anewland

I am still in the process of planning a trip for 12 days starting August 6th, 2007. Need advice on beautiful locations in the Black Forest Would love to see Black Forest but I find only a small amount of information.

JEFF_

Freiburg, at the western edge of the Black Forest, is well worth a visit. It has a very attractive old town with an amazing gothic cathedral that towers over the main square. I liked the city a lot. It was the highlight of the Black Forest. Although I liked Baden-Baden, too.

However, I found the forest itself a disappointment and a bit dull. There are more beautiful areas in Germany.

Betsy

Here's another vote for Feiburg. We try to visit this city every time we're in Germany just to absorb the wonderful atmosphere of the daily market around the cathedral. Mountain streams flow everywhere through the city in "bachle."

http://tinyurl.com/2qlsqj

We last stayed in the Alleehaus Hotel, in a residential area a short walk from the city center. Huge rooms with high ceilings plus a great breakfast

Wish I were there right now!

bavariaben

I plan to spend two weeks in the Black Forest in September. Freiburg and Baden-Baden are nice but the areas I most look forward to are along the central corridor (B33 and B500) from Offenburg to the Schluchsee. There is something about Gengenbach, Wolfach, Gutach - the Jos, Kinzig, and Urach valleys - that draw me back like a magnet. Dull? Some folks might think so but it all depends on what you are expecting from the Schwarzwald. More beautiful areas in Germany? Absolutely - (for sure Bavaria) - but the lush green valleys and deep dark forests - the old traditional Black Forest farms with cows grazing below flower laden balconies - are a wonderful experience for someone in search of rustic rural Germany and inexpensive accommodations. It doesn't hurt that the Bier in this region of the Black Forest is some of the best in all of Germany. The countdown calendar on my monitor says 58 days and 13 hours til I am hopefully airborne again. I can't wait... Ben

Pegontheroad

Freiburg is lovely, but I'm also very fond of a small town south of Freiburg called Staufen. It's really charming. The main street, a pedestrian area, has two little canals running down either side of it. There's a hotel which claims to have the room from which Mephistopheles took Faust to hell. You can stay in that room, I believe, though I'd recommend that your conscience be clear if you plan on doing so. You never can tell....

Also on the main street is a little wine...thingy...a little round stand where you can enjoy a glass of wine and watch the world go by.

bettyk

Two years ago we stayed in Gengenbach for 3 nights and found the town absolutely charming. We stayed at the Hotel Sonne right on the main town square. I believe we paid under 60 Euro a couple of years ago including a nice breakfast buffet. We also had a very good dinner at the hotel.

www.gengenbach.de
http://www.sonne-gengenbach.de/

Some other websites that you may not have discovered yet:

http://www.blackforest-tourism.com/
http://www.blackforestinfo.com/
http://www.schwarzwald.de/en/

Gengenbach is quite small so it depends on what you are looking for. We actually enjoy quiet, charming towns but it's not everybody's cup of tea.

If you are interested, you can view our photos of Gengenbach in our webshots album: http://travel.webshots.com/album/554510509SyxotU

macanimals

I'll second the idea of a stay in Gengenbach which we stopped in on our way into the Black Forest in '02. We stayed at the Hotel Benz on the outskirts but within walking distance--good food and nice lodging. I particularly recall the fruhstuck as being exceptional in its setting, variety and quality of offerings.
Be careful of trying to find the "ideal beautiful" location--its more of a general feel. We did three days of "wonder hiking"--hiked between villages through the forests with our luggage being separately portered and we visited Triberg, Vohrenbach, Villingen and Konigsfeld. Each had its own identity but all were real towns not just for tourists. We also enjoyed a visit to Freilichtmuseum on the B-33--it was a rather fascinating collection of farmhouses from the various districts--an outdoor museum.

L84SKY

Did you decide to go only to the Black Forest or will you combine it with the Berchesgarten area? I ask only because you may not have time to see it all and should stick to the southern end, like others have suggested, Freiburg or spend your time at the Bodensee.
We meant to go there the last time but didn’t make it but we’ll be back.

As far as a favorite destination in the Schwarzwald, we loved it all.

I think some of the others have made valid points that there are more beautiful areas in Germany but it was still awesome and had everything and more of what my dh and I wanted in the area.

Our plan was simple; drive a big loop, see some art, architecture, nature and when we landed in a town or city that we liked we stopped, found a place to sleep and enjoy the beer.

Starting at Heidelberg, Karlsruhe, Baden-Baden, Frieburg, Titisee, Schulztsee and stopping to base in Badenweiler because it was handy to some museums we wanted to see in the area.
Then we drove back up through the Swabian Alb. A few of the highlights were Lichtenstein castle, was awesome, perched high on a crag. Stuttgart was a wonderful city with world class museums and friendly people. Schwäbisch Hall was one of my favorite small towns.
I thought Heidelberg was a bit boring and I couldn't wait to get out of Bad Wimpfen.

Larryincolorado

I've only traveled a little bit in the So. Schwarzwald. The trip from Hausach to Triberg, up the steep river valley (Gutach, I think), with its tunnels and switchbacks, is spectacular. From Triberg, the cuckoo clock capital, we went on down to Donaueschingen, which is the headwaters of the Danube.

I have spent far more time in the No. Schwarzwald. I can particularly recommend Bad Herrenalb, Freudenstadt, Alpirsbach, and Bad Wildbad.