DRIVE 10: Hilltop Castles and Lush Landscapes 107
EAT AND DRINKFRIEDRICHRODA
Brauhaus inexpensive
A 19th-century inn, Brauhaus offers
country cooking, such as game roulade,
and beers brewed in-house. It also has
five rooms and a beer garden.
Bachstrasse 14, 99894; 03623 30 42 59;
http://www.brauhaus-friedrichroda.deSCHMALKALDEN
Ratskeller moderate
Traditional dishes such as Eisbeinsülze
(salted pork knuckle) and fresh trout
are served here, inside the town hall.
Altmarkt 2, 98574; 03683 27 42MEININGEN
Die Posthalterei expensive
Located in the Sächsischer Hof hotel,
this is the finest restaurant in the
Thuringian Forest. Specialities include
local recipes infused with subtle
Mediterranean and Asian flavors. A
sister inn, Kutscherstube moderate
(open daily), serves pub fare. Try the
Thuringian Klösse (dumplings).
Georgstrasse 1, 98617; 03693 45 70;
closed MonAbove Scenic road to Oberhof, through the
Thuringian Forest Below left Half-timbered
building, the Wartburg Below right Statue
of Bach at Bachhaus, Eisenach4 Schmalkalden
Thuringia; 98574
So quaint are its timber-framed
buildings that it is hard to believe that
Schmalkalden was briefly the epi-
center of European politics. An
imperial meeting was convened here
in 1537 to reconcile the conti nent’s
Catholic rulers with Protestant princes
and Martin Luther. Up the high street
from the town square, Altmarkt, a
mosaic of historic build ings, is the
red-beamed Lutherhaus, Martin
Luther’s residence during the Imperial
Diet. The Reformation also changed
Schloss Wilhelmsburg (Apr–Oct: open
daily; Nov–Mar: closed Mon). This
castle’s chapel was one of the first to
represent Luther’s eleva tion of the
spoken word over decoration.
ª Continue along Recklinghäuser
Strasse, turn right at the T-junction to
take the B19 to Meiningen. Drive into
the center, and at Sächsischer Hof hotel,
turn right to park on Klostergasse or
park past the Schloss in the Zentrum
West parking lot.
air. Romantic composers such as Franz
Liszt and Johannes Brahms con ducted
the town’s orchestra and its court
theater was acclaimed across Europe.
Today, the town retains a repu tation
for ballet, theater and classical music
(www.das-meininger-theater.de). The
Ducal Riding Hall (closed Mon), which
stands next to Schloss Elisabethenburg
(closed Mon), displays backdrops from
19th-cen tury theater productions. Do
not miss the castle’s stuccoed café.
ª Follow the one-way system to
Neu-Ulmer-Strasse and turn left toward
Suhl. In Rohr, follow signs to
Benshausen, then to Zella-Mehlis on
the B62. Take the Bahnhof Strasse then
the Oberhofer Strasse, which becomes
the Heinrich-Ehrhardt-Strasse to
Oberhof and turn toward Oberhof-Sud
to park beside the Haus des Gastes.Forest train to Gotha
A novel way to visit Gotha and
Schloss Friedenstein (see p109)
and do some sight seeing is on
the Thüringerwaldbahn from
Friedrichroda. The Thuringian Forest
Train (tram No. 4) takes 50 min utes to
cover the 12-mile (20-km) journey
northwards to Gotha. Trams depart
twice an hour in summer and once
an hour in winter from Friedrichroda.6 Oberhof
Thuringia; 98559
Spread over a ridge at 2,822 ft (860 m),
Oberhof is the main winter play-
ground of the Thuringian Forest.
Skiers and snowboarders have a
choice of slopes, and non-skiers
can swish downhill in rubber rings
or on a toboggan. Skiing is possible
even in summer, on a 1-mile (2-km)
long circuit in the DKB-Skisport-Halle
(open daily; http://www.oberhof-skisporthalle.de).
Visitors can also hike through
the surrounding high meadows
on circular trails; maps are available
in the Haus des Gastes.
ª Leave Oberhof via Crawinkler
Strasse and follow signs to Ohrdruf.
Turn right toward Crawinkel, then take
the B88 to Ilmenau, via a short section
of the A71. Leave the A71 at Ilmenau
West to park beside Erfurter Strasse,
just before the sign to the Rathaus.5 Meiningen
Thuringia; 98617
A past life as the Residenzstadt or
royal seat of the Saxe-Meiningen
dukes lends Meiningen an aristocratic