Bebenhausen Monastery

Founded around 1183 and taken over by Cistercians soon after, Bebenhausen survived the Reformation as a Protestant seminary and was later adapted as a royal hunting lodge, which meant the buildings were maintained rather than demolished; the result is one of the most complete surviving monastic complexes in southern Germany. The summer refectory has a vaulted ceiling on slender columns spreading like palms, and the cloister, dormitory, chapter house and mills survive. King Wilhelm II of Württemberg used the lodge and his widow Charlotte lived there until 1946. The Schönbuch forest surrounds it as a nature park.

What you actually see

• The summer refectory - a vault spreading from slender central columns.
• The complete plan - cloister, dormitory, chapter house and mills.
• The hunting lodge - royal rooms fitted into the monastic buildings.
• The Schönbuch forest - a nature park enclosing the valley.

When to go

April to October; the monastery closes Mondays and reduces hours in winter. The palace rooms are shown on separate guided tours at set times.

Honest expectations

Monastery and palace need separate tickets and the palace is guided-only. Interiors are largely bare. The village around it is tiny.

Nearby

Tübingen lies south; Stuttgart is north.