Touring in Germany
Hi, Covid and Brexit allowing we are looking to tour around Germany for up to 4 weeks in Aug 2021.
This is our first year in a Motor Home after years of caravanning (drive - park - stay) so would appreciate any incites into routes, sites or just things to see. We have camped in Holland, Belgium and of course France but never Germany so its a first all round.
Thanks Ian
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Mosel? Black Forest? Lake Constance? Bavaria? Start with a good guide book this Christmas.
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Germany is absolute heaven for Motorhomes with stellplatz in nearly every town. We have been 3 times and love it, take your bike as 2nd to MH's the bike is king with cycle paths everywhere.
We have done Mosel twice, start one end and work your way along, only need to go 10km each day.
Bavaria is fantastic, Ulm, Augsburg etc.
Romantic road is spectacular to visit all the little towns such as rotheberg o de tober, Neuschwanstein Castle, and about a hundred other places, go to the alps and up the top of Germany Zugspite, the lakes such as Constance (Lindau is lovely) , Titisee, Schulsee in the black forest area. We love it in Autumn, the scenery and colours (seems Germany is 90% trees) are spectacular.
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We have been to Germany many times now in both a caravan and a motorhome. It is a very large country so even with four weeks it would be best to select an area or a theme like the Romantic Road. We find Berlin a fascinating place to visit and that can be incorporated into a tour including the Baltic Coast. Out of the main season many of the campsites accept the ACSI Card and as has been mentioned there are lots of Stellplatz. Perhaps invest in a Bord Atlas Deutschland which is not so much an Atlas but a book of all the stellplatz and lots of other useful information.
David
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If you want autumn colours then bear in mind that the former East Germany is less industrialised outside of the cities.
We've toured extensively from the Baltic down along the Polish border to the Czech Republic and right across the rest of "East Germany" and found it enlightening. That's not to say that Western parts should be scooted past. Plenty to see there as well. In fact we can see ourselves making an autumn trip next year and have already talked about it.
It's hard to make recommendations as to what to hold your interest as I have no idea of your likes and dislikes. Maybe you like climbing mountains or prefer city visits, or take in historical places. So if you can let us know what would interest you then maybe members can fine tune their recommendations.
Wherever you go though you should undoubtedly enjoy it.
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Thank you to everyone who took the time to message, and replying to:-
Wherever next we are more villages than city and lakeside than mountain path.
Eurotraveller, the book is on the way.
MichealT, I know Mosel is a river and I have seen the Romantic Road mentioned are these recognised tour routes?
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I can recommend Titisee and Lake Constance. They were two of our stops last year. Don't forget to drive down via Martelange in Luxembourg for a cheap fill-up.
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Surchy,
It makes an excellent trip for villages and if you end up at the bottom you can visit
From Neuschwanstein you can travel on down to Lake Constance as mentioned by Cyberyacht (the lake is called Bodensee in Germany). Some beautiful villages in and around this lake which has borders with Switzerland and Austria.
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The Rhine Valley, the Moselle, Black Forest, Bavaria, etc. are undoubtedly all worth seeing, but they can be very overrun with tourists, especially in the high season. There are equally picturesque places elsewhere, too, and they can be a lot less frequented because they are not so well known. North Germany is much underrated, the Weser Valley with Hamelin of Pied Piper fame, and the Mecklenburg Lake District to name just two examples. Lots of towns in North Germany, like Celle and Lüneburg, also have wonderful mediaeval town centres.
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I think a very good starting point is Camping Burg Lahneck. It stands high above the Rhine and the confluence of the River Lahn. Not far away on the other side of the Rhine is the start of the Moselle so it's known as the "Drei Ecke" (Literal meaning - three corners). You can tour each fo the three rivers from here, easily reaching Boppard / Rudesheim on the Rhine and Cochem and others on the Moselle. There are also some very pretty places down the Lahn. As with most big cities, Koblenz has a great Old Town. We liked it there :-)
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I agree with Lutz about the north, preferring Wismar to the more touristy Lubeck. We really enjoyed the Mecklenburg area when we visited one year. A true lake district.
If you are travelling anywhere near or through the Harz mountain area then you must visit Quedlinburg. It has numerous buildings designated by UNESCO. A town you can easily walk around. You can take a train to the top of the Brocken, the highest mountain from nearby, a bit like Snowdon. Well worth a day or two.
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Reynoray posted earlier, "Not far away on the other side of the Rhine is the start of the Moselle so it's known as the "Drei Ecke" (Literal meaning - three corners)". Actually, the confluence of the Moselle and the Rhine in Koblenz is known as the Deutsches Eck, not Drei Ecke.
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We have travelled extensively in Germant too. From the Baltic coast at Rugen to Lake Constance there is much to see. I would make the comment that in four weeks it would be a rush to see the "Romantic Road" in its entirity. We have covered most of it over an eight year period, albeit that we have been to Rothenburg o.d.t. three times! If this is to be your first visit, and for four weeks, I would suggest a couple of weeks in the Rhineland. Maybe two centres, one on the Mosel near Trier, and the other on the Rhine (the site at Rudesheim is only a ten minute walk from the town centre) and another couple of weeks on Lake Constance (or Der Bodensee in German). One at the western end (do see the Rhine falls and Konstanz) and the other near the centre at Friedrikshaven where ferries can be caught to other tourist attractions (Lindau Island or across the lake to Switzerland). The German Tourist Board do a handy campsites guide which lists most sites across the country. Alternatively the ACSI book had a good number to choose from.
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Once again I would like to thank everyone for taking the time to respond. We have been busy with the maps and guide books fleshing out the areas and places suggested. I think our trip will probably be based around Lake Constance and at least part of the Romantic Road . So thank you again to all.
Ian
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Discover the Baltic Sea, loads of interesting places to visit, in Schleswig Holstein there is germanys only northern winery (in Malvern) the wine tastes good.
Seeing you are coming in August my advice is book camping sites with Stellplätze its take a chance, great one at Grömitz, newly opened. good campsites at Neustadt in Holstein direct on the sea.
Like in England the Germans have been buying caravans and motorhomes in there thousands, now a discussion in germany if there is enough sites to take them all.
For me the Black Forest (cake) is good enough to eat.
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Without wishing to hijack this thread, we will be returning to Germany/Austria next year after a break of a couple of years and seeking a dog friendly site around Titisee. However to help the OP we can recommend from previous visits: Rottemberg, Augsburg, and Plonersee in the north. If heading into Austria then the stunning Kleinwalsertal valley is a short detour out of Germany.
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Flatcoat
We don't have a dog but we have come across sites in both Germany and Austria that don't accept dogs where they have a lakeside position and therefore have lake swimming. So it would be worthwhile to clarify with any site you are thinking of using that dogs are accepted. Dogs are welcome on most campsites but it was strange to come across two campsites on the same holiday that didn't accept them.
David
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I can recommend Sandbanks camping at Titisee although I'm not sure what the dog policy is.
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We have family in Germany near Frankfurt and go there quite often, usually with the caravan incorporating the family visit with a holiday. I will just add a few other points. Firstly, away from the tourist hotspots we have found eating out in Germany to be quite reasonably priced and, as has been said, to a very high standard. Next; if you plan to drive into large cities you will probably need an Umwelt (a 'polution' pass to drive in cities), details are in a sticky at the start of this section, but you can get one in advance or easily get one there at any main car dealer you just need your V5, it costs just a few Euros. For a lot of street parking you will need a parking disc showing time of arrival. We have a German one and I recall we got ours in a shop in Germany for free - Lutz am I right?. We have found that is some more rural areas not all Credit Cards are accepted so take a couple covering both Visa and Mastercard. Finally, the Club's Esso card is valid there and it also covers Shell garages. Regarding fuel, in towns the price changes during the day - I think it is at its lowest mid morning and mid afternoon (again perhaps Lutz can advise).
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Whilst this is a digression from the main subject of the post it might be of use to the OP. Following on from Comeyras's post regarding payment by International credit cards. I wonder if since COVID the German preference for paying in cash (therefore making the acceptance of UK credit/debit cards more spasmodic) has changed more to card payment?
David
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Coneyras makes a good point however when we were in Germany in the summer there seemed little difference in respect of cash and cards. As stated eating out in Germany is not expensive when away from tourist honeypots and diesel is cheaper than UK. We too have friends and familie near Frankfurt (my other half is German and lived in Giessen for many years).
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i have found this discussion very interesting as i'm also thinking of touring in Germany but with the caravan so great tips and advice on here
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We have generally travelled down through Germany from Belgium heading for Italy & Croatia so apart from overnight stays I have no real experience to add to what has been said already. One site that we really did enjoy was at Fussen to be able to walk into the old town. This had been recommended by David, a Stellplatz and more than adequate for our few nights. What I would say, that has not been mentioned, is be very careful about electricity charges. Some are fully included but others have an additional charge over the ACSI 4.5KW and some are fully chargeable. When charged I found the KW/h rates to be very expensive, even more so when compared to the UK KW/h unit price. I once got a hefty bill after a very cold night's stay in April! Other than that the place is lovely and we plan to tour there one day rather than commute through.
We found many supermarkets did not take credit cards, but always took debit cards.
The pinch points on the motorways can be very busy and German driving styles are very different from ours, but they seem to religiously stick to the speed limits, unlike here! Many stay in the outer lane right up to the lane closure rather than moving in early to keep the flow going. I find they don't tend to move lanes to allow you to join either, especially when you're much slower in a large MH. The no speed limit on some motorways can easily catch you out when you are pulling out to overtake or joining from a slip road when you are doing 50 mph and they are doing 120 mph, a car can be right up behind you very quickly and it is interesting to watch their brake lights when its not you that is slowing them down. Even more caution needed on 2 lane motorways. We've found the people to be excellent everywhere & helpful, which surprises us re the driving. Enjoy.
Regards, Roy
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Roy makes a good point about electricity in Germany. Whilst most sites its included there are a few where it is not and, as Roy points out it can be expensive. Always best to check with reception what the situation is. Even on ACSI sites you have to be a bit careful as one site we were on a site in Inzell which only provided a 2Kw allowance within the ACSI nightly cost as opposed to the normal 4Kw allowance. The last time we stayed at Camping Belchenblick, a popular site with Club members, we ended up with an additional bill of €35 for a five night stay. That was with using our own facilities. Another thing to remember about those sites that charge for electricity is the your electric cable is locked in the distribution box so that can sometimes delay departure. The Stellplatz at Fussen that both Roy and I have used had a bollard which you fed with coins. If you were lucky you found a point where someone had left a couple of euros of credit
None of this is designed to put people off as Germany is a wonderful country to tour in but just pointing out the differences you might encounter. David
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If you want some ideas about travelling through Germany I would recommend a visit to https://www.joysofeuropeancaravanning.co.uk/ which contains a wide range of sites and sights for you to consider.
There are plenty of good quality sites in Germany and as in many countries you pay a premium for river or lake side pitches
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We went to the Baltic coast with a caravan last September. We went as far as Polish border( we had been to Poland the previous year). Fabulous places en route stayed away from obvious places already mentioned. Germans were having an attack of staycations as well and first time in 30years of caravanning found a site full and had to go to an alternative - this was on Rugen Island.
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Always loved our visits to Germany, although we sometimes found the site pitches a little smaller than here in the UK.
We preferred the Mosel to the Rhine in the area south of Koblenz and often stayed at Camping Burgen, between Koblenz and Cochem. Haven't been there since 2016 though when we met the 'new' owners. The previous owner, Dieter Linzenbach was always pleased to see us, although he never spoke English and we never spoke German.... it was always a bit of an odd conversation. 😃
David
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My experience of eating out in restaurants was always good quality, but many dont take cards, preferring cash, so remember to keep a 'stash' in your wallet. Fuel on the Autobahns is expensive, just like on our motorways, so it's worth a detour to local garages to fill up. Filling up in Luxembourg en route is a must!
Germany is a wonderful country and has already been said, there are many beautiful areas, all with excellent roads. My favourites would include Berchtesgarden (it's only a 30 minute bus ride into Salzburg) and is close to Eagles' nest and set in stunning scenery. The Romantic road and Black Forest are wonderful too. You will have a wonderful time
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