Lichtenfels: Old Town, Basket Market and Weaving Culture

For a stay in Lichtenfels, the old town, the basket market and the weaving culture of the Upper Main region offer clear points of reference. When looking for a hotel, you can first decide whether your focus is on the historic town centre, the September event or the region’s trails and landscapes.

Old Town, Basket Market and Collections

Lichtenfels’s old town has retained its typically Franconian character. The Bamberg Gate and Kronach Gate have been preserved, and parts of the old town wall are still visible. These architectural traces give a visit a clear historical focus. The Lichtenfels Town Palace houses municipal collections on the history of beer and brewing, the railway and the basket trade. This means the town brings together different themes: preserved fortifications and collections on various aspects of local history. Exhibition content may change; check the latest information before your visit.

The Lichtenfels Basket Market takes place every year on the third weekend in September. You can plan your travel dates around this recurring event. The old town and collections offer further reasons to visit, whether or not the basket market is your main focus.

Weaving Culture on Trails and in Artworks

The 14-kilometre Pfad der Flechtkultur (Weaving Culture Trail) circular route connects Lichtenfels and Michelau on nature trails through the Main floodplains. Along the route, 23 information boards cover the history and tradition of basketmaking, the basket industry and the basket trade in the Upper Main region. The route’s length provides a concrete basis for planning your day; the boards focus on the region’s weaving crafts.

Near Oberwallenstadt, the trail includes a willow labyrinth for children, a willow shell at the river swimming area, a woven tipi at Lake Ortswiesensee Oberwallenstadt and other woven artworks. The labyrinth is specifically described as being for children. The willow shell, tipi and other works show different forms of woven art along the route; they complement the boards’ historical information with tangible installations.

As a separate cycling route, the long-distance MainRadweg cycle path runs right through Lichtenfels’s old town. This distinguishes it from the Pfad der Flechtkultur: the MainRadweg is specifically associated with passing through the old town, while the circular trail is defined by its length, its connection between Lichtenfels and Michelau, and the Main floodplains.

Landscapes and Other Reasons to Visit

In Bad Staffelstein, Obermain Therme has Bavaria’s warmest and most saline thermal brine. Also in Bad Staffelstein, Kloster Banz offers public guided tours several times a week. If you would like to plan a tour, check the specific dates before travelling. The two destinations offer different experiences: thermal brine at Obermain Therme and public guided tours at the monastery.

At 539 metres, Staffelberg rises 290 metres above the Main Valley near Bad Staffelstein. Its summit lies within a nature reserve and may not be accessed by car or bicycle. Take this restriction into account when planning your visit. This is a specific difference compared with visiting the old town or its collections.

The Kleinziegenfelder Valley, about 12 kilometres long, is largely protected as a nature reserve. Striking rock formations, clear streams, mills, half-timbered villages and distinctive juniper heaths with dry and semi-dry grassland slopes shape the landscape. Unlike Staffelberg, where elevation and the summit are the main focus, the valley’s character is shaped by a variety of landscape and settlement features.

Another specific nature-related activity is the small fossil-digging site at the “Waldfrieden” hiking car park. There, you can search for fossils and split them open. Hammers and safety goggles can be borrowed from the Weismain Environmental Station; check their availability before your visit. This activity combines a named location with a specific activity and the tools needed for it.

Discover More Destinations

Discover more destinations: Bad Staffelstein, Ebensfeld, Burgkunstadt, Michelau in Upper Franconia, Altenkunstadt, Lichtenfels, Mühldorf am Inn, Ostallgäu.

Back to the main travel overview: Bavaria.