The Würzburg Residence (Würzburg Residenz) is an architectural superstar. Hailed as one of the most beautiful palaces in Europe, this Baroque beauty is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and and an easy highlight of any trip to Bavaria.
Step back into an age of elegance with my guide to visiting the Würzburg Residence, covering tickets, tours and the rooms I would not skip.
A Brief History
The Würzburg Residence was built to impress.
Sometimes called the German Versailles, the Residence was commissioned in 1719 by Johann Philipp Franz of Schönborn, newly appointed Prince-Bishop of Würzburg. He handed the job to a then unknown architect, Balthasar Neumann, who spent sixty years turning an empty shell into a Baroque masterpiece with help from the leading artists of the age.
The palace’s grandeur was short lived. Secularisation dissolved the bishopric in 1802-3, and the Residence became a second home for the Bavarian kings. A WWII bombing raid on 16 March 1945 destroyed much of the interior, and reconstruction took until 1987.
Tickets, Opening Hours and Getting There
April-October: daily 9 am – 6 pm
November-March: daily 10 am – 4.30 pm
Closed on January 1st, Shrove Tuesday, 24th, 25th and 31st December.
The gardens are open daily until dusk or 8 pm at the latest
It is free to visit the Court Church and gardens – and I strongly recommend you do – and admission to the palace costs €10 in 2026. You can check current opening times and ticket prices here.
It is a fifteen minute walk from the main train station, or take tram or bus 1, 3 or 5 towards Dom. The address is Residenzplatz 2, 97070 Würzburg.
Guided Tours
Time your visit around one of the English tours, included in your ticket and run twice daily at 11am and 3pm. The thirty minute tour covers the Great Staircase, White Hall and Imperial Hall, and you are free to explore everything else afterwards.
A Few Practical Notes
- Photography without flash is allowed throughout, except during the tour itself. Leave the tripod and selfie stick behind.
- Backpacks are not permitted inside. I left mine in a locker (bring a €1 coin).
- There is an onsite café, though I did not try it myself
What to Expect Inside
I made the Residence my first stop on a sunny April day in Würzburg, exploring the gardens before joining the tour (you don’t need to pre-book). After the tour, I continued exploring the palace’s rooms, finishing my visit at the Court Chapel.
Compared with other UNESCO sites I have visited, it was joyfully uncrowded and relaxed.
Garden Hall
Our small group congregated in the Garden Room, waiting for the tour to start. Connecting the palace with the Court Gardens, this light and airy room has lively frescoes painted by Johann Zick.
Grand Staircase
This is where the tour begins in earnest, and it is a real showstopper. The steps are deliberately shallow, designed so elegant ladies could glide upward, and as you climb, more of Neumann’s vaulted ceiling reveals itself.
Giovanni Battista Tiepolo painted the world-famous ceiling fresco in 1752-3, depicting the four known continents with the Würzburg court at the centre of European culture. It is a snapshot of eighteenth century worldview, quirks and all.
Asia’s elephant has its ears on upside down – Tiepolo was working from second-hand descriptions – and Africa gets an imagined camel and an incense-bearing servant for the same reason.
America appears bare chested with feathers in her hair, being served hot chocolate, then a fashionable European import. Europe gets the largest, busiest panel, Tiepolo’s way of putting his own continent on top, complete with a self-portrait of the artist and his son, who oddly looks older than him.
White Room
Think of the White Room as a palate cleanser between the exuberance of the Grand Staircase and the Baroque splendour of the Imperial Hall.
Antonio Bossi’s grey stucco decorations– the room isn’t actually white – have an armour and weapons theme, befitting a room that once guarded the entrance to the prince-bishop’s digs. I loved the cherubs on the stove, representing the four seasons.
Imperial Hall
This is the Residence’s greatest hits reel: Neumann’s architecture, Tiepolo’s frescoes and Bossi’s stucco working together at full volume. Tiepolo’s figures seem to lift off the flat surface entirely, and every painting here is really a statement about the prince-bishop’s wealth and power.
The guided tour ends in the Imperial Hall. From here you explore the rest of the public rooms independently, most with short English descriptions. I went through the North Wing first, then the South Wing and the Chapel.
Northern Apartments
This procession of lavish Baroque and Rococo rooms was reserved for VIP guests.
The Green Lacquered Room has silver-leaf walls painted green and a gorgeous inlaid floor. Little Boney may not have slept in the bed in the Napoleon Room, but he did use its night tables.
At the end of the North Wing, you reach the State Gallery, given over to Venetian painting from Titian, Tintoretto and Paolo Veronese.
Mirror Cabinet
The equally sumptuous southern apartments have the most bling room in the palace, the Mirror Cabinet where the prince-bishop showcased his wealth. Featuring six pounds of gold leaf, an allegory of the four continents (again) and 600 mirrors, gaudy doesn’t begin to describe it.
It was destroyed during WWII and recreated between 1979 and 1987 from mirror fragments, colour slides and a watercolour by Georg Dehn. Whether it’s your taste or not, it’s a near-miraculous restoration.
As you make your way to the Court Church, spend a little time in the Documentation Room. This chronicles the destruction of the Würzburg Residence and its restoration through objects, photos and short film clips. It’s fascinating stuff.
Court Church (Hofkirche)
This curvy Baroque and Rococo chapel in a rectangular shell is tucked into the southwest corner of the Residence and is reached by an entrance in the interior courtyard.
Neumann created light and symmetry with mirrors and hidden windows. The gold leaf is real; the “marble” columns aren’t. Although they look like the real deal, they are made from plaster mixed with pigment, which was then polished.
Once again, Tiepolo and Bossi helped him with the chapel’s interior decoration. The pulpit and Teipolo’s frescoes are outstanding.
Court Gardens
Embracing the palace, the Court Gardens form a wonderful park. When I arrived, a handful of locals were enjoying the balmy spring morning.
The South Garden is just inside the gate. This rhapsody in symmetry has a central fountain, sculptures and conical 18th-century yew trees.
The terraced East Garden feels more like an amphitheatre, its upper levels punctuated with playful cherub sculptures.
Where to next?
hope this guide helps you plan your own visit. It was one of the highlights of my time in Germany. For more of Würzburg itself, see my guide to spending a day in Würzburg. And for more of Bavaria, take a look at my guides to Nuremberg, Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Bamberg and Passau.
Happy travels!
About Bridget
Bridget Coleman has been a passionate traveller for more than 30 years. She has visited 70+ countries, most as a solo traveller.
Articles on this site reflect her first-hand experiences.
To get in touch, email her at hello@theflashpacker.net or follow her on social media.