Barbara Geier: Small-town bliss

Friedrichroda? Pottenstein? Esens? I freely admit, until one random day last month, I had never heard of these places. All of them are small German towns – or villages – with under 10,000 inhabitants, located in very different parts of the country. And all of them have something in common: they are in a top 20 list of the most popular small towns in Germany 2025.

Popular based on what, you might ask now? I will give you the answer: all of these towns and villages are related to, let’s call it, touristic Google searches, that is the average number of monthly searches over a year for the terms ‘sights [plus the town]’ and ‘activities [plus the town]’. The initiators of these searches, a German holiday homes platform, only considered towns under 10,000 inhabitants and the result – at least for me – is quite an education. Turns out when it comes to (very) small towns in Germany that you might consider for a holiday or daytrip, my knowledge is somewhat limited.

I didn’t know, for example, that Friedrichroda, which takes position 10 in the ranking, is in Thuringia (yes, that was another Google search) not far from Gotha (which I know, just saying!) and has a long history tied to a Benedictine monastery founded in the 11th century, which was turned into a palace in the 17th century. In the mid-19th century a certain Duke Ernest I of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha – aka father of Prince Albert and father-in-law of Queen Victoria – remodelled the place as his summer residence. Lots happened after which makes for quite an interesting ride through German history to the present day (just google it …) but it’s safe to say that this Reinhardsbrunn Palace came up as a sight in the aforementioned keyword combination.

Wikipedia also tells me that Pottenstein, which ranks at 15 in the top 20 list, is a tourist hotspot in Bavaria’s Franconia region (apologies for my ignorance!). This must have to do with its official standing as a Luftkurort (air spa), which in Germany, Austria and Switzerland indicates that a town’s climate and air quality is considered to have health benefits. Or maybe because of its location in the Franconian Switzerland-Veldenstein Forest Nature Park. Or its very old castle that is related to Saint Elisabeth. Or… there’s more, check it out!

As for Esens, at number 19 in the ranking and the third German small town of touristic value that I had been ignorant about, that’s actually near the North Sea coast, and turns out, I actually almost knew it because I realise now that, during childhood, I spent many summers not too far away on an island just off the coast. Funny that.

I’ve got to say, this ranking has been a journey of discovery for me, I can only recommend! PS. The number one spot in the top 20 of Germany’s most popular small towns according to Google searches is taken by Tegernsee in Bavaria with 2,490 searches per month, and yes, I knew that one and have been… (it’s lovely!)