Bückeburg is a town to be seen from the inside of its palace, and the palace does not disappoint. Schloss Bückeburg, a Renaissance and Baroque complex surrounded by a moat, has been the seat of the princes of Schaumburg-Lippe for four hundred years, and the family still lives in part of it. A series of interiors are open to visitors, among them the Golden Hall, a magnificent room with an ornate, gilded ceiling. The gate and gardens are free to walk through, and the park around it is pleasant.
The town and palace had a surprising cultural life. Johann Gottfried Herder, the philosopher, served as court preacher here in the 1770s, and Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach, a son of Johann Sebastian, spent most of his career as a court musician in Bückeburg. His music is occasionally played in the palace, and a small museum recalls the family. Another sight is the princely mausoleum, a neo-Romanesque building in the park with a vast golden mosaic dome that gleams as you step inside, one of the most striking interiors in Lower Saxony.
For the rider, Bückeburg is a short stop and a gentle one. The palace sits right in the town, so park nearby and walk, and the surrounding streets are pleasant and quiet. There are cafes on the market square, including a good one for cake, and fuel is available on the edge of town. The ride from here goes through the Weser Hills or towards Minden, over small roads with a few bends and not much traffic.
On a fine afternoon, sit by the moat and look at the reflection of the palace in the water. In early summer the garden is full of roses, and the trees are in full leaf. The area around Bückeburg is rich in small museums and manor houses, and a visit to any of them offers a glimpse of the old, small German states, with their courts, orchestras and eccentric rulers, before unification swept them away. It is a quiet history, and it fits well with a quiet town.