Hi! I'm looking to travel to Germany within the next year or two to visit the towns that my ancestors were from. The towns include Stuttgart, Regensburg & I believe Schwandorf....I have seen the tourist type places listed online but want to see off the beaten path as well without stumbling somewhere I shouldn't....I'm looking to go in late Aug or early Sept time....any suggestions?

We need more details! Do you plan to travel by car or train? How much time will you have? Budget considerations? Use the three cities you mention as centers for day trips or simply pass throughs?

Regensburg is great. How about Bamberg?

There's a current trip report about off the beaten path places near Bamberg.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-nights.cfm?25

Have you actually been to the "tourist type places listed on line?" What are you trying to avoid. Sometimes those tourist places will tell you a lot about where your ancestors came from. They've been around for a while.

What type of "off the beaten path" stuff do you hope to find?

I think if you have a choice between August and September you may be on the edge of High Season/Shoulder Season. Putting your trip in September may save money on airfare and possibly hotel fees.

I'll be there for 2 weeks so want to see the few towns listed for a few days each & experience all I can from what they have to offer. I will probably be traveling by train as I have never been to Germany & don't want to get lost. The off the beaten path is places in & around these towns that I can experience something most "tourists" do not without going somewhere I shouldn't. thanks for the replies & I hope my answers help!