Old Town and Baroque Churches by Dietzenhofer, Asam, Carlone, & Zimmermann

Baroque churches by Dietzenhofer, Asam, Carlone, & Zimmermann and a romantic old town are the major sights to see in Amberg in the Oberpfalz (Upper Palatinate), Germany.

photo credit: gatowlion

Amberg in the Oberpfalz (Upper Palatinate) in northern Bavaria in Germany is an interesting old town with a colorful history and some astonishing Baroque masterpieces by amongst others Wolfgang Dietzenhofer, Cosmas Damien Asam, Giovanni Battista Carlone, and Johann Baptist Zimmermann. The town was once the capital of the Wittelsbach-ruled Oberpfalz and during the seventeenth century became a bastion of the counter reformation – the result are some stunning Baroque and Rococo works in what is today a small town far removed from the political, cultural, and economic arteries of the modern world.

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The Nazi KZ-Gedenkstätte Memorial where Dietrich Bonhoeffer Died

Pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer died in the Nazi Concentration Camp (Konzentrationslager) Flossenbürg in the Oberpfalz in Bavaria, Germany

photo credit: Hizir

Concentration Camp Flossenbürg was erected in May 1938 due to its favorable geographical location in the heart of Germany close to Czechoslovakia, a railway line, and granite quarries.

Originally, the camp was intended for criminals, social undesirables (a category that ranged from homosexuals to prostitutes), and political opponents of the Nazi regime. During the war, an increasing number of foreign prisoners as well as Soviet prisoners of war were held in Flossenbürg.

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Cistercian Monastery with Churches and Library by Georg Dientzenhofer

Baroque churches and monastery library by Georg Dientzenhofer, Carlone, Hofreiter, and Steinfels are the top sights in Waldsassen in the Upper Palatinate, Germany.

photo credit: saga arpino

The main reason to visit Waldsassen is to see the Cistercian abbey church and library – both are masterpieces of the Bavarian Baroque and Rococo. The Wallfahrtskirche der Heiligsten Dreifaltigkeit (Pilgrim’s Church of the Holy Trinity) just outside Waldsassen is a further popular sightseeing destination.

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Hiking, Cycling, and Canoeing in the Bavarian Upper Palatinate

© Tourismusverbandes Ostbayern

The Oberpfalz (Upper Palatinate) is a haven for outdoor adventures with hiking and cycling popular in the Oberpfälzer Wald (forest) and canoeing on the Naab and Vils rivers.

Visitors to the Oberpfalz (Upper Palatinate) in Bavaria can enjoy endless outdoor activities. The area is largely forested and rural with very few large towns. Although these towns have some Baroque gems, the lure of the outdoors is always foremost when visiting the Upper Palatinate.

Several Oberpfälzer towns offer guided town walks while the countryside is ideal for hiking too. Hiking and cycling are particularly popular in the Oberpfälzer Wald / Upper Palatinate Forest as well as next to rivers such as the Naab and its very numerous tributaries. The Naab and the Vils rivers are also ideal for canoeing.

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Where to Sleep and Eat in the Upper Palatinate in Bavaria, Germany

Amberg and Weiden in the Bavarian Oberpfalz (Upper Palatinate), Germany have pleasant and cheap hotels and restaurants where guests enjoy value for money and great service.

photo credit: Jametiks

Amberg and Weiden have the largest number of hotels and restaurants in the Oberpfalz (Upper Palatinate) region of Bavaria. Country hotels and holiday cottages are popular in the Bavarian Forest but for most short term visitors, hotels in the larger towns are more convenient. The Eh’häusl in Amberg claims to be the smallest hotel in the world – here guests become owners for the night.

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Amberg, Waldsassen, Weiden, Neustadt, and Flossenbürg in the Upper Palatine, Bavaria

Forests, rolling hills, and sights including Amberg, Waldsassen, Weiden, and Flossenbürg are the major draws of the Oberpfalz (Upper Palatinate) in Bavaria, Germany.

© Tourismusverbandes Ostbayern

The Oberpfalz (Upper Palatinate) in Bavaria has traditionally been ruled by the Wittelsbach family from their electorate in the Palatinate along the Rhine. Here the Wittelsbachs lived in splendor in the magnificent castle in Heidelberg and later in the largest Baroque palace in Germany in Mannheim. In 1620, the Oberpfalz became part of Bavaria, which was up to then ruled by a different branch of the Wittelsbach family.

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See the Romantic Old Town with Ceramics Museum and Art Nouveau Church

Top sights to see in Weiden in the Upper Palatinate, Germany include the romantic old town, the International Ceramics Museum, and church with Art Nouveau interior.

photo credit: martinroell

Weiden in the Oberpfalz is a mostly industrial town but with an interesting historical core and an important ceramics museum. The St Joseph’s parish church is a large, neo-Romanesque church but with an interesting Art Nouveau interior. The International Ceramics Museum houses rotating exhibitions of world class ceramics from Bavaria’s excellent Neue Sammlung.

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