Colditz Castle is the reason to come. The complex began as a medieval fortress and was rebuilt as a Renaissance residence, but its strongest pull is the Second World War story: Oflag IV-C, the high-security camp for Allied officers who had already tried to escape elsewhere.
The museum and guided routes focus on tunnels, forged documents, improvised tools, hidden rooms, and the famous Colditz Cock glider built secretly in an attic. The building is dramatic in its own right, standing above the Zwickauer Mulde, but the human ingenuity inside the walls is what stays with you.