I love all of these sites, especially Hamburg, the three Hanseatic towns, and the Quedlinburg/Goslar area which is a wonderful area in general with the Harz. I'm really a sucker for German sites. Erfurt is so much more than the Synagogue, as well. Like York, if this were 20 years ago... no brainer.

I love the Dessau -> Weimar -> Erfurt -> Wartburg -> Naumburg area (no chance it looks like, but the sculpture in the west apse and on the rood screens really is unbelievable, I really think it deserved it just as a cathedral, but the persistence on a CL was the wrong move for all). Leipzig is a fun city too and Dresden is world-class. There's a real variety of architectural styles in this area and one can see the progress of German, especially Saxon architecture up to the Bauhaus.

To me Germany has two world class sites: the Rhine Valley and Berlin as a town overall. WWII has destroyed much. And what wasn't destroyed then was torn down to make room for progress in the 50s and 60. Eastern Germany is the part that actually has nicer old towns. So much of what is found on the German list are niche nominations lacking in wow.

I would agree that several US sites are truly great, but it's not really Unesco's fault that their list is so short. Say thanks to the Republican party and their hatred of all things international.

Disagree with this, but I will come back with my rebuttal later. I mainly wanted to thank Meltwaterfalls for the recommendation on the chocolate and gelato shop in Erfurt on the Kramerbrucke (which I've been back to twice since 2016 and will be returning to each March/April for the Leipzig Buchmesse). Erfurt has become one of my favorite cities - and Leipzig, too, for that matter, but for its vivacity and its combination of old and new. Erfurt is all that one could hope for when it comes to a city that rewards those who, as Rilke did, would try to acquaint themselves with every nook and cranny of a city, which also has a top notch cathedral + St. Severi and dozens of other medieval churches, museums, etc. It reminds me a bit of Norwich in the amount of preserved churches. And that Goldheim chocolate.. and that gelato.. some of the most interesting tastes.

It's also a fantastic base for the area. Muhlenberg, Altenburg (this is a lovely town, the train station is a gem and when the schlosser is done restorations it will be something), Gottingen, as well as all the WHS and TWHS in the area that I have already seen (Wartburg, Weimar, Lutherstadt Wittenberg, Dessau and others). But back to the main point - thanks for Goldheim Schockoladen and Gelato.

:) I just told Mrs Meltwaterfalls about the thanks on that gelato shop, she was delighted and suggested we should head back to Erfurt for another batch! Glad you enjoyed it!

A preemptive clarification: I do like many sites in Germany. But the truly great ones are rare. To me the benchmark is "What would I recommend to a non European coming to Europe for the first time?" In Germany that is Berlin and the Rhine Valley. That's all I meant to say.

The Margravial Opera House in Bayreuth will be reopened in April 2018 after five years of restoration. Three opera performances of Artaserse by Johann Adolph Hasse are announced for April 12-15. I suppose that also guided tours will be offered, but there is no information yet.

http://www.bayreuth-wilhelmine.de/deutsch/aktuell/oper_eroeffnung.htm#karten

I have a list of sites I need to revisit because they were under renovation when I visited. The Margravial Opera House in Bayreuth is on the top of my list.

I might do a project with Visit Germany in 2018 to visit the sites which have been added since 2013, as well as the sites I need to revisit.

For all those who plan a visit to the Ice Age Caves in Germany this link might be helpful:

https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?ll=48.42460118116871%2C9.67776432966616&spn=0.88 2812%2C1.966553&hl=de&t=h&msa=0&z=12&ie=UTF8&mid=1PsoTFAj7ta7npKyNoSNcF5HGDt8

The yellow spots indicate the six inscribed caves, but the map also provides the locations for the nearest parking lots and show the trails to the caves. I used this map when I visited the site in 2015.

The official website of the site is:
http://www.iceageart.de/index.php?id=2020&L=2

hubert

You wouldn't happen to have a picture of those caves to use as main pic for the site?

I've sent a picture to Els.

hubert

Do you know if the Vogelherd cave is open to visitors at any time during the archaeopark's opening hours? Or is it only possible to visit the cave with a guided visit (like hohle fels) ? I'm planning to visit all 6 caves on a Sunday but those two I mentioned have guided visits at practically the same times.

If entrance is possible at any time I'd start with the Vogelherd and the 2 nearby caves, moving on to the next valley in the afternoon. I plan to visit the museums in Blauberen and in Ulm too.

Yes, the Vogelherd Cave is freely accessible during the opening hours of the archaeopark, a guided tour is not necessary.
If you travel by car it should be no problem to visit all 6 caves within one day plus the two museums, in particular if you focus on the WH related parts of the exhibitions.

How are the public transport options? I will be in Ulm in a few weeks and try to tick off as many of the caves as possible.

hubert

Thanks! That is great news.

Like that I'll start with the 3 caves in the Lone Valley, then proceed to see the Lion Man in Ulm and be in time for the Hohle Fels limited visiting hours (2pm-5pm only on Sundays) and the other caves in the Ach valley.

Is the entrance to the Hohle Fels cave possible by just 'walking in' and supposedly paying someone next to the entrance? Or you have to go through another museum/visitor centre to actually visit the cave?

I already printed the informative map you posted on the forum but I want to make sure I can follow the actual GPS coordinates (except for Vogelherd). What I mean is that for the Vogelherd most probably the road signs will be indicating the Archaeopark and not the actual Vogelherd.