The old town’s lanes near the medieval Rathaus complex

Civic History & Museum

Altes Rathaus and the Reichstag Museum

Regensburg · Bavaria

QUICK INFORMATION

CATEGORY
Civic History & Museum
COUNTRY
Germany
REGION
Regensburg · Bavaria
DURATION
2 days

ABOUT THIS ATTRACTION

The Altes Rathaus is where the Holy Roman Empire ended: its Reichssaal — the grand Gothic hall above the Rathausplatz — hosted the Perpetual Diet from 1663, the permanent congress of imperial envoys that kept the Empire’s machinery running in the city for 143 years until 1806. The guided tour takes the hall (its wood panelling, its electoral bench plan) and then descends to the 14th-century cellar levels where the city’s law ran: the documents chamber and the torture chamber, preserved with their instruments and their sober presentation. The UNESCO Visitor Centre beside the square runs the orientation film, and the Rathausplatz is the old town’s practical centre — the tourist office, the cash desks and the walking tours all start here.

HISTORY & BACKGROUND

The story behind it

More here soon — the road is still being mapped.

WHAT TO SEE

What to see here

01

The Reichssaal — the Perpetual Diet’s hall, the Empire’s last capital room.

02

The torture-chamber museum — the medieval law cellar with its instruments and documentation.

03

The UNESCO Visitor Centre — the old town’s orientation film and route maps.

MAP & LOCATION

Altes Rathaus and the Reichstag Museum

Altes Rathaus and the Reichstag Museum, Regensburg, Bavaria, Germany

49.0181, 12.0973

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FOOD & DRINK

Where to eat nearby

01

Regensburg eats and drinks like the river city it is: grilled sausages at the Wurstkuchl — grilling by the Stone Bridge since the 12th century, the world’s oldest open-air grill, served with sauerkraut and sweet mustard at plank tables over the Danube — plus the Franconian-Bavarian canon of roast pork, dumplings and pretzel culture, and the Danube fish tradition at the city’s older tables.

02

The Historic Wurstkuchl is the essential (touristy and tiny, but the ritual is the point); nearby the Spital brewery — run by a medieval hospital foundation — pours its own beer under the towers, and the Kneitinger Brauhaus and Thurn und Taxis’ own cellar carry the city’s three-brewery tradition.

03

The old town’s lanes hide the range: the Haidplatz’s café square for breakfast, the Dachauplatz’s modern kitchens, the Stadtamhof quarter across the bridge for the quieter riverside tables. Leberkässemmel from the Viktualienmarkt-style market hall is the walking lunch.

04

Sweet Regensburg: the Prinzenküche’s historic pastries and the chocolate makers around the Neupfarrplatz. Camping travellers: the AZUR site’s kiosk covers basics and the No. 1 bus puts the old town’s tables at the campsite’s door in fifteen minutes; the Wurstkuchl’s picnic tables by the river work with your own supplies too.

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HOTELS & STAYS

Where to stay nearby

01

The old town inside the walls is the right base: UNESCO lanes, the Dom and the bridge all walkable, hotels in patrician houses and merchant courtyards — the Sorat and the Orphée’s hotel wing are the classic addresses. Summer weekends book up with the festival calendar.

02

The Stadtamhof quarter just across the Stone Bridge trades a five-minute walk for quieter streets and softer rates, with the river view at the window.

03

The station quarter (south of the walls) holds the business hotels and the cheapest beds — fifteen minutes’ walk to the Dom, unbeatable for rail arrivals.

04

Camping: AZUR Camping Regensburg (at Weinweg on the Danube’s western edge, year-round, bus No. 1 to the old town) is the city’s standard site with riverside pitches; the smaller Stadtamhof riverside spots suit van travelers. Book ahead for the Bürgerfest week in July.

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