1000 Places to See Before You Die: 2 - Quedlinburg, Germany
The little town of Quedlinburg is located in northern Germany 3 hours drive southwest of Berlin. The houses in the city are timbered, and gives this small town a quaint medieval feeling.
The town is a UNESCO World Heritage site and it has celebrated its 1000 year anniversary, which is quite an accomplishment, considering it had to survive bombings in the Second World War and the urban renewal plans of the former East German government. The oldest timbered house in the town is from 1310 AD and that also makes it the oldest timbered house in Germany. The hallmark of the timbered houses of Quedlinburg are the facades of the houses that are highlighted in blue, red, yellow and green colors.
My two girlfriends and I were struggling to find a holiday destination for the summer of 2013, and when we asked around for a place within driving distance, Quedlinburg came up a few times. So we decided to give it a go and do a road trip to this little town.
Quedlinburg is quite a popular destination. For a certain set of holiday makers...It caters mostly to retired people and as a day trip for families camping in the area. Three young women were quite the sight in this town and we felt a little out of place. We stayed for 4 days and I felt like that was enough time to see the sights and have coffee and cake. We enjoyed ourselves but I probably wouldn't go again. But if you are in the area it is certainly worth visiting as a day trip. And there are things in the surrounding area to do. We went to the Rabensteiner Stollen (mines), the Hexentanzplatz (Witch's Dancing Ground) and Brocken, the tallest mountain in the area. In the town itself there are also a few things to do, like wander the streets to look at the pretty buildings, visit the museum and eat tons of cake.
We did try to go out for drinks at night, but that was quite a quest! The first night I think we settled for basic drinks at the restaurant, and the next day we went to the tourist information office to ask for a place to get a drink. The guy who worked there was really apologetic, since "this was a small town, and there were not a lot of bars", but he did give us directions to a place or two he thought might serve drinks. That night we did manage to find a very empty, very 90s bar with drinks with glow sticks in them.
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| Quedlinburg |
The town is a UNESCO World Heritage site and it has celebrated its 1000 year anniversary, which is quite an accomplishment, considering it had to survive bombings in the Second World War and the urban renewal plans of the former East German government. The oldest timbered house in the town is from 1310 AD and that also makes it the oldest timbered house in Germany. The hallmark of the timbered houses of Quedlinburg are the facades of the houses that are highlighted in blue, red, yellow and green colors.
My two girlfriends and I were struggling to find a holiday destination for the summer of 2013, and when we asked around for a place within driving distance, Quedlinburg came up a few times. So we decided to give it a go and do a road trip to this little town.
Quedlinburg is quite a popular destination. For a certain set of holiday makers...It caters mostly to retired people and as a day trip for families camping in the area. Three young women were quite the sight in this town and we felt a little out of place. We stayed for 4 days and I felt like that was enough time to see the sights and have coffee and cake. We enjoyed ourselves but I probably wouldn't go again. But if you are in the area it is certainly worth visiting as a day trip. And there are things in the surrounding area to do. We went to the Rabensteiner Stollen (mines), the Hexentanzplatz (Witch's Dancing Ground) and Brocken, the tallest mountain in the area. In the town itself there are also a few things to do, like wander the streets to look at the pretty buildings, visit the museum and eat tons of cake.
We did try to go out for drinks at night, but that was quite a quest! The first night I think we settled for basic drinks at the restaurant, and the next day we went to the tourist information office to ask for a place to get a drink. The guy who worked there was really apologetic, since "this was a small town, and there were not a lot of bars", but he did give us directions to a place or two he thought might serve drinks. That night we did manage to find a very empty, very 90s bar with drinks with glow sticks in them.
In conclusion I think Quedlinburg is super cozy and pretty, but it's certainly best enjoyed in smaller doses, perhaps as a day trip or as a stop on a longer journey.
(All facts are from the book "1000 Places to See Before You Die by Patricia Schultz)
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