Lauterbach (Hesse): Old Town, Culture and Cycling Routes

Lauterbach (Hesse) combines historic urban spaces with cultural tours and routes for cycling and hiking. The sights in the Old Town are easy to reach on foot, while the Vulkanradweg also runs through the town. The options range from half-timbered houses and Rococo architecture to a former railway line and excursions in the surrounding area.

Old Town and Architectural History

The market square has been the heart of Lauterbach since 1266. It is surrounded by numerous half-timbered houses worth seeing. The Ankerturm also tells the story of the town’s fortifications: it is the last surviving defensive tower of Lauterbach’s town wall and has guarded the gateway into the town for more than 750 years.

The Protestant town church was built from 1763 to 1768. It is considered one of the most beautiful Rococo churches in Hesse and a jewel of the High Baroque. The market square, half-timbered houses and church each make their own contribution to the historic townscape. Since the Old Town’s sights are easy to reach on foot, they can be visited as separate stops during a tour of the town.

Tours with Different Perspectives

A tour of the Hohhaus Museum offers insights into the history of the building and includes, among other things, archaeological finds from Wartenberg Castle and finds from burial mounds. In the museum’s Historic Classroom, visitors can experience a school lesson as it was 100 years ago. Check the current availability of tours and the classroom before your visit.

The “Lauterbacher Unterwelt” (Lauterbach Underworld) tour offers a different way to explore the town’s history. It leads into historic vaulted cellars beneath the former commercial wings of the first castle brewery, the town hall and the Johannesberg Post Hotel. The tour brings everyday, cultural, social and economic history to life. The cellar tour complements views of the visible buildings with an underground perspective on life in the town in earlier times.

Cycling and Routes in the Surrounding Area

The Vulkanradweg follows a former railway line for 94 kilometres through the Vogelsberg, running from Altenstadt via Lauterbach to Schlitz. Along the way, it passes through woodland and meadows. Lauterbach also offers plenty of opportunities for hiking and cycling on an active holiday. If you would like to explore the area on foot, the Bachtour Lauterbach runs near the town through the Münchswiesen, a protected area that is home to rare flora and fauna.

Schloss Eisenbach is also on the Bachtour. It can only be viewed from the outside; the castle chapel is open to visitors. The key is available at the Burg-Post restaurant. The distinction between viewing the castle from the outside and accessing the chapel is important when planning your visit.

More Things to Explore in the Wider Vogelsberg Destination

The wider Vogelsberg destination also offers more for nature and culture enthusiasts. The Vogelsberg is Europe’s largest volcanic region. The Vogelsberger Bergmähwiesen are Hesse’s largest protected areas of this kind. At the Vulkaneum in Schotten, an interactive exhibition explains volcanism; the multimedia exhibition is devoted to volcanism and geology in the Vogelsberg. Visitors can experience the past firsthand at the hands-on stations and through the interactive exhibits.

There are a variety of routes to choose from for active exploration of the Vogelsberg. The GipfelTour Schotten covers 14 kilometres, taking in four peaks in the Oberwald as well as species-rich mountain meadows and varied woodland with natural basalt formations. The Weitblicktour Ulrichstein is a moderately difficult 11.6-kilometre circular route around Ulrichstein through deciduous forests and a varied patchwork of farmland. A considerably longer route is the Vulkanring Vogelsberg: this 119-kilometre circular hiking trail links natural and cultural highlights around the ridge of the Hoher Vogelsberg.

Other regional destinations offer different attractions. At Hoherodskopf, the treetop path is 500 metres long in total and features suspension bridges. At the Hoherodskopf climbing forest, nature and adventure enthusiasts can climb from tree to tree under the supervision of trained professionals. At Ulrichstein’s natural bathing biotope, the bathing water is purified naturally by aquatic plants and circulation systems. Since 2001, centuries-old cultural heritage around the castle ruins on Ulrichstein’s castle hill has been tended and cultivated in the Vogelsberggarten using traditional farming methods; visitors can discover 243 species of wild-growing plants there.

Discover more destinations: Romrod, Alsfeld, Wartenberg, Homberg, Grebenhain, Freiensteinau, Antrifttal, Gemünden.

Back to the main travel overview: Vogelsberg.