Groß-Gerau: Roman Times, Crafts and Apple Wine Culture

Groß-Gerau offers different ways to explore history and regional culture: from its Roman past and art to crafts and a themed trail devoted to apple wine culture. If you are travelling with others who have different interests, these highlights can help you shape your stay around the things you want to discover.

Roman Times and Art at the Town Museum

The permanent exhibition at the Groß-Gerau Town Museum presents nearly three centuries of Roman history in what is now the Auf Esch district. The period covered extends from the Augustan era to the beginning of the Migration Period. The museum’s official guided tour programme also includes “Groß-Gerau in Roman Times.” If you would like to include this perspective in your stay, check the current dates in advance.

Another section is devoted to the Groß-Gerau artist Wilhelm Altheim (1871–1914): since 1 July 2014, the museum has displayed drawings, prints and paintings from his work. The drawings in particular are permanently accessible in a cabinet exhibition during regular opening hours. The Town Museum thus focuses both on a broad historical period and on the work of an individual artist.

Monuments, Church and Crafts

The Groß-Gerau Fasanerie was once a hunting reserve belonging to the Darmstadt dukes. It was established between 1722 and 1726 and is fully listed as a historic monument. Its history brings a different period into the range of things to explore: this is a former ducal hunting reserve and a protected historic ensemble.

In the town centre, Groß-Gerau Stadtkirche is an artistic monument and a witness to history. It is a place of quiet, words and music. Offerings include church services, devotions, concerts and celebrations marking milestones in Christian life; specific dates may vary.

The Groß-Gerau Handicrafts Museum documents old tools and archival materials from various trades once practised in the town. The exhibition shows the transition from manual craftsmanship to the machine age. The history of the building is also part of the story: the museum is housed in a former workshop belonging to a master carpenter, which was later used as a locksmith’s workshop by his grandson, Adam Schaab. The site thus combines an account of the history of crafts with the workshop’s former use.

Apple Wine Culture and Countryside on the Ebbelwoi-Päädsche

The apple wine trail, known locally as the “Ebbelwoi-Päädsche,” runs for around 1.5 kilometres between the districts of Auf Esch and Wallerstädten. Along the way, visitors can experience typical landscapes of the Hessian Ried and regional apple wine culture. Information boards explain how the Hessian Ried landscape was formed and cover Ice Age windblown sand dunes as well as changes caused by the course of the Old Neckar.

Apple wine culture has a tangible connection to the trail, too: old cider apple varieties have been planted in an apple orchard along the Ebbelwoi-Päädsche. They provide the basis for the region’s characteristic apple wine. The history of the landscape and regional tradition therefore come together on the same route. If you are choosing between museum visits and a themed trail, you will find different options to shape your plans.

The Wider Region: Groß-Gerau

The wider destination of Groß-Gerau also offers nature attractions at district level. The Kühkopf-Knoblochsaue European Nature Reserve lies in the west of Groß-Gerau district along the Rhine. It is Hesse’s largest contiguous nature reserve and serves numerous breeding and migratory birds as a breeding and resting site. The Mönchbruch nature reserve, between Rüsselsheim and Mörfelden-Walldorf, is also in Groß-Gerau district and is Hesse’s second-largest nature reserve. At the regional level, asparagus is a culinary hallmark of the district.

Your search can therefore reflect the main focus of your trip, without any one theme needing to matter most to everyone travelling with you.

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