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Getting Here & Around

The Black Forest Features

Getting Here & Around

Information on the entire Black Forest can be obtained from Schwarzwald Tourismus GmbH.

By Air

The closest major international airports in Germany are Stuttgart and Frankfurt. Strasbourg, in neighboring French Alsace, and the Swiss border city of Basel, the latter just 70 km (43 mi) from Freiburg, are also reasonably close. An up-and-coming airport is the Baden-Airpark, near Baden-Baden. It is used by European budget carriers including Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) and Air Berlin (www.airberlin.com), serving short-haul international destinations such as London, Dublin, and Barcelona. Note that on Ryanair's Web site Baden-Airpark has been rebranded as "Karlsruhe-Baden."

By Bus

The bus system works closely together with the German Railways to reach every corner of the Black Forest. Bus stations are usually at or near the train station. For more information, contact the Regionalbusverkehr Südwest (Regional Bus Lines) in Karlsruhe.

By Car

The main autobahns are the A-5 (Frankfurt-Karlsruhe-Basel), which runs through the Rhine Valley along the western length of the Black Forest; A-81 (Stuttgart-Bodensee) in the east; and A-8 (Karlsruhe-Stuttgart), in the north. Good two-lane highways crisscross the entire region. B-3 runs parallel to A-5 and follows the Baden Wine Road. Traffic jams on weekends and holidays are not uncommon. Taking the side roads might not save time, but they are a lot more interesting. The Schwarzwald-Hochstrasse is one of the area's most scenic (but also most trafficked) routes, running from Freudenstadt to Baden-Baden. The region's tourist office has mapped out thematic driving routes: the Valley Road, the Spa Road, the Baden Wine Road, the Asparagus Road, and the Clock Road. Most points along these routes can also be reached by train or bus.

Freiburg, the region's major city, is 275 km (170 mi) south of Frankfurt and 410 km (254 mi) west of Munich.

By Train

Karlsruhe, Baden-Baden, and Freiburg are served by fast ICE trains zipping between Frankfurt-am-Main and Basel in Switzerland. Regional express trains also link these hubs with many other places locally, including Freudenstadt, Titisee, and, in particular, the spectacular climb from Baden-Baden to Triberg, one of the highest railways in Germany.

Local lines connect most of the smaller towns. Two east-west routes—the Schwarzwaldbahn (Black Forest Railway) and the Höllental Railway—are among the most spectacular in the country. Details are available from Deutsche Bahn.

Essentials

Airport Information

Aeroport International de Strasbourg (00333/8864-6767. www.strasbourg.aeroport.fr). Baden-Airpark (07229/662-000. www.badenairpark.de). EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg (00333/8990-3111. www.euroairport.com). Flughafen Frankfurt Main (01805/372-4636. www.airportcity-frankfurt.de). Flughafen Stuttgart (01805/948-444. www.flughafen-stuttgart.com).