- Black Forest charm: Medieval castle surrounded by its own vineyards near Baden-Baden and Karlsruhe.
- Michelin-star dining: Home to Werner’s, a celebrated restaurant with cooking classes available.
- Fairytale setting: Castle perched above Gernsbach with sweeping views of the Murg Valley.
- Luxury stay: Rooms in the adjacent manor house offer comfort with a touch of old-world atmosphere.
- Wine & wellness: Estate vineyards, tours, tastings, and easy access to spa-town Baden-Baden.
- Check dates & prices here.
Nestling in Germany’s Black Forest and near both Baden-Baden and Karlsruhe, Schloss Eberstein is a medieval-era stately home & castle surrounded by acres of its own vineyards.
It is a place to relax and be pampered and its Michelin Star-winning food has gained a terrific reputation within Germany. It also offers cooking classes, and is quite the place for foodies.
The setting is suitably gorgeous, the words fairytale-like immediately come to mind, with the castle sitting on a green hill overlooking the little town of Gernsbach, the Murg Valley, and the Black Forest.
The Rooms:
Schloss Eberstein is a luxury castle hotel and you can certainly expect the highest levels of service and comfort.
They have a choice of nicely furnished and decorated rooms; doubles and singles, all with private bathrooms, minibars, WiFi, TV, and seating.
It must be noted that the accommodation is not in the castle itself but in the adjacent manor house.
Both are impressive structures and, though the rooms are relatively modern, there is a general old-world atmosphere throughout the hotel.
Prices:
Check out all the details – prices, reviews, and more photos – on the booking page here.
Facilities & Things to Do:
As mentioned before it is quite the fairytale setting; the views are lovely all around and some great hiking trails run through the vineyards and around the hills.
As also mentioned before, the food at their main restaurant, the Michelin Star-winning Werner’s, is fabulous and of course somewhat overshadows the lesser-known Terrace Restaurant, which is also a fine restaurant.
Note: The Terrace is open every day but Werner’s is only open from Wednesdays to Sundays.
There is the opportunity at Schloss Eberstein to partake in some excellent cooking classes with head chef Bernd Werner.
These take place on Saturday mornings from November until March. Write a request note to the hotel after making reservations on the booking page to reserve your spot.
They also make excellent wines at Schloss Eberstein; their vineyards are just outside the door and vineyard-winery tours, tasting sessions, etc. are all available.
The Location:
The castle sits on a hill surrounded by its own vineyards and overlooks the little town of Gernsbach and the Murg River Valley.
This is the Black Forest, one of Europe’s most iconic rural landscapes with deep, dark woods and hills for miles around.
It’s great for long gentle hikes and walks through the forests with a few trails starting from the grounds of the hotel itself.
Cycling is also popular in this area though there are a few hills around hills, and bikes can be rented from the hotel.
The famously sophisticated spa town of Baden-Baden is just 15km away, as is the Baden Wine Road which runs through many of the area’s best vineyards, historical sights, and prettiest villages. Karlsruhe is about 40km away while Offenburg is about 70.
The main city in this region is Stuttgart which can be reached in a little less than an hour and a half, while Strasbourg, France can be reached in under an hour.
A Little History of Schloss Eberstein:
The first mention of the castle was in 1272 as one of two principal residences for the Counts of Eberstein, a local political dynasty who were the most powerful in the region of the time.
More powerful even than the, far more well-known in the modern era, Margraves of Baden.
It is believed to have been built by Count Otto I (1207-1279) and though very little of this structure is still intact the original castle ramparts are still there.
The Eberstein’s fortunes would take a few downturns over the centuries and, in 1387, debts forced Count Wolf von Eberstein to sell off half of the family’s lands to the Margrave of Baden.
They struggled through the 15th and 16th centuries until their male line ended in 1660 after the death of Count Casimir von Eberstein, the last of the Eberstein name.
Soon afterward their entire lands would be in the hands of the Margrave of Baden. In 1691 much of the structure burned down and from then on was used by the Margrave as not much more than a warehouse.
In 1798, Baden Margrave Karl Friedrich passed on the property to his son Friedrich, who over the next few years set about re-building the castle as a residence in the Neo-Gothic style.
In 1830 the interiors got another upgrade, again mainly Neo-Gothic, and the current restaurant was built in what were the old stables.
During the Baden Revolution of June 1849, the castle was attacked and somewhat looted but otherwise survived as a kind of summer house/secondary residence for the Badens.
The centuries-old Baden connection would come to an end though in the year 2000 when Margrave Max of Baden sold it to the businessman Gerd Overlack, who was from Cologne but had strong local connections.
He undertook a major renovation and restoration of the castle and re-planted vines on the slopes of the hill on which it stands; this is simply titled Schlossberg or Castle Hill.
Within a few short years came the winery, the gourmet restaurant, and of course the 4-star hotel, all of which would soon develop excellent reputations in their own right.
Some Guest Reviews:
“Wonderful stay in a fabulous castle hotel. One of the best hotel experiences in my life….”
“Fabulous. Magnificent location and charming place. Excellent cuisine and wines….”
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