DISCOVER THE OLD TOWN

Distances are not excessive: this walking tour takes you through cobbled streets, lined with half-timbered houses with beautiful doors, almost every evening. These guided tours of the town are offered by the tourist office.

Since 1932, the tradition of the night watchman has been revived. From the ^14th century to the end of the ^19th century, night watchmen were used in Ribe to ensure the safety of towns and cities, to prevent fires, floods, invasions and other crimes committed at night. The watchman sang to encourage people to turn off their lights and go to sleep. The tour stops at each place of particular interest to give a few historical explanations.

On the mantelpiece of Tåmborg, a red stone Renaissance house (home to the musician and clergyman H.A. Brorson), nest a pair of storks, which you may see, depending on the season (and even better from the top of the cathedral tower). Ribe is the only town in Denmark where they stop!

To the west of the town, you should also visit Riberhus Slotsbanke, the site of a castle destroyed in the ^17th century, of which a few ruins and the original moat remain, and where a sculpture was erected in honor of Queen Dagmar. It's a great place to watch the sun set and get another view of the city.

At Christmas time, the town is transformed into a giant Advent calendar, with various events organized.