Paige

What are your favorite small towns in Germany and why? I live in Munich and am always looking for interesting weekend trips! Thanks!

Neil

Hi Paige <BR> <BR>You would surely enjoy a trip to Rothenburg and Dinkelsbuhl on the Romantic Road. Old time small towns. I also liked Marlburg, but that is probably too far. <BR> <BR>

Fwhiteside

Wildflecken is nice ( up in the mountains somewhere - it was a long time ago ! ). There is a monastery nearby where the monks brew excellent beer - that might provide a clue. Alzey ( near Mainz if memory serves ) is also nice. Sorry to be vague about where these places are but it was back in the seventies !

s

Paige, <BR>Try Lauffen am Neckar. My landlady lived there when I lived nearby, and one time she took me to a concert at her "family" church -- which happened to be 900+ years old. The town has a special festival every 50 years; you can find photos/sketches of these and trace a personal history of the region (I was there for the festival in 1984 and the previous one was in 1934. The photos revealed [to my landlady's momentary embarassment] the popularity of the growing Nazi movement. It was a chilling moment for me.). Lauffen is a pretty small town on a river with a small old section. They also have a kind of town-hall with several sports fields, a stube, and a concert hall -- quite a lot going on for such a small place. I was always impressed with the quality of life there. <BR> <BR>I envy your present circumstance!! <BR> <BR>s

Sally

Although not small, don't miss Bamberg!

Russ

You could spend a weekend exploring the Altmühl River Valley, a short trip north of Munich on the way to Nürnberg, and the smaller towns of Eichstätt, Pappenheim, and Weissenburg. The valley itself is very scenic; lots of visitors ride bikes along the nice paths there. Eichstätt is small, but big enough to have a palace you can tour; great cobbled town with a taste of Vienna. Pappenheim is teeny but has a ruined castle right in the middle of town with a birds of prey show and is also very scenic, with lots of walks in the nearby hills; Weissenburg is an old, cobbled walled town with a great Roman museum and lots of charm. These towns are all quite close to one another and would be easy to get to by train or car. I stayed at the Pension Hirschen in Pappenheim and enjoyed it very much, but this area's so close to Munich that you might just want to make two separate visits if you want to see everything.

John

Hi Paige: <BR> <BR>I am more interested in what YOU have found in your time in Munich. How long have you lived in Munich and where have you been spending your weekends? But just to add to the original question, I love Garmish! Not small, but so very lovely and you cannot beat the location for running day trips to the countryside <BR> <BR>JOHN <BR> <BR>JOHN

Paige

Thanks everyone! We've lived here for 2 years and have been to lots of places in the area. We've been to Rothenburg and Garmisch, but none of the other places that have been mentioned, so thanks for the ideas! When the weather is decent, we go hiking. The other 99% of the time we try to find interesting day trips to take. Guidebooks tend to make every little old quaint village sound the same, so it's nice to hear opinions. Thanks again!

lola

I like Eisenach, Erfurt, Weimar, Dresden and Leipzig--the Bach, Goethe and Luther hang-outs in Eastern Europe. They have remained charming in part because they languished under the Soviet era.

xxx

Any of the small towns along the Mosel River are wonderful.

Linda

Berchtsgaden (Hitler's Eagle's Nest) has a beautiful view and the elevator going to the house is very elaborate. <BR>Hamelin is a great little city with Christmas shops & on Sundays at 5 p.m. they have a reinactment of the Pied Piper. <BR>Dresden is a marvel after being totally destroyed in WWII & Meissen is close by. <BR>If you go to Czech Republic, try Cesky Krumlov & Karlovy Vary. <BR>Hannover is not a small town but has the World Exhibition and is not far from Hamelin. <BR>Berlin is not a small town either but is incredible & worth several weekend trips--so much history & culture.

Bob

We will be in Germany in October to begin a cruise in Passau....a quaint town where three rivers all merge together..the Danube being one of them. We found Passau a few years ago and enjoyed the stay. You can also go to Bodemais and Zweisel to see the glass factories. Ditto on Berchtesgaden as that is very close to where you live. Also do Salzburg while in that area. Germany overall is very nice for just exploring and finding your own favorite small town. Take off and discover!

CanadianAl

hi Paige, we spent a couple of days in Baden and yes, it is touristy , but not a tourist trap ....great restaurants, a great castle(ruins) which is a nice 3 km hike from the village , and everyone should do the spa once in their life.cheers, Al ,and by the way , do you want to trade places??

Ro

I think Garmisch and Bertchesgaden are two of the prettiest spots in Germany. <BR>Also worthwhile is Heidelberg, and the small towns along the RHine river - like Rudesheim, Bacharach, St. Goar, Lorch... They have wonderful wine festivls (strawberry fest in June), etc. <BR>Rothenburg and Dinkelsbuhl are also wonderful little walled towns untouched by the war...have fun!

nickie

Bad Tolz has a very pretty church, the Kalvarienberg,and, as the name suggests , colorful artwork placed on all kinds of things - buckets,tins, etc (tole painting). Once a year, on November 6, they have a festival and a parade of horses with people in traditional costume,honoring St. Leonhard, that goes from town to the church.

GeeGee

In the open countryside, near Bamberg, is a wonderful rococo church, "Vierzehn Heiligen." (It will be shown on any good map.) A day trip from Munich could easily combine viewing the "Bamberger Ritter" in the Bamberg cathedral and this charming church out in the country. The countryside nearby would make a wonderful picnic site.

Dave

Our favorite place is Spitzingsee, which is near Schliersee and tegernsee. There is great hiking and nice lodging and restaurants.

Art

Hi Paige, Garmish is indeed a very charming town. Have you been to Oberamergau? Salzberg is also one of my favorate cities. Have you been to Dauchau?, Wurzberg, Nurenberg?. When we lived there we bought a book titled "Castles of Germany" There are over 25,000 castles in Germany from total ruins to well maintained ones. We used to pack a picknic on Sundays and visit a different castle. We never ran out of them. Yes a lot of them seem alike, but each has its own uniquness and history. You can alco make day trips into Switzerland. I used to date a young woman (I was young my self then) in a small town by the name of Frauenfeld and would drive from Frankfurt down for weekends. Southern Germany is loaded with charming towns. It might be worth your while to rent a car occasionally for the weekend and just pick a direction and explore. I was just reviewing my slides from Europe this weekend and started aching to return to Germany, Holland and other places. By the way, now that Octoberfest is over I'm sure that you are familuar with the Hofbrauhouse but is the Mainzer House still there? It was like the Hofbray except less tourests and more for the locals. <BR>

Ed

Paige: <BR> <BR>Favorite small town? Iphofen (Franconia) ... about 2-1/2 hours and 250 km to the north of Muenchen. As to why? See www.twenj.com/bavaria.htm <BR> <BR>Ed

Paige

Hello again! <BR>Dave: We discovered Spitzingsee this summer and hiked there several times. Schliersee had been my favorite but I love Spitzingsee now. <BR>Art: Never heard of the Mainzer House. Where is it? <BR>Thanks to everyone for all the recommendations. We just got back from 10 days in Greece and are off to southern Spain for 2 weeks soon. More day trips will have to wait!