Kallmünz: Castle, Sculpture Trail and River Landscape

Kallmünz combines contemporary public art, castle ruins with a long history and canoe routes on the Naab and Vils. This lets you give your stay a cultural, historical or active focus.

Castle Ruins and History

Settlement on the castle hill in Kallmünz dates back to prehistoric times; the first fortification was built in the 10th century. The main castle stood at the far end of the promontory, directly above the steep drop to the Naab and Vils.

The surviving castle ruins include a round keep with two stepped sections and an elevated entrance, a chapel built onto the north side of the palas, and a palas that still stands two storeys high, overlooking the market square. Several paths lead from Kallmünz to the ruins. The Burgensteige trails connect them with more than 40 castles in the Regensburger Land.

Sculptures in Public Spaces

The Kallmünz Sculpture Trail brings together a diverse collection of contemporary sculptures created over the past few decades as permanent installations in public spaces in Kallmünz. The recommended circular route starts at the old Netto car park at Dinauer Straße 6, passes through the Innerer Markt, climbs about 150 metres in elevation to the castle hill, and continues to the Äußerer Markt.

Some works on the sculpture trail, particularly those on the castle hill, are only accessible to a limited extent for visitors with reduced mobility. If you include the circular route in your day’s plans, you can take this limitation into account along with the climb of about 150 metres in elevation.

Walking Trails and Canoe Routes

The Kallmünz section of the Hemau–Beratzhausen–Kallmünz Fruit Experience Trail is a walking route about 2.5 kilometres long, themed “Fruit-bearing trees as useful timber – what artists, designers and weather prophets look for in fruit trees.” In the wider Regensburg travel destination, the signposted Fruit Experience Trail runs for about 34 kilometres from Hemau via Beratzhausen to Kallmünz; twelve large information boards stand along the cycling route.

On the Naab, Stage 5 is a canoe trip from Kallmünz to Mariaort. The designated access and exit points for this stage are the Steinwehr Kallmünz weir and the Naab bridge south of Kallmünz, accessed via Gessendorfer Straße. At kilometre 22.1, canoeists can portage below the weir. Parking is available at the confluence of the Vils and the Naab.

On the Vils, the route from Hahnbach to Kallmünz is navigable by canoe. The approximately 55-kilometre route can be divided into around six stages; the final stage runs from Dietldorf to Kallmünz, where the Vils flows into the Naab. For planning your trip, you can choose between a single stage on the Naab and a Vils route that can be divided into several sections.

In the Wider Regensburg Travel Destination

The Walhalla is another architectural highlight in the wider Regensburg travel destination. It is one of Germany’s important Neoclassical buildings and features a Doric exterior with 52 columns. Since 1842, this memorial and hall of honour has commemorated notable Germans and people associated with German history with marble busts and plaques. From Easter to October, passenger boats operated by Klinger and Wurm & Noé travel along the Danube from the Stone Bridge in Regensburg to the foot of the Walhalla. Check the specific operating days before your trip.

More Destinations

Discover more destinations: Beratzhausen, Regensburg, Barbing, Alteglofsheim, Zeitlarn, Brunn, Tegernheim, Wiesent.

Back to the main travel overview: Regensburg.