Nuremberg – Bavaria | Trips in Germany

Last december, just a few days before Christmas and with our family from Brazil visiting us, we had a quick stop in Nuremberg, in the state of Bavaria.

The city of Nuremberg or how it’s called here in Germany, Nürnberg, has a bit over 500,000 people and is about 225km from Frankfurt. But perhaps, if you are visiting Munich, you are popping in Nuremberg for a day trip, is it is only 169km from the biggest city of Bavaria.

Besides the first known records show the area was established around the year 1050, it was in the WW2 that the city got to be known all over the world, as the official base of the Nazi party. The city has indeed a lot of historical evidences of that time.

As it was December and fairly cold to walk around with 5 young children, we decided to spend only one night in the city, although our original plan was to visit Munich first and then see Nuremberg in our way back home (Frankfurt in this case). Another proof that traveling with kids is not always predictable.

We book the NOVOTEL NUERNBERG MESSEZENTRUM HOTEL, that is not in the city center (about 8 km out), but it was perfect for a large groups as us (11 people + 2 dogs).

What did we like about our hotel in Nuremberg?

Very organized and clean.
Kids area with toys.
Restaurant attached to the lobby.
Pet-friendly.
The Novotel Hotels give a little souvenir for kids. It’s just a little stuffy, but they love it (at least our girls do!).
On-site free parking.
Breakfast available (not included – it was about 18€/adult).

Streets of Nuremberg

As soon as we arrived, we parked the parks (we drove ours and rented another one, to fit everyone – we usually use this site for car rentals) and we walked down some of the old part of the city of Nuremberg. We were actually just passing through, trying to go to the Christmas Market, but even with the short time, we could see some beautiful canals and typical houses.

We will have to come back with more time someday.

Nuremberg Christmas Market

It was just a few days before Christmas, so we didn’t want to miss the Christkindlesmarkt Nürnberg, which is known to be one of the most traditional Christmas markets in whole Europe. In 2020, the market will take place in the center square (HauptMarkt Nürnberg) from November 27 to December 24, click here for more details.

It was indeed impressive, but overly crowded. We couldn’t enjoy that much, considering we had 5 kids in the group and we could barely see our own feet. It was a bit stressful and I would not recommend going on a Saturday night, just before Christmas.

Still, we managed to have some Glühwein (wine with sugar and other spices, usually served hot), ate some wurst and other simple, but delicious things (like one or two Nutella Crepes!) and returned to the hotel for some rest.

Imperial Castle of Nuremberg

On the following day we didn’t have big plans. Well, part of our family that was visiting from Brazil, decided to visit the Memorium Nürnberger Prozesse (Memorium Nuremberg Trials). We couldn’t as we had the dogs with us and the museum is not pet-friendly. See visiting details here.

So we 7, decide to go to Nuremberg city center and find something to do. As soon as we are approaching the “Allstadt” we saw the castle and in that second, we knew where to go. The Imperial Castle of Nuremberg (Kaiserburg Nuernberg) already has more than 1000 years of history and on its open area, pets are welcome. So there we went, like that crazy family trying to tackle 3 kids and the two dogs.

We obviously did not research the place before hand, but overall, the visit was very pleasant, the views were worth it. Next time, we plan to visit the castle inside and spending more time exploring every corner.

Alice holding Eddie, who desperately need grooming

Find out more about the Imperial Castle of Nuremberg (like visiting info) here.

Other sightseeings in Nuremberg

As I mentioned, the castle visit was short and unplanned, but worth it. The other part of the family, who went to the Memorium Nuremberg Trials (info here) said it was very impressive and organized. Definitely a visit to include in your itinerary.

In our way to the city center, we drove by the Documentation Center Nazi Party Rally Grounds (Dokumentationszentrum Reichsparteitagsgelände), were the rallies and meeting of the Nazi Party happened mainly between 1933 a nd 1938. As we had the dogs and young children (which is doable, but we didn’t think they would enjoy the visit), we skipped the visit, but below you can see the building and the grounds.