Pfullingen: Monastic Heritage, Mills and Views

Pfullingen lies on the Alb escarpment, within the UNESCO-designated Swabian Alb Biosphere Reserve and at the entrance to the upper Echaz Valley. Views, landscape and local cultural heritage shape the different ways to enjoy a stay: the Schönberg Tower offers views across the Alb, while the Klostersee lake, monastery buildings, mills and museums reveal other sides of the town. If you are looking for hotels in Pfullingen, consider in advance whether you would particularly like to focus your stay on views, landscape or culture.

Views and Landscapes on the Alb Escarpment

The Schönberg Tower was Germany’s first observation tower built using reinforced concrete. Standing 28 metres tall, it has a panoramic viewing platform that offers far-reaching views across the Swabian Alb; in good weather, you can see as far as the Black Forest or the Schurwald. Thanks to its location, Pfullingen is considered an ideal starting point for hikes and excursions. Views and landscape are a focus in their own right, alongside the town’s historical attractions.

The artificially dammed Klostersee lake can be walked all the way around. The millstone by the lake evokes the mills of centuries past, adding a local milling theme to the landscape. You can occasionally spot trout in sections of the 2/8 and 1/8 channels if you approach the water quietly. Such a sighting cannot be planned with certainty: it depends on whether the fish happen to be visible. While the Schönberg Tower draws your gaze across the Alb, at Klostersee lake the focus is on water, channels and milling history.

Monastic Heritage and Literature

The permanent exhibition “Poverty, Humility, Obedience” is housed in the monastery church and the former washhouse. It explores the Poor Clares of Pfullingen and their world from 1250 to 1649. The former monastery’s heritage also includes its original, preserved medieval speaking grille. It is the only surviving medieval speaking grille in Europe. The exhibition and grille offer different perspectives: one focuses on the history of the Poor Clares, the other on a rare, individual testament to medieval monastic culture.

Right next to the monastery church, the historic Neske Library houses a literary exhibition about Günther Neske Verlag. Pfullingen’s cultural story thus spans the history of the Poor Clares and the history of literature and publishing.

Mills and Traditional Dress

Following its renovation, the Baumann Mill is Pfullingen’s last mill that is still operational and is a listed cultural monument. It houses the Mill and Traditional Dress Museum. The mill spans four floors and has four sets of millstones as well as a mill hoist. These features illustrate the technical side of mill construction, while the millstone by Klostersee lake recalls the mills’ former importance.

The Württemberg Traditional Dress Museum presents rural clothing from the 18th to the 20th century. The exhibits were originally everyday clothes belonging to private individuals; they were collected over several decades, brought together, restored and put on display. The museum is also an information centre for the Swabian Alb Biosphere Reserve. In this way, the collection of historical clothing is paired with information about the biosphere reserve.

Seasonal Sunday opening hours of 2 to 5 pm from May to October are listed for the Württemberg Traditional Dress Museum. Check before your trip to see whether these hours are still in effect.

Villa Laiblin and the Town’s Architecture

The documentation centre in Villa Laiblin comprises three rooms and an adjoining loggia, offering insights into the life and work of Louis Laiblin and his family. The Laiblin Park is also home to the pavilion built in 1911/1912. It is the only pavilion still standing today out of at least five former garden houses of different designs. The villa focuses on the history of a family; the pavilion is a surviving testament to the garden houses of the past.

The Pfullingen Halls are also a listed cultural monument. They combine an event hall with a gymnasium, setting them apart from the exhibition and documentation venues: this building brings together event and sports hall functions.

Discover more destinations: Hohenstein, Trochtelfingen, Riederich, Bad Urach, Engstingen, Mehrstetten, Hülben, Pfronstetten

See the overview of the wider region: Reutlingen.