In front of the palace is Bonifatiusplatz, a square with a large statue of St Boniface. Several Baroque palaces were built here for high court officials. All were designed by Andreas Gallasini, ensuring an ensemble of high quality and conformity contributing to Fulda’s magnificent Baroque appearance. One of these palaces now houses the Hotel Kurfürst and another the Tourist Office and a pleasant café.

Although most of the palace is currently being used as town council offices, the historic rooms can be seen when not in use for formal functions. On display are the lavishly decorated receptions rooms with stuccoes and painted ceilings, as well as some of the private apartments of the abbots and counts. The decorations are typical Baroque with no surface left uncovered, rounded corners, lots of red and gold, and light, bright colors used for the ceiling paintings.

The historic rooms are not all in the same part of the palace. You have to keep your wits about to follow the directions down the halls and up and down flights of stairs. A wrong turn and you end up at social services or the vehicle licensing department. The only time that admission tickets, which usefully double as postcards (my mom has something to look forward to), must be shown is to enter the porcelain collection. This collection is housed in an elaborately decorated set of rooms that mostly served as private apartments for the rulers. Included in this collection are rare pieces of Fulda porcelain, produced only between 1764 and 1789.

The Green Room and Marble Room -- decorative themes revealed in the names -- have fine views of the monastery on Frauenberg, as well as the cathedral and the Orangery. During summer the not particularly high castle tower can be ascended for even better views.

Opening hours are Saturday to Thursday from 10am to 6pm and Friday from 2 to 6pm. Admission is € 2.10.

We began our visit in a green room

that had a great view all the way to the Orangerie at our hotel. From here, we visited the tapestry room and then the Princes Hall, which is a large room filled with chairs, like a concert hall. The Venetian glass candles are of particular interest.

We almost gave up at this point. The chapel door was locked. We were totally at a loss, since what signs existed were in German and not of the type that we could translate. After traveling up and down halls of offices and meeting with nothing but closed doors, we were willing to admit defeat...almost. Joe stopped a woman in the hall, and luckily for us, she understood English. She ran downstairs to reception, and after a quick conversation with the woman there, she rejoined us. She then showed us where the living quarters were and how to get in.

To visit these rooms, you need to go through a door that is marked but is kept closed.

Don’t be intimidated -- just go on through, as there is a docent on the other side who will check your ticket and send you on your way. You will go through a suite of rooms that have a fine collection of Fulda porcelain. It was produced for 25 years in the 18th century and ranges from figurines to dining service. This is the finest collection in existence of this rare porcelain.

The piece de resistance is the Cabinet of Mirrors. .

It is just that, an intimate room with walls covered in mirrors and windows. There was elaborate Baroque decoration on every available surface. To me, it looks gaudy and gold, but Joe was delighted. You can visit the residence in about 45 minutes.