After the GutsMuths-Rennsteiglauf Marathon: Erfurt

The Route: Suhl → Erfurt → Leipzig/Halle Airport Logistics: Regional rail, then two nights in Thuringia's state capital before an onward hop to the airport. Marathon Month: May Duration: 2 nights

Suhl ──(regional rail, 45-70 mins)──> Erfurt (2 nights)
                                            │
      Leipzig/Halle Airport ◄──(regional rail, ~1 hr)──┘

Erfurt is the easiest possible landing spot after the GutsMuths-Rennsteiglauf Marathon's mixed-surface run from Neuhaus am Rennweg to the finish-village celebration at Schmiedefeld. Where the race spends 42.2 km on forest road, gravel and trail with a steep closing climb up the Reitallee, Erfurt offers the opposite: a compact, largely flat medieval centre built for walking rather than climbing. Late May here sits well inside the city's most comfortable stretch of weather, mild and generally dry, before the heavier tourist season of high summer arrives.

Regional trains from Suhl or Ilmenau reach Erfurt in roughly 45 to 70 minutes depending on the connection, running along the same Thuringian line the marathon's own transport region touches. Check the current timetable at bahn.de, since service frequency drops somewhat on Sundays.

Nights One and Two: Erfurt

Erfurt's old town sits on flat ground either side of the river Gera, and its single defining feature, the Krämerbrücke, is a medieval bridge lined on both sides with small shops and workshops, one of the few such inhabited bridges left standing in Europe. Walking its full length and back takes only a few minutes, but the surrounding lanes of half-timbered buildings extend the same easy, level walking for as long as legs want to keep going, with plenty of café seating along the way for anyone who does not. The Erfurt Cathedral and the neighbouring Severikirche, reached by a broad flight of stone steps up the Domplatz, are the one exception to the flat terrain; anyone still sore two days after a marathon can view both from the square below without climbing them.

The Augustinian Monastery, where Martin Luther lived as a monk before the Reformation, runs guided tours for around €7 (£6), and the small Angermuseum on the main square holds a compact collection of regional art and medieval sculpture for a similarly modest entry fee. Neither requires much walking once inside.

For a base, the Hotel Krämerbrücke sits directly by the bridge itself, putting the city's best flat walking on the doorstep, while the Radisson Blu Erfurt offers a more conventional business-hotel option a short walk from the main station, useful for an early departure. For dinner, a traditional Thuringian restaurant on or near the Domplatz serving Thüringer Klöße, the region's dense potato dumplings, alongside roast pork is the obvious regional choice; a lighter café option on the Krämerbrücke itself works well for a first evening when a heavy meal feels like too much.

Getting to Leipzig/Halle Airport

Erfurt connects to Leipzig/Halle Airport (LEJ) by regional or ICE rail in around an hour, making it a practical departure point without a change of city. Frankfurt Airport (FRA) is also reachable directly by ICE in roughly two hours if flight options favour that hub instead. Either way, book the specific train in advance where possible: German long-distance rail offers cheaper fares on booked, specific services than on a flexible walk-up ticket, the same principle that makes UK Advance fares worth chasing.