6 Best Sights in Bayreuth, Franconia and the German Danube

This palace east of the city makes an appealing departure from the sonorous and austere Wagnerian mood of much of the town. It's an early 18th-century palace, built as a summer retreat and remodeled in 1740 by the Margravine Wilhelmine, sister of Frederick the Great of Prussia. Although her taste is not much in evidence in the drab exterior, the interior is alive with light and color, displaying her guiding hand in every elegant line. The extraordinary Japanischer Saal (Japanese Room), filled with Asian treasures and chinoiserie furniture, is the finest room. Look out for the decidedly Western-looking Emperor; it's a depiction of Wilhelmine. Guided tours of the palace interiors, which are only in German but come with an English-language leaflet, take place every 45 minutes and last around the same amount of time; prepare to get slightly wet shoes in the enjoyable grotto waterworks. The palace's park and gardens—partly formal, partly natural, and filled with follies and fountains—make for pleasant, idle strolling. 

Richard Wagner's one-time home, "Wahnfried," built by the composer in 1874, is now the centerpiece of this fine museum. It's a fairly austere neoclassical building whose name, "peace from madness," was well earned. Wagner lived here with his wife Cosima, daughter of pianist Franz Liszt, and they were both laid to rest here; look for Wagner's simple gravestone in the garden (behind the fountain), with another nearby for his beloved dogs Marke and Russ. A bust of King Ludwig II of Bavaria, the "Fairy-Tale King" who gave Wagner so much financial support, stands before the entrance to the house.

Inside, the exhibits are generously spread across three floors, with information in German but summary boards provided in English. Highlights include his piano, multimedia displays of various opera performances, and the original scores of such masterpieces as Parsifal, Tristan und Isolde, and Der Fliegende Holländer. In the buildings flanking the main house, you'll find a collection of production costumes, exhibits on Wagner's son (and fellow composer) Siegfried, and an excellent little café. The little house where Franz Liszt lived and died is right next door, and you can visit with a combination-ticket that's just €1 more than the regular entrance fee.

The interior of this high temple of the Wagner cult—where performances take place only during the annual Wagner Festival—is surprisingly plain. The spartan look, including wooden seats with no upholstering and relatively unadorned walls, is explained partly by Wagner's desire to achieve perfect acoustics, while the enormous stage is necessary to hold the huge casts required for Wagner's largest operas. The theater is only accessible during festival performances or by guided tour—at 2 pm daily except during festival season, with additional tour times at weekends and throughout spring and autumn; however, the only English-language tours are at 1 pm Saturday from April through October. To attend the festival performances, you'll need to register and apply for tickets in the December prior to the festival. You can explore the memorial park and gardens for free at any time.

Learn about the traditional Franconian art of brewing and cutting-edge craft techniques at this great little museum. The Maisel brewery opened on this exact spot in 1887 and is still run by the fourth generation of Maisel brothers, though the actual brewing is now done at the larger, neighboring site. Today, this brick building is given over to exhibitions on the history of brewing, including old tools and machinery, as well as windows into the working brewery next door. After learning the facts on a self-guided tour (bring your phone to download the guide app), head to the museum's pub-restaurant or beer garden to quaff a cool, freshly tapped Bavarian Weissbier (wheat beer), or opt for a "Tasting-Board" of some of their more experimental Maisel & Friends craft brews.

In 1745 Margravine Wilhelmine commissioned the Italian architects Giuseppe and Carlo Bibiena to build this rococo jewel, sumptuously decorated in gold and blue, with Apollo and the nine Muses cavorting across the baroque frescoed ceiling. It was this delicate 500-seat theater that originally drew Wagner to Bayreuth; he felt that it might prove a suitable setting for his own operas, before realizing the limitations of its size, so he built the Festspielhaus instead. Ultimately, it has become a wonderful setting for the concerts and operas of Bayreuth's "other" musical festivals, which the theater hosts throughout the year. English-language tours take place daily at 12:30 pm (German at 3 pm)

Like many of the most impressive sights in Bayreuth, this glamorous 18th-century palace was built by the Margravine Wilhelmine, a woman of enormous energy and decided tastes. Her distinctive touch is evident throughout the palace, which was rebuilt when a mysterious fire conveniently destroyed parts of the original one. Anyone with a taste for the wilder flights of rococo decoration will love it. Some rooms have been given over to one of Europe's finest collections of faience pottery. Most of the state rooms can be visited freely, but you'll need to join the guided tour (German-language only) to see the Italian Palace.