Top 10 tips on travelling in Germany

Germany doesn’t get the attention it deserves on the European map of adventure-filled lands, even though it’s a country brimming with romance, rambling, and rivers that go on forever. It has wanderlust (and wine) in its DNA, it has the Alps in the south and the Baltic coast in the north. Germany also shares natural borders with Switzerland, Denmark, France and Austria, just four of nine neighbours, where cycling and hiking trails abound. So, one of the best tips on travelling in Germany is to just go. It’s green, it gets sustainable tourism, and it’s gorgeous. In so many different ways.

1. Get to know Germany’s long-distance trails

Germany’s hiking map is like a wine connoisseur’s cellar, filled with trails in a wide array of fine terroirs. The Rheinsteig is like the reserve label of the trekking world, rich in character but surprisingly accessible. Further east, the Malerweg offers a refined beauty that once served as the primary muse for Romantic-era painters. To walk the Moselle Trail is to drink in two thousand years of history, on a slow travel experience that lingers long after the hike is over. For more information, see our blog, Top walking trails in Germany. And for more specifics, our Best day hikes in Germany bring out the individual flavours of Germany’s finest.

Oberwesel is just one of many traditional Rhineland towns that appear around the river bends.

2. Travel to Germany by train

Germany has a superb rail network, run predominantly by the national rail provider, Deutsche Bahn (DB) and you can travel to Germany on Eurostar. One of the most progressive steps taken by DB was the introduction of the Deutschland-Ticket which costs €63 for travel on all regional services over a month, so not on the speedy intercity ones. If you don’t buy this, however, train tickets in Germany are still great value, especially if you buy early. And for family holidays in Germany, one of the country’s best kept secrets is that young people up to the age of 14 travel free with Deutsche Bahn, when travelling with adults. DB’s tickets are released six months in advance. All of our tour pages have details on how to get there, and we have filtered the ones that are reachable by rail, of which there are nearly fifty. For more information, see our blogs on German holidays reachable by rail and How to book cheap train tickets.

3. Wake up in Germany on a sleeper train

In addition to the rail journeys mentioned above, there are some dreamy sleeper train routes to and from Germany. Such as the daily service between Berlin or Hamburg and Stockholm, operated by Swedish Railways’ brand EuroNight. So you could go on our cycling holiday from Hamburg to Berlin along the Elbe Cycle Path, and then take a sleeper train to Stockholm, to have a second week of walking its archipelago trails. Another option is to take a sleeper train from Vienna to Hamburg, after one of our adventures that finishes in the Austrian capital, and then taking on the Elbe Cycle Path options that start in Hamburg from there. There’s another capital to capital sleeper train between Berlin and Budapest, where you can then take a quick 40mins train journey to Nagymaros to start a walking holiday in Hungary’s Visegrád Mountains.

There really is a train station tucked away here at the gorgeous Garmisch-Partenkirchen – travel the green (and blue) way.

4. Travel to Germany in winter

Although it’s celebrated for its Christmas markets and winter city breaks, Germany is pretty as a picture in winter on our Malerweg Trail winter walking holiday. As mentioned above, this is a 115km walking trail through the Elbe Sandstone Mountains. It’s a region known romantically as Saxon Switzerland, because it takes you through the Saxon region’s impressive mountain terrain. Our winter tour takes you through these unique landscapes when they’re frosty, fresh and fairytale-like, with tours between November and March. Temperatures average 02-03C but they are actually the driest months too. For more information, we paint a big picture of the region in this Malerweg blog.

5. Go for cross-border adventures

Given that Germany is one of the greatest countries for flying the European flag, it’s worth considering an adventure that crosses into one of its European neighbours. And as it shares a border with nine countries, there are many to choose from. The Danube Cycle Path is the most famous, following the iconic river through eight countries. One of our most popular easy sections is between Passau, on the German-Austrian border, and Vienna, which is around 250km in total. You can also cycle across the Alps, starting in Munich and finishing in Venice, taking in the Tyrol and the Dolomites en route. Or of course, there is the multinational marvel of Lake Constance Cycle Path which takes you through Austria, Switzerland and Germany. Our cycling tours from Munich to Prague and Prague to Dresden are two other cross-border beauties.

For hikers, you can walk between Bavaria and Austria on this eight day walking holiday through the Chiemgauer Alps. Or explore two national parks, Hohe Tauern National Park in Austria and Berchtesgaden in the German Alps on this walking holiday. Likewise, walking between Passau in Germany and Linz in Austria on the Donausteig is packed with Germanic gorgeousness, as is The Zugspitze Circuit, starting in Garmisch-Partenkirchen and making full loop around the base of Germany’s highest mountain (2,962m).

Cycling along the Danube in Passau, Germany, just one of many spots on the iconic cycle path.

6. Don’t forget that Germany has Alpine hiking too

France, Switzerland and Austria get a lot more Alpine attention than Germany but Germany’s colossal greats are called the Bavarian Alps. Our German or Bavarian Alps holidays tend to be at higher elevations than some of our other Bavarian holidays and, as they form a natural border with Austria, some treks take in both countries. Such as on the 125km Lechweg Trail, which follows the alpine Lech River between Lech am Arlberg in Austria’s Arlberg Mountains range and Füssen in Bavaria, which is surrounded by the Ammergau Alps. Or the aforementioned Zugspitze Circuit which is located in the Wetterstein Mountains within the Bavarian Alps.

7. Bike along the Baltic

Explore the northern Baltic coast on our eight day cycling holiday or our bespoke family cycling holiday. Easily accessible, this is a very different side to Germany’s well known mountain and river landscapes. With sandy beaches, pine forests and Hanseatic towns of Lübeck and Stralsund topping and tailing this trail, the Baltic is breezy and beautiful.

8. Travel with your dog to Germany

Hiking with your hund in Germany is highly recommended, and we have 16 dog-friendly holidays where this is possible. The most popular trail for canine companionship is the Lechweg Trail, which stretches from the Austrian Arlberg mountains into Bavaria. Or you can bring your pooch pal on our Lechweg Trail highlights. Rover is also always welcomed on our five day Rheinsteig walking holiday, but you can take a longer eight day holiday with even more castles and vineyards along the way. Walking in Spessart Nature Park is also very special with your dog, and accessible by trail, so you can have a slow Spessart adventure together. And given that people believe this is the place where Snow White was located, it’s like a fairytale come true.

Walking in Spessart Nature Park, one of Germany’s best kept secrets.

9. Embrace accessible tourism

Germany has been well ahead of the sustainable and responsible travel movement compared with other countries around the world. It has been recognised for putting barrier-free and accessible tourism at the heart of its inclusive vision, its tourist board supporting people with physical and learning disabilities in an exemplary way. Please do not hesitate to contact our adventure specialists to see how we can support you with any access needs on our German walking or cycling holidays.

10. Go hiking in Herbst

Herbst is German for autumn and, although Oktoberfest upstages German tourism at this time of year, the iconic hiking trails are quite intoxicating in October. You’ll see why the Malerweg Trail through the Elbe Sandstone Mountains became a favourite with famous painters and is, therefore, called the Painters’ Way. At this time of year, their palettes must have run out of paint, it’s so colour-rich. The Black Forest always lives up to expectations, especially in October, where you get clear views from the top of Feldberg, the Schwarzwald’s highest peak at 1,493m. Or Lake Constance Cycle Path takes you through a feast of colours, with a finale at Rhine Falls. You finish this trip in Schaffhausen, where Pinot Noir vineyards rule the riverbanks, especially at grape harvest time of year. Perfect for celebrating a visit to the biggest falls in Europe – in the fall.