You gotta know a few things before you visit the town of Rodewisch in Saxony. First, its Wasserburg Göltzsch (a Water Castle) isn’t open all year round. And considering this has been called “one of the best preserved moated castles in the Vogtland,” it’s definitely worth seeing.
You just got to do it between April and August; and only on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. Wait — it gets better. It’s only open from 10am to noon, then reopens from 1pm to 4:30pm (that is, at the time of this writing).
I have to tell you this, because if you’re out castle hunting, you don’t want to show up when its closed, do you? How else are you going to see its museum, rent a boat (oh yeah, I forgot to tell you it’s on an island), or munch on something from its snackshop.
The castle reopens in the winter time, but only during the four weekends of Advent (the month before Christmas). I can’t think of a better place to hold Rodewisch’s Christmas Market.
A Christmas Market is fun, but so is Rodewisch’s annual Herbstball (Fall Ball) in November, and the town is famous for its many concerts by the Vogtland Philharmonic (who play at the Ratskeller).
Secondly, because Rodewisch is located in the Vogtland, it’s a delightful place for a hike or bicycle ride. The valley’s filled with all sorts of local wildlife (great for bird watching) and smattered with orchids make for quite a trip.
If you’re willing to explore a bit further, Rodewisch is close to the Grube Tannenberg in the nearby village of Tannenbergsthal in Muldenhammer (which is all about mining), and the Freizeitpark Plohn (an Amusement Park) in nearby Lengenfeld (Vogtland). Then again, if you’d rather travel to the stars, the Observatory/Planetarium in town (Rützengrüner Strasse 41a) is where you’ll want to be then.
You might want to check out all the cafes and restaurants too. Some even have funny names like the Gasthaus Trollschänke (Troll Tavern Inn) — but I haven’t seen any trolls or other mythical creatures yet. I’m waiting to see if any show up, and I’ll let you know if any do. ;-)