What a pleasant surprise the health resort town of Wermsdorf turned out to be. Actually, I had no expectation of what to find — didn’t know anything about it until it came time to tell you about it. I didn’t know that it had 10 districts. And I didn’t know it was once the stomping grounds for King Albert of Saxony until today.
Mentioning King Albert is important, because he used one of Wermsdorf’s castles as a “hunting lodge.”
The two castles here are stunning — one is the Schloss Hubertusburg, a Baroque building that’s been used as everything from the home of royalty, to an asylum, to a training facility for Luftwaffe officers. Today it’s a museum that details much of its long history. The other castle is older, a Renaissance styled building with huge windows and intricate exterior details.
With castles like these, it is the very best place to hold the town’s annual Mahliser Ritterspiele, or Mahlis Knights Games. They even have a Knights Camp for the kids, giving them a fun way to learn about medieval history.
While the kids are off doing that, the grown-ups can have time to visit one of the mushroom farms, see a thousand year old tree, or traverse along a number of marked hiking trails, most of which are in the village of Collm.
Interestingly enough, throughout the rest of Wermsdorf’s other villages there are about a bazillion other things going on. One of the town’s biggest events is the Horstseefischen — bringing over a hundred thousand people to this charming town. If you’re lucky enough to be here on May 1st, you can look forward to the festive Maypole celebrations; or perhaps the Autumn Festival in October is more for you.
Oh, I know I’m missing some other events in Wermsdorf — let me double check…
Ah, yes, the hamlet of Luppa has its romantic Christmas Market and the popular Mühlenfest (Mill Festival); while there is also a Glühwein (Mulled Wine) Festival in December, and a Pond Festival held in town, too.
With so many people coming to Wermsdorf to party, it’s nice to find a quiet spot every now and then. So, look no further than around any one of the 26 ponds around town — pay attention because there are rare plants, birds, and other wildlife to see.
And another attraction is the Naturbad nature outdoor pool in Luppa, whose white sand beach and clear blue water makes you feel as though you’re in the Caribbean.
A pleasant surprise isn’t a strong enough statement for what can be found here in Wermsdorf — and the best part is you don’t have to be royal to enjoy it. ;-)
