Asamkirche, Munich - St. Johann Nepomuk, better known as the Asam Church (Asamkirche) is a church in Munich, southern Germany, built from 1733 to 1746 by the brothers Egid Quirin Asam and Cosmas Damian Asam as their private church. Due to resistance of the citizens, the brothers were forced to make the church accessible to the public. The […]
Bacharach, a Small Medieval Town on the Rhein - Bacharach is a town in the Mainz-Bingen district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The original name Baccaracus points to Celtic beginnings. Above the town looms Stahleck Castle (Burg Stahleck), nowadays a youth hostel. Bacharach is about an hour and a half from Frankfurt, or about 15 minutes away from Bingen. This stretch of the Rhine is dotted […]
Bamberg – the “Franconian Rome” - Bamberg is a town in Upper Franconia, Germany, on the river Regnitz close to its confluence with the river Main. A large part of the town has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993. Bamberg rests on seven hills, each crowned by a beautiful church. This has led to Bamberg being called the “Franconian […]
Bastei - Rising up from the Elbe River Valley, Saxon Switzerland contains some of Germany’s most spectacular scenery – a maze of sandstone pillars, pristine forest, and intimidating fortresses. One of these was the Felsenburg Neurathen – built in the 11th century, it dominated the landscape for 300 years until burned by a besieging army in 1484. […]
Bonn, the City of Beethoven on the Rhine - The Federal City of Bonn is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. Because of a political compromise following German reunification, the German state maintains a substantial presence in Bonn, and the city is considered a second, unofficial, capital of the […]
Erfurt – Medieval City in the heart of Germany - Erfurt, with its half-timbered, multi-steepled medieval cityscape and shallow river gurgling through the middle, is an inviting destination. Erfurt is the capital and largest city in the state of Thuringia, central Germany. Together with neighboring cities Weimar and Jena it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 inhabitants. Erfurt’s old town is […]
Freiburg, the Jewel of the Black Forest - Freiburg im Breisgau, or more commonly, “Freiburg”, is known as the “Jewel of the Black Forest.” By German standards it is a major city in southwest Germany, situated on the edge of the Black Forest. Lying in a secluded wine-rich corner of the German state of Baden-Württemberg, Freiburg is a laid-back, beautiful university city. Known […]
Freudenberg - Freudenberg is a small town in the Siegen-Wittgenstein district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The town lies on the German-Dutch holiday road called the Orange Route, joining towns, cities and regions associated with the House of Orange. All these half-timbered houses add a medieval charm, thus making this city look like a fairytale land. If you […]
German Green Belt - When Germany was divided during the cold war, nature took control of the deserted border area. Today it forms a reserve as fascinating as the country’s history. The German Green Belt (Grünes Band Deutschland) is a project of Bund Naturschutz, one of Germany’s largest environmental groups. The project began in 1989 facing a forbidding, 870-mile […]
Mainz, the Great Wine Capital of Germany - Mainz is a German city on the Rhine River. It’s known for its old town, with half-timbered houses and medieval market squares. In the center, the Marktbrunnen is a Renaissance fountain with red columns. Nearby, a distinctive octagonal tower tops the Romanesque Mainz Cathedral, built of deep red sandstone. The Gutenberg Museum honors the inventor […]
Mittenwald – Idyllic Village of a Thousand Violins - Located along the Austrian border, Mittenwald is the home to charming cobbled streets, mountain landscapes and the art of crafting classical instruments. Goethe called this village, popular since the Middle Ages, “a picture book come alive”. Mittenwald is a small Bavarian village located close to Garmisch-Partenkirchen. It is situated in the Valley of the River […]
Oberammergau and its Passion Play - Although it is most widely known for its once-every-decade Passion Play that is staged in town, there are plenty of other reasons that make a visit to Oberammergau worthwhile. Outdoor pursuits like hiking and skiing are just two of the things to do in Oberammergau, a pretty Bavarian town which is also home to plenty […]
Quedlinburg – Birthplace of the German Nation - Quedlinburg, a small town of about 24,000 inhabitants, located near the Harz Mountains in western Saxony-Anhalt, virtually the heart of Germany, is a prime tourist attraction, particularly for non-Germans. A rare combination of ancient, medieval and modern historical and artistic treasures are making it a “must” for visitors, much as Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Trier, […]
Regensburg – Best-Preserved Medieval Town in Germany - Regensburg, a Bavarian city on the Danube River in southeast Germany, is known for its well-preserved medieval core. The 12th-century Stone Bridge, a 310m-long icon with 16 arches, crosses the river to the old town. The 13th-century Regensburg Cathedral, a twin-spired Gothic landmark, is home to the Regensburger Domspatzen choir. Walhalla, a Parthenon replica just […]
Romantic Road - The Romantic Road (Romantische Straße) is a “theme route” devised by promotion-minded travel agents in the 1950s. It describes the 350 km (220 mi) of surface roads between Würzburg and Füssen in Southern Germany, specifically in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, linking a number of picturesque towns and castles. In medieval times, it was a trade route […]
Rothenburg ob der Tauber, the Jewel in Germany’s Seriously Bedazzled Crown - Rothenburg ob der Tauber is a beautiful medieval town on the Romantic Road in Bavaria, Germany, about halfway between Frankfurt and Munich. It is known for its medieval center (Altstadt), seemingly untouched by the passage of time, encircled by the undamaged 14th century town wall. In the Middle Ages, Rothenburg was a free imperial city, […]
Things to Do in Munich - Munich is the third largest city in Germany and the largest in Germany’s Bavarian region, an area in southern Germany predominately known for scenic beauty, frescoed buildings, and lots of beer. But Munich is much more than just its annual Oktoberfest and the majestic Bavarian mountains and plains surrounding it. Even if you don’t have […]
Things to Do in Ulm - Ulm is a town at the edge to Bavaria in Baden-Württemberg, south west Germany. It is home to the highest church steeple in the world (161.53 m), even higher than the Cathedral (Dom in German) of Cologne. With a population of 118,000 inhabitants Ulm forms an urban district and administrative center of the region. Ulm, […]