Discover Unterroth: Church, Countryside and Hiking

Unterroth offers three clear themes for planning a trip: the hilly countryside between the Roth and Günz rivers, the Catholic parish church of St. Gordian and Epimachus, and the district of Matzenhofen with its pilgrimage church.

Countryside and Getting Your Bearings

Unterroth is situated on a hilly, partly wooded plateau between the Roth and Günz rivers. The countryside invites visitors to enjoy long hikes and gives a stay a distinct connection to nature.

State Road 2020 and District Road NU 5 are important for navigating by road: they intersect in Unterroth. NU 5 connects the village to the Illertissen A7 interchange (AS 124), about five kilometres to the northwest. If you are travelling by car, check current traffic conditions before setting out.

The Parish Church of St. Gordian and Epimachus

The Catholic parish church of St. Gordian and Epimachus is a hall church with a recessed polygonal choir and a saddle-roofed tower in the northern corner. The tower and choir walls date from around 1500. Later, in 1922, the nave was extended to the west according to plans by David Eberle. The church therefore reveals distinct building phases: the approximate date of the tower and choir walls, and the later extension of the nave.

The choir features stucco work by Michael Eitele. At the same time, the Late Gothic saddle-roofed tower has been a nesting site for storks for many decades. The architecture, artistic details and long-standing observations of storks each offer a different perspective on the church.

Matzenhofen and the Rechberg Route

In the district of Matzenhofen, the pilgrimage church of Our Lady of Sorrows stands on a hill in a wooded area. Built in 1751, it features frescoes by Franz Martin Kuen. The church is a popular excursion destination, and its pilgrimage history gives it a different focus from the parish church of St. Gordian and Epimachus in Unterroth.

The starting point of the Rechberg Route is also in Matzenhofen: the route begins at Matzenhofen 4, 89299 Unterroth, below the pilgrimage chapel. It is 15.8 kilometres long. Check current trail and parking conditions before setting out.

More to Explore in the Wider Neu-Ulm Destination

In the wider Neu-Ulm destination, distinct cultural attractions add to the picture of Unterroth. The Edwin Scharff Museum on Petrusplatz in the heart of Neu-Ulm brings an art museum and a children’s museum together under one roof. At the children’s museum, hands-on and interactive stations invite visitors of all ages to take part. The museum tower of the Caelius Mons Archaeological Park in Kellmünz offers a different historical focus: built on ancient foundations, it documents the history of the Roman province of Raetia as well as findings from archaeological excavations.

The Roggenburg Monastery Museum presents the history of the Imperial Abbey and its territory from its foundation in 1126 to secularisation in 1803. Its focus is on works of sacred art from the 17th and 18th centuries, covering the Baroque, popular piety and the history of the monastic order. The museums thus cover clearly distinct themes: from the combination of art and children’s museums in Neu-Ulm, to Roman history in Kellmünz, to monastic and religious-order history in Roggenburg.

The wider Neu-Ulm destination also has attractions for nature and leisure enthusiasts. The Plessenteich bird sanctuary is located in the Gerlenhofen district of Neu-Ulm, where 200 different bird species have already been sighted. An observation tower offers views of resting or nesting birds in every season. The Museum of Garden Culture features more than twenty themed gardens, including the Insect Garden, expanded in 2025, and the “Medicinal Plants of the World” garden.

From Easter to October, the Bavarian Bee Museum offers visitors the chance to observe a queen bee and her retinue in a glass display case and learn about the life of bees. At Donaubad in Neu-Ulm, visitors can enjoy the sauna; in winter, the baths offer ice skating at an ice sports facility. The attractions span the seasons: from views of resting or nesting birds from the Plessenteich observation tower all year round, to observing a queen bee and her retinue in the Bavarian Bee Museum’s display case from Easter to October, to winter ice skating at Donaubad’s ice sports facility.

For the wider travel overview: Book.