Germany 03: Ingolstadt

Thursday, January 30, 2025

Today’s itinerary was thankfully not as hectic and busy as yesterday, but I still had an early start to the day. I was up at 07:00 and was soon back at the train station, where I bought some butter pretzels and coffee for breakfast. The train to Ingolstadt departed at 08:53 and lasted only an hour. The station was located to the south of the town center, so I hopped on a bus which took me most of the way into town.

I got off the bus just before the bridge that crosses the Danube River so I could spend some time crossing the bridge on foot. I walked over to the nearby Rathausplatz, which was the main square of the town. The square was very quaint, with many pretty buildings surrounding it, including the town hall (Rathaus). Ingolstadt was a smaller town than I expected and there was not much to see or do, but I did quite like Rathausplatz.

I spent some time walking around the streets of the old town before heading towards the castle on the edge of the historic town center. To reach the castle, there is a large clock tower over a gate that leads to the inner courtyard. I walked across the small bridge suspended over a dry moat and entered the courtyard. The new castle itself was rather unremarkable. It is a large white stone building that doesn’t have any striking features. It is now used as the Bavarian Army Museum, but I did not go inside.

I then followed a walking path around the entire exterior of the castle until I once again reached the riverside. It was a pleasant walk and not terribly cold, unlike the past few days. I was getting hungry by this point and had exhausted the few sights to see in town, so I went in search of somewhere to have lunch. I settled on the Augistinerbrau, a bier hall that I have eaten in other cities. I had the chicken schnitzel and, of course, a beer (how could I eat in a bier hall and not have a beer?!). It was a filling and delicious meal.

I had originally booked a train back to Regensburg for the late afternoon, but I decided to catch an earlier train since there was not much left to do in Ingolstadt. After the past couple of days of touring other Bavarian cities, I was a bit disappointed in Ingolstadt. It was pretty enough, but there was not enough to keep me occupied for an entire day. I caught the 15:50 train back to Regensburg, where I then spent some time hanging out at Starbucks before heading back to the hotel.

I was glad today wasn’t as hectic and busy as the previous few days, though I wished that I had planned my visit to Ingolstadt a bit better. I may have been able to squeeze in a visit to another nearby city had I done so, but I still have a pleasant enough day.