Rothenburg Self-Guided Walking Tour with Riddles

Riddles, ramparts and a postcard square you solve on your own

A self-guided walking tour of Rothenburg ob der Tauber using the Explorial app to guide you through riddles, photo tasks and trivia challenges at the town's landmarks. Download the app, enter your game code, and start whenever you want. The tour takes around two hours at your own pace, with no guide or fixed schedule. Available in 24 languages. Smartphone with active data required.

What’s included

• Free download of the Explorial app (iOS or Android).
• self-guided walking tour with interactive riddles, trivia challenges and photo tasks.
• live location map so you always know where you are.
• points and scoring system to compete within your group and against the city's high score.
• stories, history and local legends woven into each riddle.
• total flexibility to start anytime, walk at your own pace and take as many breaks as you want.

Times

• Every day No fixed time

Before you book

Group Private

Live guide English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Cantonese, Chinese, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Hindi, Hungarian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Swedish, Turkish and Ukrainian

Meeting point and pickup No hotel pickup: you go to the meeting point. Ends back at the starting point.

Ages Adult (10 to 90 years) · Child (under 10): free

Cancellation and refunds Free cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Good to know

Low physical effort Pets welcome Public transport nearby

Operated by Explorial

Prices and times updated 9 days ago

Traveler reviews

4.38 ★★★★★ Very good 16 verified traveler reviews

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The experience

You start at the Spitalbastei, the southern bastion anchoring Rothenburg's intact town walls. Open the Explorial app on your phone, enter the 6-digit code you received by text, and the riddles begin. There's no guide waiting, no group departure time. Just you, your group and the medieval streets. The app marks your location on a map and feeds you riddles that pull you toward each stop, so you navigate by solving rather than following a script.

The Plönlein arrives early: that tilted yellow house wedged between two tower gates, the one on every postcard. A photo task is mandatory by moral law. From there the riddles lead north to the Klingentorbastei, where the town's fortress corner (wall, tower and waterworks locked together) waits on the ramparts. The finale is the Stadtkirche St. Jakob and Tilman Riemenschneider's Holy Blood altar, carved so finely the stone seems to breathe. Around two hours inside the walls, at whatever pace suits your group. After dark, the night watchman takes over the streets. The app keeps a leaderboard so you can see how your answers stack against other Rothenburgers.

The app works in 24 languages and keeps score between players in your group, so there's a reason to compete on the riddles and photo tasks beyond just moving through the town. You can pause, break, backtrack. The only constraint is that your smartphone stays charged and connected. Bad weather or illness means you reschedule for another day or switch to a different city. The booking carries a guarantee.

Top questions

What languages is the tour guided in?

Live guide in English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Romanian, Danish, Polish, Chinese, Japanese, Ukrainian, Czech, Norwegian, Hungarian, Cantonese, Greek, Chinese, Korean, Russian, Finnish, Swedish, Hindi and Turkish.

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Child (under 10): free.

What is the Plönlein and why does every visitor photograph it?

The Plönlein is a small tilted square where a yellow house sits wedged between two tower gates. It's the most recognizable corner in Rothenburg and appears on countless postcards. The app sends you there early in the tour with a mandatory photo task.

Do I need to download anything before I arrive in Rothenburg?

Download the Explorial app from your phone's app store (iOS or Android) before you start. After booking, you'll receive a 6-digit game code by text and booking-platform message. Enter that code in the app to begin whenever you're ready at the Spitalbastei.

Can I take this tour with a group, and do we all have to stay together?

Groups up to 15 people can book one tour together. The app lets you compete on riddles and photo tasks, so you can move as one unit or split up and compare scores. The choice is yours, and there's no guide keeping pace.

What happens if the weather is bad or I get sick before starting?

The booking includes a weather and health guarantee: if bad weather or illness stops you from starting, you can reschedule for another day, switch to a different city, or request a refund.

Is there an entrance fee to visit the landmarks inside the town?

No entrance fees are required. All the riddles and photo tasks relate to public areas of the sights, so you can complete the entire tour without paying to enter any buildings.

What do I need to bring to play this tour?

Bring a fully charged smartphone with an active mobile data connection. Disable any VPN and avoid city Wi-Fi before you start, as these will cause the app to malfunction. Wear comfortable walking shoes and weather-appropriate clothing for about two hours of light walking.