BEER CULTURE
Drink unpasteurised Kellerbier from heavy ceramic steins under Munich chestnut trees, paired with cold Obatzda cheese and pretzels.
Bavaria.
EUROPE/GERMANY/48.9467° N, 11.3944° E
Morning begins with the clean clink of heavy stoneware steins on long wooden trestle tables in Munich, well before the noon bells strike. Head north and the land wrinkles into Franconian hills thick with Silvaner vines and dark smoked-beer taverns; head south and the flat gravel plain crashes straight into the limestone teeth of the Wetterstein range. It is vast territory, fiercely self-contained, where pork knuckle is treated with forensic gravity.
Last updated 2 Sept 2026
Field notes
Photographs · Wikimedia Commons© OpenStreetMap
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What Bavaria is about
Twelve ways to read the region. Pick a town below and you can turn any of these into a timed 1, 2 or 3 day plan.
ALPINE TRAILS
Hike the marked paths across the Karwendel and Wetterstein massifs, stopping at mountain huts for buttermilk and Kaiserschmarrn.
BAROQUE ARCHITECTURE
Study the stucco plasterwork and soaring frescoes at the Wieskirche near Steingaden and the grand Residenz palace in Würzburg.
REGIONAL WINE
Sample dry, mineral Silvaner poured from flat-sided Bocksbeutel bottles across the steep hillside vineyards of the Main river valley.
TRADITIONAL TAVERNS
Order crispy Schäufele pork shoulder with potato dumplings in dark-wood Wirtshäuser across Nuremberg and Franconian market towns.
LAKE FERRIES
Cross the Chiemsee on vintage steamers to Herrenchiemsee Palace, or glide silently across the cold green waters of the Königssee.
MEDIEVAL WALLS
Walk the fully intact fourteenth-century ramparts of Rothenburg ob der Tauber and the fortified sandstone towers of Dinkelsbühl.
WOODCARVING
Watch master artisans carve religious figures and intricate wall reliefs in the sunlit workshops of Oberammergau.
RIVERSIDE WALKS
Stroll the stone bridges over the Danube at Regensburg and the willow-lined banks of the Pegnitz running through central Nuremberg.
MONASTIC HERITAGE
Visit Benedictine abbeys like Weltenburg, perched above the Danube Gorge, where monks have brewed dark doppelbock since 1050.
WINTER SPORTS
Take the cogwheel train to the snowfields of the Zugspitze glacier or skate the frozen tracks around Garmisch-Partenkirchen.
FOLK TRADITIONS
Experience autumn cattle drives in the Allgäu, where decorated cows descend the pastures to the sound of heavy brass bells.
Where to go in Bavaria
The bases worth booking. Each one has its own field guide with 1, 2 and 3 day itineraries.
- 01München
BAVARIA / GERMANY
Anchor your mornings at the Viktualienmarkt stalls before exploring world-class galleries.
- 02Nürnberg
BAVARIA / GERMANY
Walk the Imperial Castle ramparts and eat six finger-length bratwurst grilled over beechwood.
- 03Bamberg
BAVARIA / GERMANY
Sip beechwood-smoked Schlenkerla beer in a timber-framed town that escaped wartime damage.
- 04Regensburg
BAVARIA / GERMANY
Cross the twelfth-century Stone Bridge over the Danube for sausages at the historic Wurstkuchl.
- 05Würzburg
BAVARIA / GERMANY
Taste crisp Franconian white wine on the Old Main Bridge below the imposing Marienberg Fortress.
- 06Garmisch-Partenkirchen
BAVARIA / GERMANY
Base yourself here for cable cars up the Zugspitze and hikes through the sheer Partnach Gorge.
- 07Berchtesgaden
BAVARIA / GERMANY
Explore high emerald lakes and dramatic peaks framed by the imposing Watzmann mountain wall.
- 08Augsburg
BAVARIA / GERMANY
Tour the Renaissance merchant quarter and the Fuggerei, the oldest social housing complex.
- 09Rothenburg ob der Tauber
BAVARIA / GERMANY
Walk the intact medieval wall walkway early in the morning before the day-trippers arrive.
- 10Füssen
BAVARIA / GERMANY
Use this southern border town to reach the royal castles and cycle the quiet Forggensee shores.
- 11Lindau
BAVARIA / GERMANY
Relax on this Lake Constance island with views of snow-dusted Swiss and Austrian Alps across the water.
- 12Passau
BAVARIA / GERMANY
Watch three distinct rivers converge beneath the massive organ pipes of St. Stephen's Cathedral.
What to do in Bavaria
Bavaria stretches from the rolling Franconian wine country along the Main down to the sheer limestone walls of the Alps. Life here follows a distinct rhythm governed by butcher shops, village bakeries, and beer halls that fill before midday. It rewards travellers who appreciate honest regional cooking, methodical trains, and landscapes that shift from tidy farmland to rugged mountain passes in two hours.
When to go to Bavaria
May through September brings warm days, bustling beer gardens, and clear hiking trails in the Alps. October offers autumn foliage and harvest festivals, though mountain huts begin closing. Winter transforms the south into a reliable ski base, with crisp snow and quiet villages.
Getting around Bavaria
Bavaria boasts an efficient regional rail network, with the Bayern-Ticket offering exceptional value for groups on regional trains. Driving the Romantic Road or the German Alpine Road provides flexibility for remote trailheads, but trains easily link Munich, Nuremberg, and Bamberg in under an hour.