Schnaittenbach


If viewed from above the Kaolinite quarry looks like a glacier eating its way towards the town. It was a poor bookkeeper, Daniel Christoph Eduard Kick who founded the Upper Pfalz Kaolinite industry in a barn attached to the Löwenwirt inn in 1833. All important sights lie on the long road along which the town is built, for instance the baroque St Vitus church whose nave was extended in 1910/11 or the town hall (Rathaus) with its herb garden dating from the 17th Century.

The star chef Thomas Kellermann has found a way to put the castle facilities to excellent use in the onetime home of the noble Nothafft family. The reputed restaurant Kastell (www.burg-wernberg.de) has been exciting guests and gaining notoriety, and rooms can be booked in the hotel for between €139 and €310 per night.



Vohenstrauß

The most prominent landmark of this town of around 7500 residents is the Friedrichsburg. The town was the family seat of the Grand Duke Friedrich von der Pfalz-Zweibrücken-Vohenstrauß-Parkstein. The castle itself is square, has four round towers at its corners and a main entrance gate, three stories and was built in the renaissance period. The original use of the building is not known, but today it hosts concerts and exhibitions in its partially renovated rooms. The Heimatmuseum (homeland museum) in the Ackerbürgerhaus (Sophienstraße 9) also houses an old mill and the Edelsteinmuseum (precious stones) in the Amselweg 10 are both worth a stop.

Pleystein

The little town of Pleystein in the Upper Pfalz Forest is situated on rose quartz cliffs in the middle on which the Kreuzbergkirche was built in 1817. It was burnt to the ground in 1907 and rebuilt in the baroque style next to the abbey. The Kreuzbergfest (festival) draws thousands of pilgrims and visitors at the beginning of May to one of Bavaria’s most beautiful geotopes. On the Marktplatz 25 you will find the Heimat und Mineralien (homeland and minerals) Museum full of information about the local natural deposits and the area. The new gothic parish church of St Sigismund replaced its predecessor that burnt to the ground in 1901.

Waidhaus

Just off the busy main road lies a pretty little hamlet with the parish church of St Emmeram and several old farmhouses. This tiny village on the border now has a motorway chapel, a nature reservation and a campsite with a heated outdoor swimming pool in Bäckeröd.

Rozvadov/Roßhaupt

The first Czech settlement beyond the border is the destination for many bargain hunters. The baroque Wenzelskirche is still awaiting restoration. There is a beautiful nature reserve along the border which has been protected since 1984, the Naturreservat Jezirka u Rozvadova.

P?imda /Pfraumberg

The castle and the trade route were the reason this little settlement evolved. It probably was founded shortly after the Schutzburg (protective castle) was built, the ruins of which are still to be seen on a nearby hill. The little town of 1500 residents has a Roman church (Georgskirche) and an impressive statue of Nepomuk, the patron Saint of Bohemia.




Bor/Haid

Large parts of the town were destroyed in WWII, but despite this the district of the town around the St Nikolaus church was crowned a site of cultural heritage in 1992. During the medieval festival the castle can be viewed, and each year there is a pilgrimage to the Black Madonna in the Loretto Kirche.

This Article is part of the tour "The Golden Road"