Access to Rothenburg ODT and other Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Germany Transportation Tips

'Mode': TO
Category: Train
Getting TO/AROUND: As a 5 star tourist attraction, Rothenburg is accessible by bus or car on the Germany's famed Romantic Road or more directly by an adjacent expressway, the A7. Coming from Nuremberg, we elected the train and it seems a wise choice.
Rothenburg is reached on a one-track spur from Steinach, a minor junction with a real train station but only machines and no attendants. A modern 2 car line runs back and forth between the two towns, with departures and arrivals timed to trains on the main line thru Steinach. To get to the Rothenburg train, one must descend and then climb a flight of stairs - I did not see any provisions for the challenged. Storage facilities are available at the Rotherburg station. The run to Rothenburg is through particularly attractive scenery with rolling hills and occasional small streams. Two tiny stations along the way are little more than an asphalt slab and a sign.
Tour books state that the train station is but a 10 minute walk from the old town, which is true. What they do not state is that once inside the walls it is at least another 10 minutes or more to the Town Hall and Main Square. Taxis are waiting at the train station and are not expensive for a trip right to the center.
From Nuremberg to Steinach, there are occasional through trains, but most trips require a simple across the platform ( no stairs )transfer in Ansbach. A seamless connection, waits for the next train are less than 5 minutes. The whole trip from Nuremberg to Rothenburg is 70 minutes including both transfers. Surprisingly easy.

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