Lichtenfels: Basketry Culture, Old Town and Main

As Germany’s basket-making town, Lichtenfels brings together a clearly recognizable theme, a medieval town center and paths along the Main. You can encounter the tradition of basket weaving at the Basket Market, in the town’s collections and along the Pfad der Flechtkultur (Basketry Culture Trail), an experiential circular route. There are also places to visit on walks, bike rides and outings on the water.

Old Town, Gates and Local History

Lichtenfels Old Town has retained its characteristic Franconian character. The Unteres Tor, also known as the Bamberger Tor, dates in its original form to the 14th century. The Obere Torturm has shaped the townscape for centuries and is one of the town’s oldest buildings. In the Catholic parish church of the Assumption of Mary, the tower is the oldest part; it is dated to the 14th or 15th century. These varied architectural landmarks give the town center several historical points of reference rather than limiting it to a single period.

If you would like to discover Lichtenfels on a guided tour, groups can book a tour of the medieval town center in advance through the Tourist Information Office. The town palace houses municipal collections on the history of beer and brewing, the railway and the basket trade. The range of subjects represented there thus extends from local crafts to other aspects of the town’s history.

Basket Market and Basketry Culture

The Lichtenfels Basket Market takes place every year on the third weekend in September. If you would like to plan your stay around the festival, check the specific dates for the relevant year. The basket trade is also featured in the town palace collections and along the Pfad der Flechtkultur (Basketry Culture Trail)—two different ways to explore Lichtenfels’ basket-making tradition.

The 14-kilometer experiential circular route connects Lichtenfels and Michelau via scenic paths through the Main floodplains. The route thus brings the town and its river landscape together under one circular-route theme. Its length also provides a concrete guide when planning a walking excursion.

Cycling Routes, the Main and Paths across the Jura

There are ten cycling loops, ranging from 20 to 65 kilometers. They all start and finish in Lichtenfels; the different distances make it easy to compare routes by planned length. The long-distance MainRadweg cycle route also runs right through Germany’s basket-making town and its surroundings. The loops with their shared start and finish point are therefore complemented by a long-distance route that passes through Lichtenfels and continues through the surrounding area.

The Main’s canoe route also has a described section through Lichtenfels: its first leg runs from Michelau i.OFr. via Lichtenfels to the historic market town of Ebensfeld. There are no disruptive weirs along the 35-kilometer stretch of the Main between Lichtenfels and Bamberg. Cycling and water routes can therefore be considered according to their respective itineraries, without combining them into a single route.

Another route, the Nothelferweg, runs from Klosterlangheim to Vierzehnheiligen across the Jura plateau. It complements the Main routes with different endpoints and a different type of landscape. If you would like to include different kinds of routes in your trip, you can choose between the Old Town, the Main and the Jura.

Choose Accommodation to Suit Your Travel Plans

When looking for accommodation in Lichtenfels, the planned mix of town visits and activities can be a useful starting point. If historic sites and the Basket Market are your main focus, the town center, the town palace and the annual September date offer concrete points of interest. For a cycling-focused stay, the ten loops that start and finish in Lichtenfels are relevant; if you prefer other types of routes, you can also consider the MainRadweg, the canoe route or the Nothelferweg. This lets you tailor your search to the experiences you actually want to include in your travel plans.

Discover More Destinations

Discover more destinations: Michelau In Oberfranken, Burgkunstadt, Hochstadt-Marktzeuln, Marktgraitz, Bad Staffelstein, Altenkunstadt, Weismain, Redwitz an der Rodach.

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