Bamberg (map) can trace its history to a first mention in the year 902. For its historical architecture and preserved heritage, the whole town of Bamberg is listed on the UNESCO World Heritage Site list. It is a great place to see South German baroque architecture.
The town’s architecture from this period strongly influenced that in Northern Germany and Hungary. From the middle of the 13th century onwards, the bishops were princes of the Empire and ruled Bamberg, overseeing the construction of monumental buildings.
Bamberg is known for its smoked Rauchbier and is home to nine breweries. Every August there is a five-day Sandkerwa Festival, a kirmess celebrated with beers.
+ More information > Wikipedia • Wikivoyage • UNESCO
Bamberg is located in Franconia, 63 km (39 mi) north of Nuremberg by railway and 101 km (63 mi) east of Würzburg, also by rail.
Some of the main sights are:
- Bamberger Dom (Bamberg Cathedral, map). The cathedral is under the administration of the Roman Catholic Church and is the seat of the Archbishop of Bamberg. It was founded in 1002 by King (and later Emperor) Heinrich II (Henry II) and consecrated in 1012.
- *Kloster Michelsberg (Michaelsberg Abbey, map) a former Benedictine monastery. The church, gardens and areas not used by the Spital used to be open to the public.
- *Altes Rathaus (old town hall, map).
- Bamberg State Library (Staatsbibliothek Bamberg, map) is a combined universal, regional and research library with priority given to the humanities. Today it is housed in the New Residence, the former prince-bishop’s new palace.
Many bars and clubs are on and around Sandstraße (actually, that’s two streets, “Obere Sandstraße” and “Untere Sandstraße”, map).
Sandkerwa. Is held over the last weekend in August, is a six day folk festival that consumes the entire town, with some 300,000 people attending. It is a festival with offerings of beer and food that rivals or even exceeds the likes of Oktoberfest and includes local traditions such as “fish jousting”.
+ Travelling to Bamberg (en.bamberg.info)
Local public transport within Bamberg relies exclusively on buses. More than 20 routes connect the outlying quarters and some villages in the vicinity to the central bus station.
BUS > MeinFernbus | Stations & Destinations — Germany’s largest long-distance bus company. + Flixbus • Berlin Linien Bus • Postbus • MeinFernbus • DeinBus. Information on almost all bus routes in Germany – BUSRADAR.com. >> (*Intercity buses in Germany)
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Germany is, in general, bicycle friendly, with many bike lanes in cities. There is also a substantial network of well signed, long distance bike routes BICYCLE ROUTE PLANNER GERMANY + Germany – EuroVelo)