Travelling with a cat is always a small operation. A family with a dog packs the harness, the lead and a favourite toy, and off they go. With cats, that's not enough. The apartment needs to be quiet, because noise can throw a cat off balance for days. It needs safe rooms, since the biggest risk is an open window or an unsecured balcony railing. It needs a vet nearby, in case the excitement of the journey upsets a sensitive stomach. And it needs a host who understands all of this and doesn't get nervous over every little thing.
In Maidbronn, all of that comes together. The village is small and quiet, and our apartment sits back from the main road, so the bedrooms and balcony look out onto green fields. When you arrive, a small cat corner with a blanket is already set up, so your travelling companion finds a familiar place to retreat to straight away. We fit the balcony's cat net in advance on request; just mention it in your enquiry. Emergency vet numbers are printed and ready, and the vet itself is only a 5-minute walk further into the village.
We've been letting our Heimatgefühl holiday apartment since 2018, and over that time we've hosted plenty of cats: indoor cats travelling for the first time, older diabetic cats on an insulin routine, anxious cats after a house move. We've gradually made the apartment more cat-friendly: hard flooring throughout (mud or claw marks are no drama), no fragile vases within reach, quiet bedrooms. You can see every room in the gallery; if you're travelling with a dog instead, take a look at Dog-Friendly Apartment.
Cats are creatures of habit and place, and they treat any new room as a potential risk at first. A holiday with a cat only goes smoothly, without days of stress, if the apartment already has a few things in place that make settling in easier. We've learnt this from years of hosting cat guests: here are the five points that almost every cat owner notices gratefully on arrival.
Arriving with a cat is tiring enough on its own; fixed handover times don't help. With our key safe, you can arrive at any time of day or night. Cat out of the carrier, a calm look around the new place, no strangers in the room.
Our inner balcony has a privacy screen, so there's fresh air without the stress. If you want to be sure your cat can't jump off, we'll fit a good-quality cat net. Just mention it in your enquiry.
If your cat gets nervous and has an accident, it's no drama. We have hard flooring throughout, which wipes clean quickly. Claw marks or the odd stray hair aren't a problem either.
No main road, no town noise. Maidbronn is quiet at night too, which matters for a cat that's still settling in. Fields start right at the house, and the Pleichach stream is a 2-minute walk away.
Hopefully you won't need him. But if you do: Dr. med. vet. Thomas Schober in Maidbronn is only a 5-minute walk away. Out-of-hours numbers are printed and ready in the apartment.
Let us know your preferred week, and whether you'd like a cat net fitted. We'll check availability and get back to you within 24 hours.
Send a no-obligation enquiryThe Heimatgefühl holiday apartment has two separate bedrooms, each with a 1.8 m wide bed. The living room also has a sofa bed, and a travel cot is available on request. That makes the apartment just as suited to a couple's break as to a family with children: flexible for 1 to 6 guests.
Both bedrooms are quietly situated and set up so your cat finds her own places to retreat to too, on windowsills, beside the bed or in a quiet corner. There's plenty of room for a cat bed, even without having to move any furniture.
Our balcony faces inward, so there's no road right outside and no bustle, just a privacy screen and a view of the greenery. For people, it's the favourite spot for morning coffee or an evening glass of wine. For cats, it's an interesting view with fresh air, without you having to keep watch the whole time.
On request, we'll fit a good-quality cat net so your cat can share the balcony without you having to worry. Just mention it in your enquiry, and it will be in place by the time you arrive. We can net the windows too, if you'd like.
„Schöne Ferienwohnung, komplett ausgestattet. Katzensichere Fensternetze. Tolle Gegend zum Urlaub machen. Sehr flexibler Vermieter."
Translated from German"Lovely holiday apartment, fully equipped. Cat-safe window nets. Great area for a holiday. Very flexible host."
Honest answer: we don't have a traditional outdoor enclosure in the garden. Here, the fully netted balcony takes on that role, and for many cats it's actually the more relaxing option: fresh air, birdwatching and sunny spots, but without unfamiliar smells, other cats or ground-level escape routes. Indoor cats usually already know the idea of a secure balcony from home, so they tend to settle into ours faster than into an unfamiliar outdoor pen.
Maidbronn is a quiet, village setting. On foot, you can reach a well-stocked Netto supermarket, a pizzeria, a children's playground and a gym. Würzburg is 10 to 15 minutes away by car, so you can visit the city and leave your cat in the quiet apartment.
Dr. med. vet. Thomas Schober
Adam-Bausenwein-Straße 11, 97222 Rimpar
Phone: +49 9365 9875
Phone, Würzburg: 0931 69017
Central number for Lower Franconia: 01805 00 9682
Friday 6 pm to Monday 6 am.
Please always call ahead rather than just turning up, as the emergency service works by appointment. A printed card with all the numbers is in the apartment.
Maidbronn is in Lower Franconia, in the north of Bavaria, right on the A7 and close to the A3. What's merely convenient for people matters a great deal for cats: the shorter the car journey, the calmer the start to the holiday. From Hesse, Baden-Württemberg, Thuringia and large parts of North Rhine-Westphalia and Bavaria, you're here in two to three hours, nothing like six hours of traffic towards the Baltic coast. If you want to holiday in Germany with your cat, the Würzburg area offers a quiet, village setting rather than the bustle of a holiday park.
The most honest answer we can give after years of hosting cat guests: it depends on your cat, not on the destination. Some cats are lounging on an unfamiliar windowsill after two days as if they'd never lived anywhere else, while for others, any journey means stress. A few pointers from experience:
Important to know: leaving your cat completely alone is never an option. One or two days with daily visits from a neighbour or sitter can work, but leaving a cat alone for a week or two with just an automatic feeder is not acceptable. If nobody can reliably check on her, bringing her along is almost always the better choice.
The 3-3-3 rule comes from cat rehoming: a cat needs 3 days to arrive in a new environment (hiding is normal), 3 weeks to find a routine, and 3 months to feel truly at home. In practical terms for a holiday, that means: keep the first two or three days low-key, no sightseeing schedule, let your cat set the pace. A familiar blanket on the sofa, the litter tray in a sheltered spot, her retreat respected. That's exactly what our apartment is set up for: the cat corner is ready on arrival, the bedrooms offer quiet corners, and there's no city noise outside.
Strap the carrier onto the back seat with a seatbelt (not in the boot), stop feeding two to three hours before departure, never open the carrier outside the car during stops, and in high summer, travel early in the morning. And before you leave, print out or save on your phone, just in case: our address, Steigstraße 11, 97222 Rimpar-Maidbronn, with the local vet just 5 minutes away.
Better specific than flowery. So you know exactly what to expect before you even start packing:
45 m² in the main apartment (up to 60 m² with the additional room), for 1 to 6 guests. Two separate bedrooms, each with a 1.8 m bed, a living room with a sofa bed, and a travel cot on request. Kitchen with dishwasher, microwave, oven and ceramic hob. Bathroom with a rain shower. You'll find every picture in the gallery.
€20 per night per cat, a small additional cleaning fee. No hidden costs. More than one cat? Just let us know in advance; it's usually no problem.
We've been letting our Heimatgefühl holiday apartment since 2018. At first mainly to friends and acquaintances, and today to guests from all over Germany, many of them with a cat.
Over the years, we've made the apartment more cat-friendly step by step: from the cat net to the hard flooring to the quiet retreats in both bedrooms. Everything on this page comes from real stays.
If there's something you'd like to know that isn't covered here, give us a call: +49 170 2435507, or write to us through our enquiry form. We usually reply within 24 hours.
€20 per night per cat, a small additional cleaning fee. No hidden costs. If you're bringing more than one cat, just let us know in advance.
On request, we fit a good-quality cat net to the inner balcony. Just mention it in your enquiry, and it will be in place by the time you arrive. If you're not sure yet whether you'll need the net, it's safer to book with one; it puts both you and your cat at ease.
All of them. The apartment is cat-friendly throughout: hard flooring everywhere, windows that can be netted, two separate bedrooms with quiet corners to retreat to. If your cat likes to climb, do bear in mind any free-standing vases or fragile décor; we're happy to put those away before you arrive, just ask.
The sofa, yes, ideally with your cat's own blanket on top (the familiar smell helps with settling in). The bed is better avoided directly on the duvet, as the mattress protectors are delicate. If you'd rather not risk it, bring a cat bed along and everyone's more relaxed.
Yes, if your cat and dog get on. Just let us know in advance, and we'll set up the apartment to suit (for example, preparing separate retreats).
Indoor cats that are bonded to their people usually travel well; their territory is you, not the garden. Outdoor cats with a fixed territory, and very anxious cats, are often happier at home with a cat sitter. Leaving a cat completely alone for more than a day or two is never an option. More on this in our section on bringing her along or leaving her at home.
A rule of thumb for settling in: 3 days to arrive (hiding is normal), 3 weeks to find a routine, 3 months to feel truly at home. For a holiday, that means keeping the first two or three days low-key and giving your cat a familiar place to retreat to; at ours, the cat corner is ready for exactly that from the moment you arrive.
Cats are less weather-dependent than dogs, so any time of year works. Spring and autumn are ideal for the journey itself (not too hot in the car). In winter, the apartment is cosy and warm, which suits older cats well.
Your cat can stay in the apartment. Just let us know beforehand, so our cleaner doesn't turn up unannounced. If you're staying for a longer hospital visit, our page on the apartment near the University Hospital may also be useful.
