouse and Bavarian lion.
14. **Schwäbisch Hall** — score 341/1000
   Kocher river town with a wide stairway to St. Michael's and a compact timbered core.
15. **Miltenberg** — score 232/1000
   Main river town with a timbered market square and the Riesen inn.
16. **Görlitz** — score 232/1000
   Saxon border town with thousands of listed buildings that often double as a film set.
17. **Bernkastel-Kues** — score 232/1000
   Moselle wine town with a crooked-house market square and a castle ruin above.
18. **Cochem** — score 232/1000
   Moselle town beneath a restored hilltop castle, ringed by vineyards.
19. **Quedlinburg** — score 0/1000
   Harz town with more than 1,300 half-timbered houses and a UNESCO-listed old town.
20. **Dinkelsbühl** — score 0/1000
   Romantic Road town with a nearly complete medieval wall and pastel gabled houses.

Tags: europe, travel, germany, towns