Matt Munro

Weimar

The historical epicentre of Germany's 18th-century Enlightenment, Weimar is an essential stop for anyone with a passion for the country's history and culture. A pantheon of intellectual and creative giants lived and worked here: Goethe, Schiller, Bach, Cranach, Liszt, Nietzsche, Gropius, Herder, Feininger, Kandinsky – and the list goes on. You’ll see them memorialised on the streets, in museums and in reverently preserved houses across town. In summer, Weimar’s many parks and gardens lend themselves to quiet contemplation of all this intellectual and cultural gravity (or allow you to take a break from it).

Weimar is also the place where, post-WWI, the constitution of the German Reich, known by historians as the Weimar Republic (1919–33), was drafted, though there are strangely few reminders of this historical moment. Nearby, the unadorned, unaltered remains of the Buchenwald concentration camp provide sobering testament to the crimes of the subsequent Nazi regime.

Top attractions

These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Weimar.

  • Memorial

    Gedenkstätte Buchenwald

    Between 1937 and 1945, hidden from Weimarers and surrounding villagers, 250,000 men, women and children were incarcerated here, some 56,500 of whom were murdered. Buchenwald ('Beech Forest') has been preserved almost untouched as a memorial, with visitors encouraged to wander quietly and freely around the numerous structures, including the crematorium. Tours, pamphlets and books in English are available, as are excellent multilanguage audio guides (€3, or €5 with images). Last admission is 30 minutes before closing.

  • Library

    Herzogin Anna Amalia Bibliothek

    Assembled by Duchess Anna Amalia (1739–1807), the power (and purse) behind Weimar's classical florescence, this Unesco-listed library has been beautifully reconstructed after a fire in 2004 destroyed much of the building and its priceless contents. Some of the most precious tomes are housed in the magnificent Rokokosaal (Rococo Hall), and were once used by Goethe, Schiller, Christoph Wieland, Johann Herder and other Weimar hot shots, whose various busts and paintings still keep watch over the collection.

  • Museum

    Goethe-Nationalmuseum

    This is the world's leading museum on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Germany's literary colossus. It incorporates his home of 50 years, gifted by Duke Carl August to keep him in Weimar, and left largely as it was upon his death in 1832. This is where Goethe worked, studied, researched, and penned Faust and other immortal works. In a modern annexe, documents and objects shed light on the man and his achievements in literature, art, science and politics.

  • Palace

    Schloss Tiefurt

    Built in 1765 and developed by the younger brother of Duke Carl August, this Unesco-listed country house flowered under the ownership of Duchess Anna Amalia, who turned it into her ‘temple of the muses’. The period rooms allow you to imagine intellectual salons attended by giants such as Goethe, Schiller and Herder and much of the art was collected by the Duchess on her Italian travels, The 23-hectare garden, skirted by the Ilm, is delightful. Take Bus 3 from Goetheplatz.

  • Park

    Park an der Ilm

    Following the Ilm, this Unesco-listed, 58-hectare park was landscaped between 1778 and 1828, and continues to provide a bucolic backdrop to old Weimar. Combining classical and romantic garden design, it's a lovely space to roam and explore three historic houses: the Goethe Gartenhaus, where the writer lived from 1776 to 1782; the Römisches Haus, the local duke's summer retreat, with period rooms and an exhibit on the park; and the Liszt-Haus, where the composer resided from 1869 to 1886.

  • Historic Building

    Haus Hohe Pappeln

    This unusual house was designed by its first occupant, Belgian art-nouveau architect-designer Henry van de Velde. In 1902 van de Velde founded the arts and crafts seminar in Weimar, later developed into the Bauhaus by Walter Gropius. Built as an 'organism' in which interior, exterior and surroundings work harmoniously, it was home to his family from 1908 to 1917. Looking like an overturned ship, it features natural stone, stylised chimneys, loggias and oversized windows. Take bus 1 or 12 to Papiergraben.

  • Museum

    Neues Museum

    The 'new museum' is actually one of Germany's first, built as the Grand Ducal Museum in 1869. The building itself is a domed neo-Renaissance masterpiece, designed by Czech architect Josef Zítek; the grand central staircase, presided over by Carl Steinhäuser's 1851 statue Goethe und Psyche, is a highlight, as is the Preller Gallery, with its 16 frescoed scenes from the Odyssey. At the time of research the museum was closed for remodelling; it is scheduled to reopen in early 2019.

  • Historic Building

    Schillers Wohnhaus & Museum

    The poet and dramatist Friedrich von Schiller (a close friend of Goethe) lived here from 1802 until his early death, in 1805. Study up on the man, his life and work in the modern Schiller Museum, before ducking through the low doors of his family home, which has been preserved in memoriam since 1847. Highlights include the study, with his deathbed and writing desk, Anton Graff's portrait of the writer, and poignant drawings made by the Schiller children.

  • Museum

    Stadtschloss Weimar

    Situated in the former residential palace, which was rebuilt in 1789–1803 after a fire, the Schlossmuseum houses works of art dating from the Middle Ages to the turn of the 20th century. Not to be missed is the gallery containing the works of Lucas Cranach the Elder and of other European masters such as Rodin, Tischbein and Caspar David Friedrich. The museum will close for major renovations between July 2018 and the end of 2021.