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The "Romanesque Route" is one of Germany's most popular tourist routes. It follows a circuit of over 1,000 kilometres in an area packed with Romanesque architecture dating back to the time when Ottonian emperors ruled Saxony-Anhalt. The Romanesque Route is made up of two sections which run from Arendsee in the north to Zeitz in the south, linking 60 towns and villages whose total of 72 Romanesque cathedrals, churches, abbeys, castles and palaces attest to the region's political and commercial importance during medieval times. Castles, abbey churches and ruins are laid out ready to be explored, on hilltops and mountain sides, by rivers and in picturesque villages. Saxony-Anhalt, more than any other German state, is a treasure house of Romanesque architecture unmatched in its wealth and breadth.
There is such a profusion of art treasures between the Havel and Elbe rivers that you would be well advised to tour them by bicycle. Roads lined with apple trees, scenic rivers and streams and enticing picnic spots are just a bonus. Are you ready to go? Then let's travel back to the world of great kings and emperors. The northern route runs from Magdeburg through the Altmark region to the extreme north of Saxony-Anhalt. Magdeburg's most famous sights are its cathedral with the tomb of Otto the Great and the Abbey of Our Lady, one of Germany's most impressive Romanesque buildings, nowadays an art museum and concert hall. North of Madgdeburg, well-preserved brick-built churches are a regular sight throughout the Altmark.
