Bamberg Things to Do

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The Cathedral (Local Name: Dom) is a late Romanesque building famous with its four grand towers. It was founded in 1004 by the emperor Henry II, finished in 1012.
It was later partially destroyed by fire in 1081. The new Cathedral, built by Saint Otto of Bamberg, was consecrated in 1111 and in the 13th century received its present late-Romanesque form.

The cathedral is 94 m long, 28 m broad and 26 m high.
The four towers are each about 81 m high.

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The building of the Old Town Hall is in a Gothic style and seems to balance precariously over the water, with the half-timbered Rottmeisterhaus added at a later date.

The Obere Brücke (Upper Bridge) has attractive views to the right of Klein-Venedig (Little Venice). Its unusual situation reflects the fact that it served both the Bürgerstadt and the Episcopal town on their different sides of the river.

Open 9.30-16.30 everyday except Monday.

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The Old Town Hall in Bamberg is quite a curiosity: The frescoes that adorn the facades are as amazing as the story about the building's construction.
The Old Town Hall's frescoes never fail to impress as they lend the facades a three-dimensional quality achieved with “trompe d'oeil architecture”. A special detail is a continual source of mirth among tourists: the leg of a cherub protrudes out of the wall as a sculpture.

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The Rathaus or the Old Town Hall is the famous landmark of Bamberg. It was rebuilt by J. M. Küchel in 1744-1756.
According to legend the bishop of Bamberg did not grant the citizens any land for the construction of a town hall. This prompted the townsfolk to ram stakes into the river Regnitz to create an artificial island, on which they built the town hall they so badly wanted.

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There are a plenty of beautiful bridges across the Regnitz river in Bamberg.
The most interesting one is the Obere Brücke which was completed in 1455.
When you stroll along and across the river you will see the Untere Brucke, the Bischofsmuhe Brucke and the Rathausbrücke.
Don’t miss to see the Untere Mühle.
Of the bridges connecting the sections of the lower town is the Markusbrücke.

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The Island City is one of the most picturesque parts of Bamberg.
Among the most striking sights are the "Old Town Hall" in the middle of the River Regnitz and the former Fishermen's settlement known as Klein Venedig - "Little Venice".
This district is characterized by half-timbered buildings that prop each other up and by tiny, pretty gardens.
The half-timbered buildings were mainly built in the Middle Ages. They are squashed together along the riverbank, creating a quaint and picturesque scene, with boats floating in the moorings by the front gardens.

You can watch my 6 min 04 sec HD Video Bamberg Innerstadt HD out of my Youtube channel.

Next to the Imperial Cathedral there is „Schöne Pforte“ (Beautiful Gate) which is the entranceway to “Alte Hofhaltung” (the former residential buildings and administrative offices of the Episcopal court). Schöne Pforte was created by a sculptor called Pankraz Wagner in 1573. It’s an affectionately decorated work of art paying homage to religious and secular powers. Above the archway there is a sculpture of the Virgin Mary who is flanked by Emperor Henry II and Empress Kunigunde holding a model of the cathedral. This model gives an understanding of the cathedral’s appearance until modification in 1764. Next to this central group there are reliefs of St. Peter (holding key and sword) and St. George with the dragon, flanked by 2 Bishops (St. Otto and Kilian, the Apostle of the Franks). Flanking these figures there are allegories of the 2 rivers that are most important for the town of Bamberg: the river Regnitz and the river Main. Above this group of reliefs there is the coat of arms of Würzburg.

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It is assumed that there has been a chapel at this spot already in 10th century. Around 200 years later this early structure was replaced by a Romanesque church (1st mentioned in a document in 1140). Another 200 years later building of the present-day church was begun. Construction works were delayed, for example by the Hussite Wars, and could not be finished before 1535. Obere Pfarre has been modified and restored several times during the centuries that followed.
Inside the church you will find many beautiful works of art, reliefs, sculptures, ancient tombstones, etc. The nave also has an extraordinarily beautiful Baroque ceiling. The high altar also is an art treasure, built in 1711 by order of Prince-Bishop Lothar Franz von Schönborn.
Obere Pfarre also has 2 beautiful particularities:
The so called “Bridal Portal” at the Northern side of the longhouse which is decorated with sculptures of 5 wise and 5 foolish maids. (During the Middle Ages wedding ceremonies were held outside of the church, at the Bridal Portal. Therefore the bride was able to reflect on her future life during the ceremony by viewing these sculptures).
The so called “Türmerwohnung” at the upper part of the belfry is an attachment built in 1535. It does not seem to fit into the church ensemble but performed an important task during the late Middle Ages. It’s a 2 storey accommodation built for a municipal custodian responsible for the prevention of fires. From the belfry these men had a superb view of Bamberg and had to keep watch and sound the alarm once a fire broke out.