Tourism - Leuchtenburg expects its busiest year ever
The Leuchtenburg Foundation is expecting more visitors than ever before in 2023. Shortly before the end of the year, it is already clear that it will achieve the most visited year in its history, the foundation announced on Wednesday. Even with restraint, the foundation is forecasting 86,000 guests who have paid admission. That is ten percent more than in 2022.
At the beginning in 2007, visitor numbers were around 32,500, according to a foundation spokeswoman. Since the opening of the "Porcelain Worlds" exhibition, more and more visitors have been coming every year. This trend only took a turn for the worse during the coronavirus pandemic.
To enable even more visitors to experience the medieval castle and its exhibitions 400 meters above the Saale valley near Kahla in the future, more parking spaces are to be created in the coming year. Work on the inclined elevator to the castle is being driven forward to provide barrier-free access. According to current plans, guests should be able to ride it at Easter 2025.
2024 as an important year for the castle
The foundation will mark 2024 as a year of remembrance: in 1724, Leuchtenburg Castle was put into operation as a correction and reformatory. This dark chapter in the castle's history is already the subject of an exhibition that opened this year. The show is to be expanded in 2024. The foundation is also planning a book on the subject and a "lime tree festival" at the beginning of June: the lime tree at the castle gatehouse has also been standing for 300 years. Even if the occasion - the construction of the breeding and poorhouse - was less pleasant, the birthday tree is to be celebrated with old crafts, music and more, according to the foundation.
The medieval castle complex was used from 1724 to 1871 as a state-run penitentiary, poorhouse and lunatic asylum. According to the foundation, around 5200 people were imprisoned during this time - mainly for crimes of social need.
The foundation bought the castle from the Thuringian state development company in 2007 after years of vacancy. With ten million euros in subsidies and four million euros from foundation funds, large parts of the complex were renovated, new buildings were constructed and the "Porcelain Worlds" exhibition was established. Among other things, it features what the foundation claims is the tallest porcelain vase and the smallest porcelain teapot in the world.
About the Leuchtenburg
Read also:
- A clan member is punished here
- Traffic lawyer warns: Don't talk to the police!
- Will he be convicted as Jutta's murderer after 37 years?
- He also wanted to kill his cousin
- Due to the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic, the number of visitors to Leuchtenburg decreased, but the foundation is optimistic about the future of tourism and expects an increase in visitors, with plans to create more parking spaces and improve accessibility.
- In their leisure time, many tourists enjoy visiting the medieval castle of Leuchtenburg, particularly to see the tallest porcelain vase and the smallest porcelain teapot in the world, part of the comprehensive "Porcelain Worlds" exhibition.
- The Foundation is hoping to attract even more visitors to Leuchtenburg in Thuringia, Germany, as their emphasis shifts from solely focusing on historical exhibitions to incorporating local Leuchtenburg history, such as a 300-year-old lime tree festival and a planned book on the castle's dark past as a correction and reformatory.
- A significant portion of Leuchtenburg's history involves monuments to the past, as the medieval castle was used as a penitentiary, poorhouse, and lunatic asylum from 1724 to 1871, accommodating approximately 5,200 people mostly for crimes of social need. However, the foundation recognizes the importance of such politically-charged historical sites in maintaining awareness of past events, and highlights thriving tourism in the region as a result of increased interest in its dark history.
Source: www.stern.de
