5 Best Hotels in The Romantic Road, Germany

This bright and modern recent addition close to historic downtown Würzburg offers numerous amenities, including a gym and perks as part of the international Marriott chain. Thoughtful service and a modern vibe make it popular with business guests during the week. Pets and service animals are welcome, and there is both a restaurant and a lobby bar.

The modern Greifensteiner offers comfortable, individually furnished rooms in a quiet corner of the city, just off the market square. The Fränkische Stuben has excellent cuisine with mostly Franconian specialties; various meal plans are available with room reservations. There's also a bar in the basement wine cellar, dating from the 1300s, that's an ideal place to sample local varieties.

As you step into this medieval inn with a facade of half-timber gables and flower boxes, an old sturdy bar gives you a chance to register while sitting down and enjoying a drink. The rooms are modern, but outfitted with antique accessories and furniture, including one with a romantic four-poster bed. Dinner is served beneath heavy oak beams in the restaurant.

Master chefs in the service of the Holy Roman Emperor were the inspiration for the name of this historic hotel, occupying one of the oldest trader's houses in Rothenburg, which has been operated by the same energetic family for five generations. Rooms are furnished in a stylish mixture of old and new; light veneer pieces share space with heavy oak bedsteads and painted cupboards. You can have meals on the tree-covered terrace overlooking a square or late-night meals and drinks at the Lõchle wine tavern. They also rent out apartments nearby.

The Markusturm began as a 13th-century customs house, an integral part of the city defense wall, and has been an inn for more than 500 years, operated as a luxurious small hotel for the last four generations by the Berger family. Some rooms have beams, others have historic painted bedsteads, and some have valuable antiques from the Middle Ages, such as ceramic heating units (now just decorative), four-poster beds, even one with an in-room tub. Try to get a reservation for dinner when you arrive, since the beamed, elegant restaurant does fill up. Along with well-selected wines, you can also enjoy your dinner with three kinds of house-brewed beer. In summer head for the patio.