Mittelalterliches Kriminalmuseum (Medieval crime museum)

The gruesome medieval implements of torture on display here are not for the faint-hearted. The museum, the largest of its kind in Europe, also soberly documents the history of German legal processes in the Middle Ages.

Town Hall

Half of the town hall is Gothic, begun in 1240, whilst the other half is neoclassical, started in 1572. Below the building is the Historiengewölbe (Historic Vaults), housing a museum that concentrates on the Thirty Years' War.

St. Wolfgang

A historic parish church of Gothic origins with a baroque interior, St. Wolfgang's is most notable for the way it blends into the city wall.

City Wall

Rothenburg's city walls are more than 2km (1 mi) long and provide an excellent way of circumnavigating the town from above. The walls' wooden walkway is covered by eaves and there are stairs every 200 or 300 yards to provide easy access. There are superb views of the tangle of pointed and tiled red roofs and of the rolling country beyond.

St. Jakob

The church has some notable Riemenschneider sculptures, including the famous Heiliges Blut (Holy Blood) altar. Above the altar, a crystal capsule is said to contain drops of Christ's blood. There are three 14th and 15th-century stained-glass windows in the choir and the Herlin-Altar is famous for its 15th-century painted panels.

Join the Night Watchman on his nightly tour through the lantern-lit alleyways every day at 8pm.

Visit one of the many seasonal concerts in one of Rothenburg's churches, e.g. the St. Jacob´s Church.

During peak season, restaurants along the Romantic Road tend to be crowded, especially in the larger towns. You may want to plan your meal times around visits to smaller villages, where there are fewer people. The food will be Franconian or Swabian, but it will also be generally less expensive than in the well-known towns. You may find that some of the small, family-run restaurants close around 2pm, or whenever the last lunch guests have left, and open again at 5 or 5:30pm. Some serve cold cuts or coffee and cake during that time, but no hot food.

Rothenburger Schneeballen

Eat the famous "Rothenburger Schneeballen" (Snowball) in one of the local bakeries; the original recipe has been passed down through generations. You can find all kinds of different varieties. Some are covered in powdered sugar whilst others are filled with cream.

Winery Glocke

Try the "White" mulled wine from the booth of the Winery Glocke at the Rothenburg Christmas Market, one of Germanys most beautiful festive events.

Friese-Kabalo Kunstgewerbe OHG is a shop that specialises in cuckoo clocks, pewter beer steins, music boxes and dolls.

Visit the year-round Christmas shop of Käthe Wohlfahrt's Weihnachtswerkstatt, which is packed with hand-carved Christmas decorations and gifts.

For teddy lovers, a visit to Teddyland is a must. They stock more than 5000 of them, which is the largest population in Germany.