The former Hanseatic town of Herford is situated in the chain of hills south of the Wiehen Hills (Ravensberg Hills). The highest place is the Dornberg (240 m) in the Schwarzenmoor district; the lowest point (56 m) is located in the Werretal in the Falkendiek district. The River Aa joins the river Werre in the centre of the town. The Stuckenberg is located east of the town.
Sports
The Herforder EV (Ice Dragons) ice hockey club plays in the Regionaliga, and have enjoyed regular success. They draw an average of 800 fans.
The Herford Minster (Münsterkirche) is a late Romanesquehall church, built about 1220-1250 for the Fürstabtei Herford (Herford monastery). It is one of the earliest hall churches in Germany
St. James' (Jakobikirche/Radewiger Kirche) is a late Gothic hall church (1330)
St. John's (St. Johannis/Neustädter Kirche) is a late Gothic hall church (1340)
St. Mary's (St. Marien auf dem Berge) is also a late Gothic hall church. It was completed about 1325/50 and part of a monastery
Town hall, built 1913-16 by Paul Kanold in Neo-Baroque forms
Neustädter Rathaus (former town hall), built 1600, aesthetic pediment 1930 removed, 1988/89 reconstructed
Remensnider-Haus, Brüderstraße 26, a late Gothic half-timbered building from 1521
Kantorhaus, Elisabethstraße 2, a half-timbered building, about 1484/1494
Holland 21, half-timbered building, 1554
Holland 39, half-timbered building, 1559
Bürgermeisterhaus, Höckerstraße 4, a late Gothic stone building from 1538 with a stepped gable similar to houses in Münster and Bielefeld
Frühherrenstraße 11, a Renaissance building, 1591
Wulfert-Haus, Neuer Markt 2 with a brick-built Renaissance gable, 1560
Museums
The MARTa Herford, a museum for contemporary art and design, housed in a building designed by Frank Gehry, has been open to the public since May 2005. Its exhibits change regularly. The current artistic director is Roland Nachtigäller.
The Daniel-Pöppelmann-Haus in Herford explores the history of the city, and the Memorial and Meeting Place Cell Block, in the basement of the city hall, documents the persecution and the obliteration of minorities. Plans to construct a museum of city history next to the city hall and the Minster church have been postponed.
Music and theatre
Herford is the seat of the Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie (Northwest German Philharmonic) which performs regularly in the Stadtpark Schützenhof as well as many neighbouring cities in North Rhine-Westphalia. Eugene Tzigane is the principal conductor designate (2010–present). The current director is Andreas Kuntze.
The Stadttheater (Municipal theatre) provides seats for 706 viewers and it is served by visiting theatre companies.
Events at regular intervals
Easter Fairaround Easter (Oster-Kirmes)
Jazz FestivalMay - Performances of different jazz artists in a couple of bars
Organ Summer
Visions FairJune
Summer StageSummer (Sommerbühne) - Concerts at the square between city hall and market hall
HoekerfestAugust - Municipal festival with plenty of events in the city centre
City FairOctober - In the city centre
Herbstzeitlos (Autumnally timeless) Autumn - Exhibition at the former depot site
Wine FestivalAutumn - At Gänsemarkt
Christmas LightsDecember - Municipal Christmas fair (Weihnachtsmarkt)
^Wahlergebnisse in NRW Kommunalwahlen 2020, Land Nordrhein-Westfalen, accessed 21 June 2021.
^ "Bevölkerung der Gemeinden Nordrhein-Westfalens am 31. Dezember 2023 – Fortschreibung des Bevölkerungsstandes auf Basis des Zensus vom 9. Mai 2011" (in German). Landesbetrieb Information und Technik NRW. Retrieved 2024-06-20.
^"Soldiers start Germany farewell". Belfasttelegraph. PA. 18 July 2014. Retrieved 10 October 2015.
^"Internationale Kontakte: Städtepartnerschaften". herford.de (in German). Herford. Retrieved 2021-02-14.
^"Internationale Kontakte: Städtefreundschaften". herford.de (in German). Herford. Retrieved 2021-02-14.