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Beautiful bored people of Munich, if you’re looking for a truly unique hidden gem to visit in Bavaria, we have a new tip for you: the gorgeous Barockgarten Egloffstein, AKA the Egloffstein Baroque Garden in English.
… This is hands down one of the most random and wonderful things we’ve come across during our Bavarian travels, and a must-see in Franconian Switzerland.
Imagine an ornate monumental garden that belongs in Southern Italy, tucked away on a quiet residential road in the middle of Bavaria. Yes, this probably the most glorious private garden in the state, and it’s free for you to check out and photograph.
In this post, we’ll share a brief history of this quirky wonder, along with tips on how you can visit for yourself from Munich.
Egloffstein Baroque Garden: Fast Facts
Address: Paradiesweg 142
Opening hours: The garden is clearly visible from the street (all our photos were taken from there) at all hours of the day. Unfortunately, according to the official website, due to reasons related to liability law, the garden is not open as a public attraction however many report that the owner will let you in to take a look if he’s around. We were unfortunately not this lucky!
Cost: Free to look and photograph!
A Brief History of the Egloffstein Baroque Garden
According to the garden’s official website, the origin story of the Barockgarten Egloffstein goes a little like this: local man Manfred Ritter was on a walk one day in nearby Gößweinstein when he stumbled upon two monumental vases made of concrete, recently removed from the basilica’s towers, doomed to a fate of recycling.
And while most of us would have walked past, maybe snapped a photo and moved on, Ritter did things a little differently. Instead of leaving the vases as they were, he decide to consult with Church administration and a local architect. This was the beginning of Ritter’s intensely arduous gardening project.
After chatting with all the right people. Ritter was able to get the vases transported to Egloffstein, where he proceeded to build the most epic private garden ever with his BARE HANDS. Okay, it is said that he needed some minor machinery to help with the 1.5 tonne vases, but apart from that, this miraculous garden was a one-man job.
The monumental vases that inspired this dream now stand on 1m high bases, flanking both sides of a beautiful staircase framed by foliage, statues, and columns, evoking some relaxing vibes straight from the South of Italy.
And while the garden has achieved somewhat local fame (it was even used in a German heavy metal music video!), today the garden remains a largely unknown hidden gem, particularly among International visitors. So, why don’t you go check it out for yourself?
How to Reach the Egloffstein Baroque Garden from Munich
Franconian Switzerland is a region best explored by car. All the most noteworthy sights tend to be quite small (imagine little timber villages with not much going on!), so you won’t be spending more than an hour or two in each spot… plus you’ll want to see as many of these gems as possible.
We went to Egloffstein from Munich by car. It’s about 200km away and takes 2.5h. We parked at this Parkplatz, which was very conveniently located right by the walking path to the garden.
Is visiting Egloffstein possible from Munich by public transport? Yes, but you do have to transfer a few times. The quickest way to get there with public transport from Munich is to take an ICE train from Munich to Nuremberg, transfer to Forchheim and then hop on a bus from Forchheim to Egloffstein. Click here to check rates/routes.
Luckily, the main Egloffstein Busbahnhof is located right where we parked, so you’ll also be dropped off very close to the walking path towards the garden. Again, this is not the most straight-forward route to take, so we would definitely recommend coming by car if you can.
The official address according to the info plaque in front of the garden is “Paradiesweg 142”. From the aforementioned Parkplatz/Egloffstein Busbahnhof, you’ll want to find “Paradiesweg” and just walk up. There are even signs (as seen above) that say “Barockgarten”.
This is a very residential path, but I promise you it’s the right way! When in doubt, use Google Maps. The garden is not marked there as “Barockgarten” but if you type in Paradiesweg 142, you’ll be directed to the right place.
Along the walk up, you’ll encounter some beautiful views over town and Egloffstein’s main attraction, their hilltop castle.
As you continue up Paradiesweg, the path getting close to it looks like this. Don’t worry – the walk is not too steep!
Then before long, you’ll see it appear, surrounded by very normal houses! It genuinely emerges out of nowhere in this very quiet residential road – a super special hidden gem for sure!
Looking for more cool things to do nearby?
Check out our full post here on places to go/things to do in Franconian Switzerland.
