Regensburg Travel Guide

The Dom (Cathedral) is a very interesting example of pure German Gothic and counts as the main work of Gothic architecture in Bavaria. It was founded in 1275 and completed in 1634, with the exception of the towers, which were finished in 1869. The interior contains numerous interesting monuments, including one of Peter Vischer's masterpieces. Adjoining the cloisters are two chapels of earlier date than the cathedral itself, one of which, known as the old cathedral, goes back perhaps to the 8th century. The official choir for the liturgical music at St Peter's Cathedral are the famous Regensburger Domspatzen. Tours through the dome of St. Peter, mausoleum, cloister, All Saints Chapel and St. Stephen are regularly offered.

Hours: April 1 - October 31: 6:30am - 6pm. November 1 - March 31: 6:30am - 5pm.

The four walls of the Roman legionary camp each had in the middle of their length an entry gate flanked by two massive towers. The northern gate facing the Danube, called Porta Praetoria, was discovered in 1885 during renovations in the Bischofshof brewery. It was restored in 1887 and is a part of the Bischofshof complex.

The twin arches served as a city gate until the 17th century. The parts that remain are the western arch, a section of the wall connected to the western tower, and the two-story eastern tower. The shaped stones were built in layers without using mortar. The Porta Nigra, Trier's northern city gate, was built at the same time, and the two are the only remaining Roman gates north of the Alps. Regensburg's Porta Praetoria gains significance as the only remaining gate of a Roman military camp in northern Europe.

The Historical Museum resides in the former Minorite monastery and documents the history of Regensburg's art and culture from the Stone Age to the 19th century. The collection focuses on the Regensburg area and eastern Bavaria. The archaeological section with its large collection of finds and realistic models covers the prehistory of the region in the millennia before Christ, the Roman age until around 400 AD and early history up to the 10th century. A wide range of exhibits provides visitors with an insight into life in the town in the Middle Ages. The museum also covers the heyday of late-medieval religious art up to the work of Altdorfers and the Danube school and holds a collection of European arts and crafts.

Hours: Open 10am - 4pm; closed on Mondays and Thursdays except public holidays.

Admission: Adults 2.20 € Concessions 1.10 €.

Since 1812, the extensive building complex of the former Abbey of St. Emmeran in Regensburg has served as a magnificent permanent residence for the Princes of Thurn and Taxis, whose history stretches back to the 12th century. A guided tour of the palace museum, which was opened in 1998, takes you on a stroll through beautifully furnished salons, magnificent living quarters and state rooms that reflect the courtly splendour of centuries past. The St. Emmeran section of the museum takes visitors on a journey into the world of the ascetic medieval monks of the western Benedictine order. The neo-Gothic crypt chapel and cloister provide an insight into the burial rites of a European aristocratic family. In the royal stables there is a comprehensive collection of carriages, sedan-chairs and sleighs from the 19th and early 20th century.

Hours: January 1 - March 31 and November 3 - December 31: Monday - Friday 11.am - 5pm, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays 10am - 5pm. April 1 - November 2: Monday - Friday 11am - 5pm, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays 10am - 5pm.

Admission: Palace and cloister of St. Emmeram: Adults 11.50 €, Concessions 9 €. Princely Treasury: Adults 4.50 €, Concessions 3.50 €, family ticket 32 €.

The Walhalla monument is a Hall of Fame and Honor for "laudable and distinguished Germans" located near Regensburg and is one of the major artistic creations of the Bavarian King Ludwig I. Constructed by the well-known architect Leo von Klenze between 1830-1842, the Walhalla is one of the many cultural attractions on the Danube. The temple is built in Doric style, one of the grandest and most beautiful monuments built by the Bavarian King for the Germans. A huge entry gate leads to the interior. The Walhalla memorial commemorates important Germans and figures linked in some way to the history and people of Germany since 1842 in the form of marble busts and memorial plaques. The monument is considered the most important classical building of the 19th century.

Hours: April - September 9am - 5:45pm, October 10 am - 11:45am and pm - 3:45pm, November - March 9am - 4:45pm.

The diocesan museum has been located in the Romanesque-Gothic basilica of St Ulrich since 1986. A remarkable symbiosis of church and museum is achieved in the interior which is decorated with 13th to 16th century frescos. The museum houses art works dating from the 11th to the 20th centuries, including medieval paintings, sculptures and goldsmith's work. Renaissance, baroque, rococo and 19th century art is displayed in the galleries. Ecclesiastical treasure from the former St Emmeran, St. John and Niedermünster abbeys are particularly noteworthy, including the crosiers of the 12th century saints Emmeran and Wolfgang. There is an exhibition of contemporary art in the vestibule.

Hours: April 1 - November 1: Tuesday - Sunday 10am - 5pm. Closed November 2 - March 31.

Admission: Adults 2 €, Concessions 1 €, Family card 4 €.

The museum's centrepiece is the Imperial Hall, a Gothic banqueting hall which, from 1663, was the permanent seat of the imperial diet (assembly) of the Holy Roman Empire. This was Germany's first parliament building and is now a museum and monument. The museum examines the history of the imperial diets and the place where they met, and looks at the town's legal system. Please note entrance is only permitted via a guided tour.

This medieval town contains many buildings of exceptional quality that testify to its history as a trading center and to its influence on the region from the 9th century. A notable number of historic structures span some two millennia and include ancient Roman, Romanesque and Gothic buildings. Regensburg’s 11th- to 13th-century architecture – including the market, city hall and cathedral – still defines the character of the town marked by tall buildings, dark and narrow lanes, and strong fortifications. The buildings include medieval patrician houses and towers, a large number of churches and monastic ensembles as well as the 12th-century Old Bridge, which dates from. The town is also remarkable for the vestiges testifing to its rich history as one of the centres of the Holy Roman Empire that turned to Protestantism.