I visited the European city where ‘fairytales began’ with beautiful mountain parks and cheap Ryanair flights

WE all know our Disney fairytales and their happily ever afters, right?

Well, the original versions of favourites such as Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Little Red Riding Hood and Rumpelstiltskin were a lot darker, as I found out on my visit to Hanau, Germany , the birthplace of the Brothers Grimm .

The city marks the start of the German Fairytale Route , stretching 372 miles through the country to the maritime city of Bremen.

Along the way you can explore quaint towns, medieval castles and ancient forests — and imagine you, too, are in the middle of a fairytale.

The main focus for my adventure was the life of the Grimm Brothers, credited with devising the opening line “Once upon a time” and the concluding “lived happily ever after”.

In Hanau, I learned that in their early years, Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm scoured the surrounding countryside for authentic folk tales that had been handed down over generations.

Then, in 1812, they decided to publish a compilation of all they had heard on their travels, including Cinderella and Rapunzel .

But the violence in some of the stories meant that the book was not particularly well received, so the brothers had to rely on their creative skills to tone down the explicit elements.

And with that, the modern day fairytale was born.

But it’s not this collection of stories I’m here to uncover on my four-day trip, it’s the story behind the Brothers Grimm themselves.

Strolling through the main square of Hanau, I could not miss the huge statue of the pair which commemorates the fact they were born here.

This city is understandably proud and has erected a trail of artworks depicting various characters from their stories, including King Thrushbeard, Snow White and Little Red Riding Hood .

About 30 minutes from here by car sits my favourite stop on the trail, Steinau an der Strasse.

With higgledy-piggledy houses surrounded by lush trees, I immediately fell in love with the beautiful little village, which is as chocolate box as something from a fairytale.

And it turns out the brothers loved it, too.

This is the place where they are said to have spent the happiest part of their childhood.

And you can get a sense for that in their former home.

Now open to the public, the house-turned-museum hosts interesting exhibits about their work, as well as the works of their younger brother, Ludwig Emil, a talented artist who created the illustrations in the brothers’ book.

Cascading water

Their grandfather had been the priest in the local church in the marketplace for 47 years and their father was born here.

After a brief stint in Hanau, he returned to the village in the early years of his marriage to become a magistrate.

While here, check out Die Holzkoeppe, a theatre that puts on regular puppet shows.

And for a flavour of traditional Germany, head to Cafe Restaurant Rosengarten, which serves classic schnitzels in various forms, including a Little Red Riding Hood version that comes topped with tomatoes and mozzarella.

The following day, my journey continued a little over an hour north to the hilly and historic market town of Marburg, where the Brothers studied.

It is a charming destination full of beautiful half-timbered houses.

The brothers have certainly left their mark on the town, with visitors now able to follow the “Grimms Path”, which takes you on a mile-long fairytale-themed walk through the old town.

The final stop on my fairytale adventure took me even further north to Kassel, where the Brothers eventually became librarians so that they could support their family while they searched for fairytales.

Today, the city is home to the largest museum dedicated entirely to the Grimms.

Called Grimmwelt, it has a trail of original exhibits as well as state-of-the-art installations and hands-on activities.

The city is also a great place for ramblers as it is home to a Unesco World Heritage park and Europe’s largest mountain park, filled with cascading water features.

With gorgeous green and woodland landscapes like this around, I can see how the brothers found the inspiration to adapt their fairytale stories.

And, certainly, no Disney princess would look out of place here.