In the small Bavarian town of Franconia, Heroldsbach (near Nuremberg), lies Erlebnispark Schloss Thurn (Thurn Castle Adventure Park). Since we had an extra couple of hours on our journey today, we decided to make a quick stop and take a walk around. It’s a picturesque, one-hundred acre park surrounding the castle with over thirty attractions. I think it’s one of the most beautiful parks I’ve ever seen and the overall vibe seems to be about experiencing a stress-free and relaxing day.
Notable Attractions:
Ritterturnier (Jousting Tournament): Knights in armor duel on horseback in a medieval arena. Colorful and entertaining. It’s a fan favorite.
Wilden Westernshow: A live-action Wild West stunt show with cowboys, gun fights, and galloping horses. Another must-see.
Achterbahn Dinolino: Dinolino is the park’s green dragon mascot. This VR-Ride is a family coaster featuring onboard audio. Virtual Reality glasses are optional.
Bayerisches Fledermauszentrum (Bavarian Bat Center): An interactive information center inspired by the more than three-hundred bats that live in the castle attic.
Erlebnisspielplätze (Adventure Playgrounds): Adventure playgrounds offer unique and challenging play experiences. They are plentiful here and feature slide towers, extensive climbing structures, and interactive elements. If you have children with you, you can’t pass these by.
Tickets: Approx. €35
Schloss Thurn features five main areas and includes a zoo & nature park. There are lots of fun little things to do, mini golf, bowling, and other games everywhere. You can take a ruderboote (row boat) around the Schloss, and we pulled ourselves across the water on a flosfahrt (raft ride) at the Motorikpark (Motor Skills Park).
Many of the rides are self-operated; you get on the ride, hit the green button and it goes! We tried out a couple of ‘butterfly’ coasters as well as the virtual reality family coaster, Dinolino. You’ll also find a log flume, train rides, swings, monorail, pirate ship, and dinghy slides. The park’s latest plans envision further development into a coherent theme park.
If you’re into shows there’s lots of them, and they’re timely spaced every 30-90 minutes apart, so you can see all of them in the same day. A couple of the favorites are the western stunt show and the jousting tournament, complete with knights jousting on horseback.
Schloss Thurn is a family-friendly park and caters to those with young children. There are plenty of Erlebnisspielplätze (Adventure Playgrounds) and parents will enjoy relaxing with a refreshment and a bite to eat on the shaded terrace of the Lone Star Saloon while watching the children play. The Weizenbiergarten (weizenbier is wheat beer), Coffee House Lunch Room and Bakery, and the Western Saloon all offer a good variety of food and drink.
Watch the video version for great visuals:
Days Recommended: Full Day
It was another quick stop for us, just under two hours; but this park is one-of-a-kind and memorable. Now we’re headed way off the beaten path for another quick side trip to one of the most random roller coasters in the world, “Speed Bob”.
