Discover Hanau: Fairy Tales, Museums and Cycling Routes

Hanau combines places associated with the Grimm story with museums, historic buildings and opportunities for cycling and walking. If you are looking for a hotel in Hanau, the focus of your trip can help determine your choice of destination: the city offers points of interest for culture lovers as well as for visitors who enjoy spending time outdoors.

Fairy Tales, Museums and City History

The Brothers Grimm National Monument was unveiled on 18 October 1896 and has since become a landmark and a central meeting place for the people of Hanau. The Hanau Fairy-Tale Trail includes ten fairy-tale sculptures in the city centre, as well as the sites of the former birthplaces and homes of the Grimm family and the national monument on Neustädter Marktplatz. The GrimmsMärchenReich at Philippsruhe Palace adds an interactive museum to these themes: on more than 340 square metres, children and adults can explore seven fairy-tale worlds interactively and using multimedia. It is Germany’s first hands-on museum dedicated to the Brothers Grimm.

The German Goldsmiths’ House also combines a distinctive architectural style with a museum theme. The half-timbered building, in the late Renaissance style, is used as a museum of gold- and silversmithing. Children aged eight and over can make their own piece of jewellery there in a workshop led by trained goldsmiths. If you plan to take part in this activity, check the current dates and availability in advance.

Other attractions explore different chapters in Hanau’s history. The Walloon-Dutch Church was built in Hanau’s Neustadt from 1600 to 1608 for Walloon and Dutch religious refugees who had settled there from 1597 onwards. The Gothic choir of St Mary’s Church was added to the small chapel between 1485 and 1492 and is now the oldest surviving building in Hanau’s Old Town. The collections at the Historical Museum Hanau at Philippsruhe Palace cover urban and European history from the Middle Ages to the present day and comprise around 20,000 objects.

At the Großauheim Museum, the history of technology meets local manufacturing. Exhibits include a steam-powered locomotive with a threshing machine, a steam tractor and a small tractor with an internal combustion engine made by Josef Bautz. Bautz manufactured tractors in Großauheim in the 1950s. The exhibits therefore showcase not only different types of machinery, but also the manufacturer’s local connection.

Wilhelmsbad and Outdoor Routes

Wilhelmsbad offers its own range of historic and scenic attractions. These include the carousel building, shaped like a Roman round temple; Schneckenberg, a hill with a viewpoint; and Devil’s Gorge, with its swaying chain bridge. There is also an artificial castle ruin and a man-made pond with an island. These varied features give visitors to Wilhelmsbad several possible points of focus, from architecture to landscaped features.

The Green Ring is ideal for walking, hiking and cycling, with numerous restaurants along the route. As route conditions can change, check the latest information for your planned route before setting off.

Explore Hanau by Bike

Several different options are described for cycling holidays. In Hanau, the Main Cycle Route runs along the left bank of the Main in the districts of Klein-Auheim and Steinheim. The Hessian long-distance cycle route R3 runs from Rüdesheim am Rhein via Wiesbaden, Hanau, Gelnhausen, Schlüchtern and Fulda to Tann in the Rhön. Before setting off, check the latest route information with the responsible route authority.

A guided cycling tour links several cultural attractions in Hanau. It runs from the city library at Schlossplatz via Wilhelmsbad Spa Park to Philippsruhe Palace and the Historical Museum Hanau, then along the Main to Steinheim and through the historic Old Town to the Renaissance palace of the Electors of Mainz. A knowledgeable guide explains the historical background. If this tour fits your plans, check the latest dates and booking options in advance.

Discover more destinations: Bruchköbel, Hammersbach, Schöneck, Steinau An Der Straße, Erlensee, Freigericht, Brachttal, Ronneburg.

Back to the overview of destinations: Main-Kinzig District.