Straubing, Germany

Straubing is a city of roughly 48,000 residents on the Danube in Lower Bavaria, founded by the Romans around 16 BC as Sorviodurum. The 68-meter Stadtturm, erected in 1356, overlooks Ludwigsplatz, while the 1429 Basilica of Saint James houses a 1485 high altar by Hans Leinberger and a 1370 wooden statue of Saint Jacob. A ducal castle first recorded in 1212 has been rebuilt several times across the centuries. Each year since 1812, the city has hosted the Gäubodenvolksfest, the second-largest folk festival in Bavaria after Munich's Oktoberfest, and roughly 6,000 Roman finds now sit inside the 2004 Roman Museum Sorviodurum.