All you well traveled fodorites out there. I am looking for any and all input possible on Germanys crystal road. I am working on my December itinerary and would appreciate any input.

Thanks in advance for your time and input.

Sorry, in Germany a "Kristallstraße" does not exist.

You may mean the "Deutsche Edelsteinstraße" (German gemstone road).

This is 70km long road around Idar-Oberstein, which is a centre of gemstone mining & grinding.

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deutsch...einstra%C3%9Fe

I've stayed in a small hotel up above I-O, full of rocks. You may need a rock-hound web site as this area is a bit specialist

I think the OP is looking for information on the Porzellanstraße which runs from from Neustadt an der Waldnaab to Passau where there is a large glass museum. It is marked as a scenic route in my ADAC Atlas and on various tourist sites but I have never taken it.

Regensburg is not far from Passau and is a beautiful city to visit. Other people have recommended the Christmas market there as a good one

I think the OP is looking for information on the Porzellanstraße which runs from from Neustadt an der Waldnaab to Passau where there is a large glass museum. It is marked as a scenic route in my ADAC Atlas and on various tourist sites but I have never taken it.

Regensburg is not far from Passau and is a beautiful city to visit. Other people have recommended the Christmas market there as a good one

This is a surely a marketing ploy but perhaps a good one. I notice that the towns on the Crystal Road:

http://www.cometogermany.com/ENU/abo...rasse-id21.htm

are different than those listed for the Porzellanstraße on Wikipedia:

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porzellanstra%C3%9Fe

In either case I find it rewarding to take a vacation based on a specific subject area, comparing different aspects of the same theme. I suspect that it will lead you to visit some very nice places that few American tourists have.

You may not get a lot of help on a travel board but do your own research and come back with a great trip report.

Regards, Gary

I see.

It is a new marketing initiative financed by the European Union. It shall help to attract tourists to a structurally weak border region.

The road is called "Glasstraße" (= glass road).

www.dieglasstrasse.de

I know the area but I would not include it into a list of first-rank tourist destinations in Germany (unless you are working in the glass manufacturing business).

Seems to be somewhat inflationary with all these thematic roads.

There has been a "Glasstrasse" for awhile. We did parts of it in 1991.
I posted this reply a year ago.
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=35068308
It had a website at http://www.btl.de/glasstrasse/, but it's no longer up.
This one has info:
http://www.germany-tourism.de/ENG/de...rasse-id21.htm
A list of roads is here:
http://www.germany-tourism.de/ENG/de...tlfstrasse.htm

Thanks to all the nice fodorites who
gave of their time to answer.

There is a a very nice article on the GERMAN LIFE magazine Aug./Sept.
issue. I have tried requesting info
from diferent German tourist sites
but they do not respond. I was just
wondering if this was worth the time
and cost. Thanks for all the input.

Time and effort: It really depends on a few factors. Are you going to be in the area anyway and how much do you love crystal? We love the area and normally do our shopping here:
http://www.joska.com/en/html/crystal_expierience.htm
There is an old silver mine close by that you can go into. We've done it and its worth the visit.
http://www.silberberg.de/
The Bavarian Forest is nearby and we've driven there and into the Czech Republic. That was a year or so after the fall of the Berlin Wall.
http://www.germanplaces.com/germany/...onal-park.html
And there is Passau.http://www.flickr.com/photos/21861018@N00/tags/passau/
It has 17th century pastel houses along the waterfront. Beautiful.
http://www.igougo.com/journal-j66476...UGE_organ.html
Sorry for the long urls. I hope I've helped in some way and not made it harder to decide.