📝 Detailed information
🏢 About the local organisation
Open Houses
💼 What the programme involves
The projects of Open Houses are based on sustainable principles. So also the activities at Lohra Castle combine aspects of cultural heritage preservation and aspects of natural heritage preservation. On one hand the volunteers participating at the Building Weeks restore the historical buildings of the castle complex, on the other hand the participants of the Workcamps carry out works in the green areas and the forests around the castle.Because around the outer walls of the castle trees had been grown up during the last two decades, actually the castle is partly not seen from the valley. So, besides taking care of green areas the volunteers will help to cut the trees around the walls in order to expose the view to the castle and will transport the wood to the storage place as well as splitting and stacking the wood.
🏠 Accommodation on site
Within the old service buildings of the castle, you will stay in four little houses with 3- and 4- or 6- bedrooms with showers (limited hot water) and toilettes. The equipment is simple but fair. The fully equipped kitchen, which is situated next to the accommodation houses, is a separate building with large tables and benches inside. The atmosphere is rustic and historic. No washing machines.The meals will be prepared together as they are part of the community life, what means that everybody will be responsible for the meal at least once during its stay. So it would be very nice if you could bring typical recipes from home in order to introduce each other to the preparation of food from all over the world.
📍 About the location
Lohra Castle is situated in the heart of Germany in Northern Thuringia. The castle, which is surrounded by a scenic hilly landscape, is located on the edge of a nature reserve area. Being one of the largest castles in Thuringia, the history of the castle Lohra begins in the Middle Age. The castle is more than 1,000 years old. Today, it includes twenty buildings from different times: medieval fortifications, remnants of a tower from the 11th century, a Romanesque chapel, a manor house from the Renaissance period as well as stables and granaries from the 19th and the early 20th centuries. The ensemble is situated in the centre of a beautiful forest. For years Lohra Castle was vacant. In the 1990s Open Houses started to restore the castle and to revive it by cultural activities. Since that time, a large number of Workcamps, Building Weeks, exhibitions, concerts and other activities with international participants took place in the castle.The castle is situated next to a nature protected