Parking in Eisenach: Prices, Car Parks and Free Spaces

The cheapest place to park in Eisenach’s city centre is one of the two municipal car parks. The first 20 minutes are free, after that every 20 minutes cost €0.50, with a daily maximum of €10. On-street parking costs €1.80 per hour and is free in every zone from 7 pm. We checked all rates on this page against the city’s fee regulations and the operators’ published prices in October 2026.

Car parks and parking areas in Eisenach: prices at a glance

The city runs the “Am Markt” car park and the City car park on Uferstraße itself. Both are open around the clock and charge the same rates. Opposite the main station is the privately operated “Tor zur Stadt” car park with 600 spaces. On-street prices depend on the fee zone, which we explain below the table.

Fee zone 1 covers the entire city centre, including the Markt, Karlsplatz, Querstraße, Frauenplan, Uferstraße and Theaterplatz. Fee zone 3 covers the tourist parking areas at Prinzenteich and in the Mariental valley, Kurstraße and the large car park on Karl-Marx-Straße. All other streets with pay machines form fee zone 2, for example Bahnhofstraße, Domstraße and Schiffplatz. There, an hour costs €1.20, and fees only apply Monday to Friday from 9 am to 3 pm. The full list of streets is in the city’s parking fee regulations (in German).

Where can you park for free in Eisenach?

From 7 pm, on-street parking is free in every fee zone in Eisenach.

You can park for free in Eisenach at the park-and-ride car park on Julius-Lippold-Straße by the Werner-Aßmann-Halle and at the Phantasie car park in the Mariental valley. In the municipal car parks, the first 20 minutes are free. On-street fees end at 7 pm at the latest in every zone.

• Evenings and weekends: In the city centre, you only pay Monday to Saturday from 8 am to 7 pm and on Sundays from 8 am to 6 pm. In zone 2, fees apply only on weekdays from 9 am to 3 pm, so parking there is free on Saturdays and Sundays.
• Short-stay button: Three pay machines in the city centre issue a free 15-minute ticket. You will find their locations in the next section.
• Disabled parking permit: Holders of a valid disabled parking permit park free of charge for 24 hours on all metered spaces.
• Electric cars while charging: On marked on-street charging bays, parking is free for the duration of the charge. Use a parking disc to show when you started; the maximum time is shown on the sign. In the City car park, no idle fee applies for up to twelve hours while charging.

Short-stay button: 15 free minutes at three machines

The so-called Brötchentaste (literally “bread roll button”) is meant for quick errands, such as picking up medicine at a pharmacy or dropping a child off at school. It only applies to 17 designated spaces at these three machines:

1. Markt, west side, opposite the former Mattheus stationery shop: for the spaces between Mattheus and the Hypo bank.
2. Karlsplatz, in front of the pharmacy at the entrance to Karlstraße: for the spaces on the west side of Karlsplatz, from the pedestrian crossing towards the Schwager department store.
3. Querstraße, west side, roughly opposite the Pressehaus: for the spaces between Sophienstraße and Alexanderstraße.

Press the green button on the machine without inserting money and leave the ticket clearly visible in your car. If you stay longer than 15 minutes, you pay for the entire time as usual. The free minutes cannot be added to a paid ticket.

How much do one hour, two hours or a full day cost?

One hour of parking in Eisenach costs between €1.00 in a municipal car park and €3.00 at the Wartburg car park. A full day costs €6 at the tourist car parks in the Mariental valley and on Karl-Marx-Straße, and no more than €10 in a municipal car park. The table applies the current rates to typical parking times.

Sample calculation by our editorial team based on the city’s parking fee regulations (in force since 1 January 2023), the fee regulations for the municipal car parks (in force since 1 December 2021) and the published rates of DB BahnPark and the Wartburg Foundation, as of October 2026. In the municipal car parks, the first 20-minute unit is free and each further started unit costs €0.50.

Where do I park for the Wartburg?

Just below the Wartburg is the paid car park run by the Wartburg Foundation. It uses number plate recognition: after your visit, you choose the cheaper option at the pay machine, either €3 per started hour between 6 am and 5 pm or the €7 day ticket. Between 5 pm and 6 am, an hour costs €1.50.

From the car park below the castle, you walk the last stretch uphill or take the castle shuttle.
© Photo: Christian Wolf

• Day tickets: car €7, motorcycle €3, motorhome €12, coach €25.
• Castle shuttle: The minibus runs between the car park and the castle and costs €4 one way or €7 return.
• On foot: The climb starts at the car park booth, either up a steep flight of steps or along the longer, gentler access road.
• Facilities: The car park has toilets, lockers, bike racks and pay machines.

If you would rather skip the drive up, park in the Mariental valley or in the city centre and walk. From the B 19, the walk through the forest takes about 30 to 45 minutes and is not step-free. Without a car, you can reach the castle by city bus from the bus station next to the main station. On Advent weekends, special arrangements with park and ride and a shuttle apply for the historic Christmas market; see our page on the Christmas market in Eisenach. Everything else about visiting the castle is in our guide to the Wartburg.

Where do I park for the Drachenschlucht gorge?

For the Drachenschlucht, park in the Mariental valley; parking right at the entrance is no longer possible. The city removed the former spaces along the B 19 for safety reasons. Instead, the car parks by the brewery, Mariental 1 and 2, Prinzenteich and “Phantasie” offer around 345 spaces in total, motorhome pitches included.

Buses 3 and 109 run every 30 minutes, including at weekends. Get off at the “Drachenschlucht” stop at the entrance or at “Hohe Sonne” at the upper end of the gorge. Routes and walking times are in our guide to the Drachenschlucht.

Parking at Eisenach main station: what are the options?

There are two parking options at the main station, and both charge a fee. The DB car park at Bahnhofstraße 35 has 63 spaces, three of them accessible. It costs €1.10 per 30 minutes, €2.20 per hour, €6.50 per day and €32.50 per week. You can stay for up to eleven days and pay by coin or card at the machine or with the Parkster app. DB also offers monthly rates for commuters; current prices are on bahnhof.de.

Opposite the station is the “Tor zur Stadt” car park with 600 spaces. It is open around the clock, and the pay machine shows the current rates.

Pay-by-phone, PARKCARD and long-term parking: how to pay in Eisenach

In Eisenach, you buy parking tickets at the machine, contactless by card or via an app. The machines currently accept contactless payments of up to €25, so the app is the easier way to buy monthly tickets.

• Pay-by-phone: The city works with several providers through the smartparking platform, including EasyPark, PayByPhone, Parkster and SWARCO. The app lets you stop or extend your parking time. Providers add their own service charges; the city’s minimum fee via phone is 30 cents. All providers on the city website (in German)
• Weekly and monthly tickets: In zone 2, for example on Bahnhofstraße, Domstraße and Schiffplatz, a weekly ticket costs €12 and a monthly ticket €36. In zone 3, it is €18 and €48.
• PARKCARD: This prepaid card works in both municipal car parks. It costs €30 when you first buy it, of which €20 is credit and €10 a deposit. You get 10 percent off every top-up. It is available at the citizens’ office at Markt 22 and from the Eisenacher Versorgungs-Betriebe on Johannisstraße.
• Long-term space in a car park: A reserved space costs €65 a month around the clock or €48 for Monday to Friday. Contact the city’s lighting and parking team on +49 3691 670-873.
• Lost ticket: If you lose your car park ticket, you pay €15 on top of the parking fee.

Where can I charge my electric car in Eisenach?

Most public charging points in Eisenach are run by the local utility Eisenacher Versorgungs-Betriebe (evb), now at around 23 locations across the city. In the centre, you can charge at the City car park with 16 charging points; rapid chargers are at Heinrich-Ehrhardt-Platz, on Adam-Opel-Straße and in Hötzelsroda.

With an evb electricity contract, charging at evb stations costs €0.34 per kWh at AC chargers and €0.49 per kWh at DC rapid chargers, with no basic or one-off fee. Without an evb contract, the price of your own charging tariff applies. Note that running a charging cable across the pavement from your home to your car is not permitted in Eisenach.

Where can motorhomes park in Eisenach?

The city of Eisenach offers three motorhome parking areas: on Karl-Marx-Straße opposite the Netto supermarket, at Heinrich-Ehrhardt-Platz and in car park 2 in the Mariental valley. At all three, up to 12 hours cost €10 and up to 24 hours €14. Two of the three are only available at certain times of the year.

The hiking car park in Hörschel opened in April 2026. Besides motorhome pitches, it has accessible toilets and a landing stage for boats on the Hörsel river.

Where do coaches park in Eisenach?

Coaches park in Eisenach on part of the Frauenplan and on Uferstraße opposite the City car park. Fees are €12 for up to two hours, €18 for up to four hours and €30 for up to 24 hours. At the Wartburg car park, a coach day ticket costs €25.

Frequently asked questions about parking in Eisenach

As of October 2026. Sources (in German): parking fee regulations of the City of Eisenach, fee regulations for the municipal car parks, parking in Eisenach (City of Eisenach), Wartburg car park rates (Wartburg Foundation), parking at the main station (DB).