Ulmer Münster

One of the highlights of our visit to Ulm (along with the lovely Christmas Markets) was the Cathedral*, also known as Ulm Münster or Ulmer Münster.

Begun in 1377, the Cathedral was financed entirely by the inhabitants of Ulm. The most famous feature of the building – the spire, which is the tallest in the world – was not added until 1890. It is possible to climb the spire, but we parents declined as it was just too wet and windy. Willem was very disappointed with this! Don’t let our slackness put you off – if you are there try and make the effort. Here is a lovely youtube video that includes views of the climb up the tower and the view from the top.

The interior of the church is huge, and rather cavernous – our host in Ulm told us that the local saying is that in Winter you will never get a full church as it is so cold! The architecture is certainly imposing, but it is also full of interesting things to look at. There is a lot of art dating back to the formation of the church, including sculpture, stained glass and choir stalls. Just as lovely are the faded paintings, painted directly on to the walls and columns. No ‘full’ images remain but there many lovely images of saints, people and plants.

As well as the religious artworks, there is a lot of heraldry on display, which Willem found fascinating. He wandered about the church looking for recurring heraldry, trying to match shields and helmets on various displays.

Opening hours for the Münster are Nov-Feb: daily 9am-4:45pm, Mar: daily 9am-5:45pm, Apr: daily 9am-6:45pm, May-Jun, Sep: daily 8am-6:45pm, Jul-Aug: daily 8am-7:45pm and Oct: daily 8am-5:45pm. Entry to the Münster is free, but to climb the tower it costs tower 3€ for adults and 2€ children. Buy tickets an hour before the climb.

*Technically it is not a Cathedral, as it doesn’t have a Bishop attached to it, but it is commonly known as Ulm Cathedral by many people.