Bavarian Alps
A pocket-sized trove of weird treasures, Schloss Linderhof was Ludwig II’s smallest but most sumptuous palace, and the only one he lived to see fully…
Must-see attractions in Munich, Bavaria & the Black Forest
Füssen
Appearing through the mountaintops like a mirage, Schloss Neuschwanstein was the model for Disney’s Sleeping Beauty castle. King Ludwig II planned this…
Füssen
King Ludwig II grew up at the sun-yellow Schloss Hohenschwangau and later enjoyed summers here until his death in 1886. His father, Maximilian II, built…
Freiburg
With its lacy spires, cheeky gargoyles and intricate entrance portal, Freiburg’s 11th-century minster cuts an impressive figure above the central market…
Garmisch-Partenkirchen
On good days, views from Germany’s rooftop extend into four countries. The return trip starts in Garmisch aboard a cogwheel train (Zahnradbahn) that chugs…
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Ulm
'Ooh, it’s so big'… First-time visitors gush as they strain their neck muscles gazing up to the Münster. It is. And rather beautiful. Celebrated for its…
Bavaria
Officially called the KZ-Gedenkstätte Dachau, this was the Nazis’ first concentration camp, built by Heinrich Himmler in March 1933 to house political…
Munich
This commanding palace and its lavish gardens sprawl around 5km northwest of the Altstadt. Begun in 1664 as a villa for Electress Adelaide of Savoy, the…
Munich
Home to Bavaria's Wittelsbach rulers from 1508 until WWI, the Residenz is Munich's number-one attraction. The amazing treasures, as well as all the…
Würzburg
The vast Unesco-listed Residenz, built by 18th-century architect Balthasar Neumann as the home of the local prince-bishops, is one of Germany’s most…
Munich
Munich's main repository of Old European Masters is crammed with all the major players who decorated canvases between the 14th and 18th centuries. This…
Munich
The sprawling English Garden is among Europe's biggest city parks – it even rivals London's Hyde Park and New York's Central Park for size – and is a…
Munich
Germany's largest modern-art museum unites four significant collections under a single roof: 20th-century art, applied design from the 19th century to…
Munich
Picture the classic 19th-century museum, a palatial neoclassical edifice overflowing with exotic treasure and thought-provoking works of art, a repository…
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Chiemsee
An island just 1.5km across the Chiemsee from Prien, Herreninsel is home to Ludwig II’s Versailles-inspired castle. Begun in 1878, it was never intended…
Munich
If you’re one of those people for whom science is an unfathomable turn-off, a visit to the Deutsches Museum might just show you that physics and…
Berchtesgaden
Gliding serenely across the wonderfully picturesque, emerald-green Königssee makes for some unforgettable memories and photo opportunities. Cradled by…
Nuremberg
This enormous castle complex above the Altstadt poignantly reflects Nuremberg's medieval might. The main attraction is a tour of the renovated residential…
The Black Forest
The Schwarzwälder Freilichtmuseum spirals around the Vogtsbauernhof, a self-contained early-17th-century farmstead. Farmhouses shifted from their original…
Berchtesgaden
At 1834m above sea level, the Eagle's Nest was built as a mountaintop retreat for Hitler, and gifted to him on his 50th birthday. It took around 3000…
Munich
Next to the Olympiapark, the glass-and-steel, double-cone tornado spiralling down from a dark cloud the size of an aircraft carrier holds BMW Welt, truly…
Stuttgart
The neoclassical-meets-contemporary Staatsgalerie bears British architect James Stirling’s curvy, colourful imprint. Alongside big-name exhibitions, the…
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Nuremberg
Forget Dürer and wartime rallies, Nuremberg is a railway town at heart. Germany's first passenger trains ran between here and Fürth, a fact reflected in…
The Black Forest
From the baroque-meets-neoclassical Schloss, Karlsruhe’s 32 streets radiate like the spokes of a wheel. Karl Wilhelm, margrave of Baden-Durlach, named his…
Baden-Baden
A Joan Miró sculpture guards the front of this architecturally innovative gallery, designed by Richard Meier. The star-studded collection of modern and…
The Black Forest
Embracing the global craft gin craze, Monkey 47 has scooped awards for its batch-distilled, handcrafted dry gin, with piney, peppery notes. Distillery…
The Black Forest
Sticking out above Rottweil like a sore thumb, the futuristic, environmentally progressive Testturm is the brainchild of steel-engineering giant…
The Black Forest
Niagara they ain’t but Germany’s highest waterfalls do exude their own wild romanticism. The Gutach River feeds the seven-tiered falls, which drop a total…
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Bavaria
The crown jewel of Schleissheim's palatial trio is the Neues Schloss Schleissheim. This pompous pile was dreamed up by Prince-Elector Max Emanuel in 1701…
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Munich
A big, bold and aptly abstract building, clad entirely in vividly multihued ceramic tubes, the Brandhorst jostled its way into the Munich Kunstareal in a…
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Lake Constance
Near the eastern end of Friedrichshafen’s lake-front promenade is the Zeppelin Museum, housed in the Bauhaus-style former Hafenbahnhof (harbour station),…
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Regensburg
In the 15th century, Franz von Taxis (1459–1517) assured his place in history by setting up the first European postal system, which remained a monopoly…
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Berchtesgaden
In 1933 the tranquil Alpine settlement of Obersalzberg (3km from Berchtesgaden) in essence became the second seat of Nazi power after Berlin, a dark…
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Munich
Though pocket sized, the late-baroque Asamkirche, built in 1746, is as rich and epic as a giant's treasure chest. Its creators, the brothers Cosmas Damian…
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Swabian Alps Region
On its perch above Tübingen, this turreted 16th-century castle has a terrace overlooking the Neckar River, the Altstadt’s triangular rooftops and the vine…
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Swabian Alps Region
Housed in Tübingen's hilltop castle, this fascinating archaeology museum houses the 40,000-year-old Vogelherd figurines – the world’s oldest figurative…
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Konstanz
Crowned by a filigreed spire and looking proudly back on 1000 years of history, the sandstone Münster was the church of the Diocese of Konstanz until 1821…
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Regensburg
It takes a few seconds for your eyes to adjust to the dim interior of Regensburg’s soaring landmark, the Dom St Peter, one of Bavaria’s grandest Gothic…
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Munich
Commissioned by Maximilian III in the mid-18th century, François Cuvilliés fashioned one of Europe's finest rococo theatres. Famous for hosting the…
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Lake Constance
Awarded Unesco World Heritage status in 2011, the Pfahlbauten represent one of 11 prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps. Based on the findings of…
