Rothenburg ob der Tauber Tourist Traps

Any/all of the shops in Rothenburg during the day.
Filled with tourists (and even Germans) buying Christmas ornaments and other "genuine" curios (barf).

I read that lately it is getting ridiculous and almost irritating (especially during "high season") to try to negotiate your way through or enjoy the streets of the old city during the day
due to the multitudes of tourists and the crass commercialism.

An Alternative:

Go for a long all-day drive in the country after breakfast on the beautiful Romantic Road, then return to Rothenburg after 5PM when daytrippers and tourists have all piled into their cars and tour buses and left.

Unique Suggestions: Let's try to be fair:
there is probably no better place in Germany to buy "authentic" German/Bavarian mementos, especially Christmas stuff, ornaments, etc. than the many shops in Rothenburg.
Great tours in the daytime of the woodwork and art in the churches are also good things to do. And most of all, walking the wall around the city with beautiful views of the Tauber valley can best be done and enjoyed in the daytime.

Fun Alternatives: Rothenburg has a great "Medieval Criminal Museum".. the museum of crime and punishment.

Walking the city walls, the Castle garden, and hiking in the Tauber valley outside the old city - anything to stay off the main streets.

"Schneeball" (Snowball) is a typical snack in Rothenburg and is available in every bakery. There are even some nice shops selling 'pack away' for people to bring home as souvenirs. It's such a famous item and they all looked so tempting (oh! particularly the dark choco ones) and how could I resist? So we bought one for sharing, which cost nearly 2 Euro.... and when I opened my mouth and tried biting it, I understood why it's called a "snowball" - it's for you to throw at someone! It's so hard that it's not quite suitable to be a street-snack, as the diameter of the ball was quite large. You could imagine how embarassing it would be to open your mouth big to bite a snowball on the street. AND to be frank, it didn't taste special...just some dough topped with chocolate. I preferred having a piece of hot fresh apple strudel instead (at least it's not served COLD and my teeth wouldn't suffer)!!!

NOTE:
Since the snowball we got was really hard, we took much longer time than normal to finish it, though we were starving.

Unique Suggestions: If you insist on trying a "Schneeball", share with as many friends as you can!
Or just buy the super-mini version, if you can find one.

Fun Alternatives: Just take some pics of them and imagine that you've just eaten one.

It's really funny actually.

In the centre of Rothenburg, one can take a tour with the night watch man.
But look at the announcement....... in english it's one euro more than in german.

Unique Suggestions: Speak German ! ;-)

Hey, if you like christmas the whole year long its OK. But I think its enought in december...
Here you can catch the christmas feeling every day---I think it`s made for tourists...
And its forbidden to take a picture inside...:-))

Fun Alternatives: Walk around town and enjoy it...

Although I knew what to expect, I was still gobsmacked! The shop started by Wohlfahrt as an answer to American's requests for German Christmas decorations has grown to huge proportions (and spread far beyond Rothenburg) and I think I must have counted to ten rooms or so inside, all filled with Christmas things. Adjacent is a Christmas museum these days (fee) and in the shop itself, there is just about anything you can imagine, ranging from tasteful German Christmas tree decorations and painted baubles, to tacky Uncle Sams and white headed eagles for your tree! As you pay (far too much - most things are around €7) the check out girls address you in English and ask you if you would like your copy of USA Today. Not one single piece of Germany in this building, although do go and see it as seeing is believing. Check their homepage for interior pics as I didn't want to break the rule and take photos inside. http://www.wohlfahrt.com/

Unique Suggestions: Enjoy the beauty of the tasteful decorations, try to find a bargain, or just watch other shoppers who actually delight in that pink rubber bird to put in the Christmas tree :)))

Fun Alternatives: Walk around the city walls.

Well buying Christmas ornaments in June is weird it is, but this is the place to get them! This is the only place I replace the ornaments, I broke last Christmas.

Unique Suggestions: Appease the one your with,hey your in Germany!

Fun Alternatives: Walk outside grab a paper, a beverage of choice, look at the world around you, may it be the hustle and bustle of tourists who see through a bus window, or the interactions of your host country. I think all is most interesting, this way we learn about ourselves