What to do and see in Weimar, Thuringia: The Best Budget-friendly Things to do

This beautiful church is best known for its Crucifixion triptych by Lucas Cranach the Elder.

The Goethe National Museum is the most important museum for the presentation and study of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s life and works. An extraordinary treasure is contained within – the poet’s actual residence with original furnishings and collection pieces. Numerous items from his personal collections are on display in the accompanying exhibition “Flood of Life – Storm of Deeds” which highlights Goethe’s vastly diverse interests beyond his literary production.

Franz Liszt lived in the former court gardener’s house at the edge of the Park on the Ilm from 1869 until his death in 1886. This is where he gave lessons to many young and talented pianists from Germany and abroad. In 1887 Grand Duke Carl Alexander opened several rooms to the public as a memorial site. All the furnishings in the music salon and study are authentic, including the Bechstein grand piano.

Perched upon a hill to the south of Weimar in the middle of a spacious park with an orangery, pleasure garden and labyrinth lies Belvedere Castle, the former Baroque summer residence of the ducal family of Saxony-Weimar and Eisenach. Since 1923 the castle has been used as a museum of the arts and crafts dating back to the 18th century, featuring exquisite porcelain works once owned by Weimar’s ducal dynasty.

The Baroque palatial residence in the centre of Weimar was home to the dowager Duchess Anna Amalia of Saxony-Weimar and Eisenach for many years until 1807. This is where she held her famous social gatherings. The Duchess’s former parlour with its original furnishings is among the most authentic rooms in the mansion that best reflects domestic culture around 1800.

Before he passed away in 1805, Friedrich Schiller spent his last three years at this residence on Esplanade where he wrote his famous plays “The Bride of Messina” and “William Tell”. Today, Schiller’s original desk and bed are displayed in his former living quarters.

The 48-hectare Park on the Ilm is a marvellously landscaped garden situated on the edge of Weimar’s historic downtown. It was here that Duke Carl August and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe made their gardening ideas a reality. They created a walkable work of art with diverse views of the landscape, park structures and numerous places to sit down and contemplate. Today, the Park on the Ilm continues to offer visitors a place to relax, learn and enjoy nature’s beauty.