Top Reasons to Go

Top Reasons to Go

Würzburg's Baroque Masterpiece: When the prince-bishops decided after 450 years to descend from their lofty hilltop fortress into the city proper, they employed the best artists of their time, including Neumann and Tiepolo, to create the lavishly ostentatious Residenz palace.

An Overnight in a Medieval Town: Dodge the daytrippers by spending the night in Rothenburg-ob-der-Tauber. Patrol the city walls with the night watchman, explore the streets in the morning light (perfect for photos), then get out of town before the tour buses begin to arrive.

768 Steps: That's what it takes to reach the top platform of the highest church steeple in the world, but the incredible view from Ulm's Münster is worth the effort. On a clear day you can see the Austrian, German, and Swiss Alps in the distance, seventy miles away.

A Rococo Jewel: The opposite of Ulm's soaring Gothic cathedral is the Wieskirche, its name meaning "church in the meadow." You get the most stunning views in the late afternoon, when the western sun shines through the high windows, flooding the church with light and highlighting the details.

Neuschwanstein: Walt Disney may have spread the word about this castle, but the sight of the original, rising up against its theatrical backdrop of green mountainside, speaks for itself.