"Fascinating former monastery life: Rottenbuch" Rottenbuch by Trekki

Rottenbuch Travel Guide: 14 reviews and 72 photos

Rottenbuch is a small town amid rolling hills and farmland. It was founded in 1073, by Welf IV (Wikipedia is wrong here...) and Canon Regulars were called to settle here. Quickly it became centre of the region and education was one of the main concerns. The monastery was damaged several times in history and during secularisation in 1803 it was dissolved. But luckily the church was declared parish church; otherwise this splendid gem would be no more.

The town is really cute and easily walkable. It would even make a good base to explore the region, which is what I am considering for one of my next times. This time I stayed in nearby Steingaden, close to Wies Church to be precise. I was in Rottenbuch only once but liked it very much, especially the excellent café at the entrance of town.

The whole region is full of marvellous churches but also the hills and nearby mountains invite for hiking and biking. There is an interesting round trail devoted to milk, called Pfaffenwinkler Milchweg, approx. 4 km round trail with many explanatory signs about dairy farms in Bavaria. There is also the 85 km long hiking trail called Meditationsweg Ammergauer Alpen (Meditation Path Ammergau Alps), leading from Linderhof Castle to Wies Church. I have linked the German part of the website because it has a nice 15 min video at the bottom, but the English website is fully available as well. Then there are the so-called Schleierwasserfälle, vail waterfalls, of river Ammer, accessible only by hiking or by kayaking.

Enjoy :-)

If you wish to, follow my suggested tour and start with the first to-do tip => here and continue by following the respective links at the end of each tip. At the end, I link back to my intro page.

All pictures have been taken by me, if not marked otherwise.
Please do not use any of them without my permission.
The same applies for my writings here.
Thanks.

Last visit to Rottenbuch: Oct 2011
Intro Updated Mar 17, 2012
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Reviews (14)

Rottenbuch, Café am Tor, outside seating - Rottenbuch

Café am Tor: special place to have... Restaurants (1)

After my visit to Rottenbuch’s church and the monastery ground I was in desperate need of a coffee and Café am Tor... more travel advice

Splendid former monastery church in... Things to Do (8)

Spiritual centre of the former monastery ground is the collegiate church of Maria Geburt (birth of Mary), a masterpiece... more travel advice

Rottenbuch, little pestilence cemetery - Rottenbuch

Old pestilence cemetery outside of town Things to Do (8)

On the quite detailed map of Rottenbuch and surroundings inside of town I discovered a sign “Pestfriedhof” (pestilence... more travel advice

"The Kini": still loved in Bavaria :-) Local Customs (3)

Next to Cafe am Hof I saw this beautiful relief of Bavaria’s much loved late King Ludwig II of Bavaria, the one who had... more travel advice

Transportation (1)
Easy public transport to Rottenbuch

Favorites (1)
Excellent self-guided tours and maps

Travelogues (3)

1 - 3 of 3

Comments (12)

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strstr Apr 9, 2012 at 11:32 AM

Du hast hier wirklich eine Menge excellenter Fotos !
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Maryimelda Feb 11, 2012 at 3:28 PM

Well done as always Ingrid. The frescoes are fabulous and I am looking forward to seeing more of your pages about the churches. I must admit to being a bit of a lover of Rococco. The Cafe Am Tor reminded me of some of the lovely little places we stopped at for Latte Machiato and a Beesting when I toured the Rhineland Palatinate with you. What great memories.
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balhannah Dec 28, 2011 at 2:19 AM

Ingrid, an excellent page! What a beautiful church is the Monastery Church. The painting's are beautiful! Interesting reading about the cross, had never heard of it before. Wish I could take photo's as good of frescoes as you do, they are great!
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Nemorino Dec 18, 2011 at 11:52 AM

Hi Ingrid, you’ve made another fine Bavarian page here, with great photos as always. I found it especially interesting to read about how your perception of the role of the monasteries has changed. I never realized they had such a positive influence on the people who lived around them, providing free education for instance.
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mircaskirca Dec 17, 2011 at 7:44 AM

Oh, wow, I loved the details of Rottenbuch's church interior and cemetery with beautiful iron crosses! What? 500 kg of manuscripts and other books were sold as paper to be reused?? This is criminal!!! No place for the delicious home made cake at Café am Tor? Haha, these things hardly ever happen to me :)
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tiabunna Dec 14, 2011 at 2:39 AM

Very enjoyable Ingrid: a "user-friendly" VT page! Pity there's no longer a brewery there, but the coffee and cakes at the Cafe am Tor sound like a good substitute. :)
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willy_wonka Dec 7, 2011 at 11:18 PM

oh wow, not only is this page fantastic, but the way you laid it out and gave links to the next tips was so much easier!! vt should be like this!!! its more easier and appealing to people i think!! i love the paintings on bavarian houses, and the cafe life looks great!
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christine.j Dec 1, 2011 at 10:22 PM

That's Bavaria as in the picturebooks! I'd love to walk the Milchweg and stop for fresh milk ever so often.A great page, Ingrid.
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toonsarah Nov 28, 2011 at 4:35 AM

Wow, that church is spectacular! But indeed the whole town looks lovely, even if it is a shame that the brewery no longer produces beer - for Richie AND for the rest of us ;-)
[I should be working but I couldn't resist taking a look :-)]
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richiecdisc Nov 28, 2011 at 2:49 AM

Home for lunch so stopped by for a beer (well, monastery and beer is synonymous for me, at least in Bavaria ;)) but only found a coffee (maybe best when you are tired from sightseeing!). I will return to view the actual sights soon.