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Finding the fairytale wedding setting

For couples wanting a fairytale wedding, holding the ceremony or reception in a castle could be the perfect setting. Sally McGrane reports.

Published: 19 October 2011 08:39 CEST

Photo: DPA

When Gunter Wielage, a computer software developer, got married, he held his wedding in a castle. This is not surprising, as Wielage loves castles. His website www.burgen-und-schloesser.net lists over 4,000 castles and manors, many of which he has personally visited and photographed.

But Wielage is not alone. About half of all brides who come through Agentur Traumhochzeit (www.agentur-traumhochzeit.de), a wedding planning agency in North Rhine-Westphalia, want to hold their wedding in a castle, estimates the agency’s Daniela Jost. “It’s the classic, romantic wedding,” said Jost.

Nobody knows exactly how many castles and manor houses there are in Germany, but estimates put the number at 30,000. Weilage, who said he has one of the most comprehensive lists around, loves the hunt involved in tracking down castles. (The website www.schencksreisefuehrer.de, which lists castles that offer wedding services).

Still, German castles offer plenty of uncharted territory for adventurous location-seekers. Even the most lovely castles and manors, says Weilage, are often not listed on maps, and their existence is sometimes unknown even to residents of nearby towns. On his website, brides-to-be can look up potential locations, find contact information and check whether or not the castle that catches their fancy offers wedding rentals.

For example, you can’t have a wedding in the most classic of all fairytale castles, Ludwig II’s Neuschwanstein in Bavaria. But you can get married in the shadow of the Wartburg, where Martin Luther took refuge and translated the New Testament into German after his excommunication from the Catholic Church.

The Wartburg Hotel, built in 1904 and located next to the castle, offers rooms, catering, and even a registrar’s office, so the official marriage can also take place there. Classically-minded couples can even use a horse and carriage to get from the bottom of the mountain to the top, except for the last stretch, where they have to switch to a car.

Of course, budget can be a limiting factor, said Agentur Traumhochzeit’s Jost. “You should reckon with at least €100 a head, for a castle wedding,” she said. “Sometimes castle rental costs more, on top of that.” Those charges can range from €1,000 to €3,000.

Agentur Traumhochzeit has over 1,000 locations brides can consider, among them plenty of castles. Some of these are publicly owned, either museums or run by foundations, while others are privately-run restaurants or hotels. Less often, said Jost, they are owned by individuals who rent them out for the night.

Where would Jost’s dream castle wedding take place? The wedding planner had a ready answer: Engers Neuwied, on the Rhine. “The castle has a spectacular ambiance,” she said. “It looks right out over the river. If the weather is good, you can hold the ceremony in the castle gardens – and if you want to have a garden wedding, there’s nothing better than a castle garden – then later move inside, to the ballroom.”

“When you’ve always dreamt of a fairytale wedding, the castle wedding is what you think of,” agreed Petra Schmatz of the magazine Hochzeitsplaner. “It’s a dream for lots of brides.” Schmatz says brides (or grooms, for that matter) can also check out potential locations on their site, at www.braut.de, where most of the castles listed are some variation on the castle hotel.

If you do go with a castle wedding, Schmatz advises sticking with a traditional theme for decorations – if you want a slick, modern wedding, she would suggest skipping the castle. “For couples with really traditional taste, for a castle wedding, you can arrive in a carriage, and two white horses,” she said. “Or a vintage car.”

For American writer Brittani Sonnenburg, it isn’t so much the idea of a Cinderella story that drew her and her fiancée, to look into holding their upcoming nuptials in a castle near Berlin, where they live. Rather, it’s the sense of history that appealed to them.

“We want something beautiful, but we both have an allergic reaction to the Disneyland fairytale castle,” she said. “For us, it was more that we wanted this important ritual to take place somewhere where you feel that there have been things going on for a long time. For us, there’s something really resonant about that.”

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What to know about renting out your home as an Airbnb in Germany

It can sound like an ideal side gig: renting out a spare room in your flat as a holiday home on Airbnb. You can meet new people and even subsidise your rent or the cost of your mortgage – theoretically without doing too much work for the money.

But if you’re considering getting into Airbnb in Germany, it’s important to get abreast of the rules before you do so. Even though there isn’t a blanket ban, many states and cities have put strict guidelines in place to keep it under control.

Why? Because, as many well know, Germany is in the grip of a serious housing crisis right now. Living space is desperately sought-after for people who live here, and short-term holiday lets are believed to be part of the problem.

This was borne out by a 2021 study by the German Institute for Economic Research that looked at the impact of Airbnb properties on rental prices in Berlin.

The institute found that rents increased by an average of 13 percent if they were in the immediate vicinity of an Airbnb property – largely because the housing stock in these areas had decreased.

In Mitte, prices went up by around 8 cents per metre, but in the more residential district of Lichtenberg, they shot up by 43 cents per square metre. In Neukölln – a trendy area that has been heavily gentrified in recent years – rents were being pushed up by 10 cents per square metre by the presence of Airbnb.

Of course, none of this means that it’s impossible to start renting out your home for a bit of extra cash – but depending on where you live, it may be a lot more difficult. Here’s what to know about the general rules in Germany and the specific guidelines in the major cities and states.

Germany-wide rules

Back in September 2020, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) made a key decision that ultimately empowered governments to ban Airbnb in places where housing was severely limited.

However, this is a tiny bit more complex than it first appears, since the primary issue isn’t Airbnb itself but rather short-term rentals that turn residential homes into holiday lets.

If properties change use in this way, this is likely to be branded “misappropriation of living space” – i.e. unlawfully using properties in a way that differs from their original purpose.

A coastal holiday home in Schleswig-Holstein. Photo: picture alliance/dpa/lichtecht | lichtecht

In some cases, getting a permit or renting a property for more long-term stays may be a way around this, but if you do fall afoul of the rules in places like Berlin or Munich, you can expect fines of anywhere between €50,000 and €500,000.

Another key thing to note is that landlords in general are subject to some strict regulations, including – but certainly not limited to – health and safety requirements and declaring taxable income.

Airbnb has put together a guide in English that can help you familiarise yourself with some of these rules, and they also offer webinars in English and German that will take you through the taxation system.

In most cases, subletting all or part of your rental flat on Airbnb is unlikely to be allowed. If in doubt, always check with your landlord or letting agent to see what’s permitted and what isn’t.

Rules in cities and federal states

Bavaria

Bavaria is one of the most popular holiday destinations in Germany – and its capital, Munich, also happens to have the most expensive rental market in the country – so it’s no surprise that there are tough rules here when it comes to Airbnb.

In general, the state prohibits the misuse of living space, and people who break these rules can face eyewatering fines of up to €500,000.

Munich has similar rules in place, though it is possible to apply for a permit to change your home into a holiday rental. These can take around 12 months to obtain and the decision is based on whether re-purposing the property is in the public interest.

A view over Tegernsee, a popular summer vacation spot in Bavaria. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Sven Hoppe

There are a few exceptions, though. If you live in a large house, for example, renting out a room on Airbnb is theoretically doable, since the rules state that no more than 50 percent of the home can be used for non-residential purposes. You’re also entitled to rent out your entire property for up to eight weeks of the year without getting permission from local authorities.

Baden-Württemberg

Since February 2021, the southwestern state of Baden-Württemberg has been clamping down on misappropriation of living space. If you’re found to be renting out a property illegally, you could be hit with a fine of up to €100,000.

In Stuttgart, strict regulations have been in place since July 2021. The rules stipulate that anyone who wants to rent out their home on a short-term basis has to apply for a registration number and include it on their listing. If less than 50 percent of the living space is being listed, it can be rented out as often as you like, but if more than 50 percent of the home is being repurposed then you can only rent this space for up to 10 weeks per year.

If you want to rent out an entire home on Airbnb for longer periods of time, you’ll have to apply for a permit from the city authorities.

Berlin

In recent years, Berlin’s housing market has become notorious for its dire shortage of living space and endlessly rising rents – and there have been several attempts to get illegal Airbnb listings under control.

Most recently, the city state introduced a registration system for anyone wanting to rent out part of their home as a short-term holiday let. If less than half of the property is set to be rented out, you’ll need to notify the relevant district authority of your plans and get a registration number that you include anywhere you advertise the property (in the case, an Airbnb listing).

Blocks of flats in the German capital of Berlin. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Florian Schuh

If you want to rent out more than half of your home, a permit will be required. Fines of up to €250,000 are levied on people found to be breaking the law.

The rules do vary slightly depending on whether the property you rent out is your primary or secondary residence. If you live in the flat, you’re entitled to rent it out during periods of absence (i.e. when you yourself are travelling) as long as you aren’t changing the main function of the home.

For properties you own but don’t live in, renting them out as holiday homes is permissible – but only for a maximum of 90 days per year.

Frankfurt am Main

Frankfurt am Main has been battling its own housing shortages for many years, and its fight against Airbnb culminated in a 2018 bill regulating holiday homes.

This bill stipulates that people must apply for permission if they want to offer their home as a short-term holiday rental, and that this can only be done for a maximum of eight weeks per year.

Breaching these rules can result in fines worth tens of thousands of euros.

Hamburg

Much like other major cities in Germany, the city state of Hamburg has implemented a registration system to help it monitor the number of holiday homes being listed on sites like Airbnb.

The good news is that applying for a registration number is pretty easy to do online – and it doesn’t cost any money to do so.

That said, there are still strict rules in Hamburg against the misappropriation of living space, so there are quite a few restrictions about what you can do. Generally, renting out a spare room would be acceptable, or renting out a larger portion of the home for eight weeks or less per year.

Lower Saxony

When it comes to Airbnb in Lower Saxony, a lot depends on the area you live in and how desperate the housing situation is.

In popular areas and holiday destinations like Lüneburg, Göttingen, and the island of Norderney, there’s a ban on the misuse of residential space and you’ll likely need to seek the advice or a permit from your local authority in order to rent out a holiday home.

Mecklenburg Western-Pomerania

While Mecklenburg Western-Pomerania isn’t Germany’s most populous state, living space in the popular coastal resorts is increasingly scarce, which drove state authorities to pass a misappropriation law back in 2021.

A cafe in Schwerin, Mecklenburg Western-Pomerania, which is popular with tourists. Photo: picture alliance/dpa/dpa-Zentralbild | Jens Büttner

That means that short-term holiday lets are highly restricted and you will need to seek permission to change the use of a property.

North Rhine-Westphalia

To rent out property to tourists in NRW, you now need to get a special ID number that you will have to use in any listings for your apartment online.

In cities like Cologne and Düsseldorf, there are strict bans on renting out properties on a short-term basis as a means of making higher profit. Both cities have recently invested in more staff to check compliance with the rules, and fines of up to €50,000 are levied on people who break the rules (though Cologne is considering hiking this to €500,000).

One way to rent out a flat while staying above board is therefore to offer it on a much more long-term basis, but be sure to liaise with authorities or get legal advice before you do so.

Rhineland-Palatinate, Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein and Thuringia

These above four states have all introduced bans on the misappropriation of living space, meaning ultra short-term holiday lets are affectively banned, though longer-term rentals are potentially allowed.

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