Situated in the southeast of the region of Germany, Bavaria is one of the largest states within the country of Germany. Bavaria is the economic capital of Germany, with many of the major businesses such as BMW, Audi and Adidas holding their headquarters there.

Neuschwanstein, Bavaria © Julia Hoefer-von Seelen

Bavaria is a very traditional state but is very independent in its religion. They wear a traditional national costume known as the Tracht on special occasions and there is a tradition of folk music often related to the Celtic masses. Food and drink is very important in the Bavarian culture and they have many festivals to celebrate, such as the beer festival. Here beer is served by the litre and it only has three ingredient in it, namely water, hops and barley. They also hold wine festivals where their locally produced wine is celebrated.

There are beautiful forests in Bavaria, showing a natural paradise and haven for wild flowers and creatures. One particular forest is in the deep valley of Wolfsteiner Ohe, this amazing forest is great to bring children and nature close together and to encourage their love of all things different and natural. The Bavarian castles are worth visiting and are very informative when taken as part of a tour. Bavaria is a mixture of old and new with the cosmopolitan business centres and the old towns with historic statues and traditional culture.

There are many fabulous hotels available in Bavaria and all at a price that is affordable to everyone, If you are travelling throughout Germany then following the famous River Rhine will give you many fabulous places to visit and many historic places to see.

River Rhine © roger4336/flickr.com

The river Rhine is situated in the Swiss Alps and flows to the north sea. It is one of the most important and longest rivers in Europe. It was vital in the past for carrying trade and food along the river allowing local people to trade and diversify. It was also used as a major defence for the neighbouring towns and the number of fortifications and castles situated along the river proves just how important it was and that control was vital. The Rhine flows from the Switzerland, through to Liechtenstein, Austria and Germany, it also flows through France and finally the Netherlands.

A cruise along the River Rhine is an awesome experience, there are tours that last from eight days to eight hours, catering for everyone`s. Most of the stops on the tour are at Germany ports so there is plenty to see and experience. Taking in the wonderful sights of the River and the historic buildings is something that you will remember for a very long time. Accommodation along the Rhine river is comfortable and affordable, but if you wish to be a little bit more extravagant then there are some luxury hotels near by.

Whether you are travelling around Germany and sampling the wonders of the Rhine river and Bavaria or staying in one of the many secret rooms London has to offer there is something for every ones budget and personality to enjoy.

Covering an area of over 200,000 square metres (almost 55 acres) the Botanical Garden in Munich, Bavaria is not not only home to about 14,000 plants but also one of the most important botanical gardens in the world.

In the glasshouse complex you can go on a botanical journey to hot and humid regions, evergreen mountain forests and hot and arid deserts.

Or would you like to get some inspiration for your own garden, you get that in the large ornamental courtyard. In the large arboretum and the order beds will show you the family relationships of plants as well as their ecological needs.

Very interesting too is the alpine garden on the Schachen, located in the Wettersteingebirge about 90 kilometres south of Munich at a height of 1,860 metres, which not only is an invaluable basis for research but also serves to preserve rare European plant and bee species.

Throughout the year several events take place in the Munich Botanical Garden. From December till April you can see tropical butterflies in the greenhouses and from May 18th to May 29th 2011 there will be a Bonsai exhibition in the Winter Hall (Winterhalle).

From the Botanical Garden you can easily get to Nymphenburg Palace with its large park. You can either go for a walk or visit the Museum of Man and Nature (Museum für Mensch und Natur).

Opening Hours of Munich Botanical Garden:

• January, November, December: Main entrance: 9am, – 4.30pm    Glasshouse complex: 9am – 4pm
• February, March, October: Main entrance: 9am – 5pm    Glasshouse complex: 9am – 4.30pm
• April, September: Main entrance: 9am – 6pm    Glasshouse complex: 9am – 5.30pm
• May, June, July, August: Main entrance: 9am – 7pm    Glasshouse complex: 9 am– 6.30pm

Lake Schliersee is a natural lake in the Bavarian Alps located at a height of 777 metres (2,549ft) next to the small town of Schliersee about 51 kilometres southeast of Munich.

Schliersee © Julia Hoefer-von Seelen

Expanding 2.3 kilometres by 1.3 (1.4mi) kilometres (0.81mi) the lake has an average depth of 20 metres (66ft) and a maximum depth of 40 metres (130ft). The lake’s only island, Wörth Island, is located almost in the centre of the lake.

In summer you can go swimming and boating at Lake Schliersee, but the region is also great for Nordic walking, hiking, cycling or mountain biking. You can either hire electric boats, pedal boats or rowing boats or go on a trip with the mini cruiser between May and September.

One hiking tour I can highly recommend is the walk up to the remains of Castle Hohenwaldeck. The trail is signposted and even inexperienced hikers can manage, providing they wear proper hiking boots and maybe take walking sticks. You can walk up from the parking place ‘Unterleiten’ in Schliersee and down on the other side to Fischhausen. Then you can either walk back along the lakeside or just walk around the whole lake. From Castle Hohenwaldeck about 209 metres (686ft) above the lake you have a great view over the lake and the Alps.

Alps © Julia Hoefer-von Seelen

In the town of Schliersee you should visit St Sixtus Church which was built from 1712 to 1715 on the site of a medieval church. St Sixtus Church is one of the most beautiful baroque style churches in the area.

From Lake Schliersee it isn’t very far to other Bavarian lakes such as Lake Tegernsee or Lake Spitzingsee. And from Schliersee you can also take the cable car to Schliersbergalm sitting on a sunny hill. From there you not ony have a stunning view of the lake and the mountains but you can also have fun at the Holiday Park with Alpine Roller and giant trampoline. The 950 metres long summer toboggan run can then take you back down to the valley.

Nymphenburg Palace or Schloss Nymphenburg as it is called in German is a Baroque palace in Munich, Bavaria.

Nymphenburg Palace used to be the main summer residence of the Bavarian electors and kings and commissioned by the prince-electoral couple Ferdinand Maria and Henriette Adelaide of Savoy to celebrate the birth of their son and heir. It was designed by the Italian Architect Agostino Barelli in 1664.

Nymphenburg Palace © Julia Höfer-von Seelen

From 1701 on the palace was systematically extended, two pavilions by Enrico Zucalli and Joseph Effner were added in the south and north of the original palace and the southern section was even further extended to form the court stables.

The massive Great Hall (Steinerner Saal) was beautifully decorated in Rococo style with ceiling frescos by Johann Baptist Zimmermann and F Zimmermann. Also worth a visit is the ‘Gallery of Beauties”, painted by Joseph Stieler for King Ludwig I.

Today the court stables are home to one of the most important museums of ancient carriagas, the Marstallmuseum, and also house a collection of Nymphenburg porcelain. The factory being founded by Maximilian III Joseph was also located in the palace complex. The handcrafted products of that factory were of legendary kind of quality and are comparable to Augarten andSevres.

Nymphenburg Palace view from park © Julia Höfer-von Seelen

The large 490acre (200hectare) historic park of Nymphenburg Palace and the Botanic Gardens invite visitors for a walk. In the park you can see a number of beautiful pavilions such as the Pagodenburg (1716-1719), Badenburg (1719-1721), Magdalenenklause (1725-1728), Amalienburg (1734-1739) and Apollotempel (1862-1865).

The palace as well as the park are one of the most famous and most popular sights of Munich and really worth a visit.

Cologne is Germany’s fourth largest city and the largest city of the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Founded in 38 BC it is also one of the oldest German cities.

The most famous building in Cologne and the city’s iconic landmark is Cologne Cathedral, a World Heritage Site.
Even though the foundation stone of the cathedral was laid on August 15th, 1248 the cathedral wasn’t completed before 1880. During WW2 72% of the city centre were destroyed but the cathedral survived and can still be seen from nearly everywhere in the city centre and many other places. The towers with a height of about 157metres (the north tower is 7cm higher than the south tower) dominate the city’s skyline.

The cathedral houses the Shrine of the Three Kings that is said to contain the relics of the Three Magi.

Cologne © Rolf H./flickr.com

But apart from Cologne Cathedral there are twelve Romanic churches in Cologne, as well as other medieval buildings and three of the formerly twelve city gates. The Cologne City Hall established in the 12th century is the oldest German city hall still in use. In the 15th century the Renaissance style loggia and tower were added.

Cologne also boasts 36 museums and more than 100 art galleries. And it is a green city too with many parks and gardens. Besides several bridges crossing over the Rhine there also is the Cologne Cable Car connecting the two banks of the Rhine near Cologne’s Zoo Bridge (Zoobrücke).

And Cologne is of course famous for its beer, the Kölsch. The top-fermented beer is served in typical glasses and is part of the Cologne culture. The best place to drink Kölsch certainly is one of the small brew houses you can find everywhere in the city.

German beer is not only part of the German culture but thanks to the Reinheitsgebot (purity order) one of the best beers in the world.

According to the Reinheitsgebot German beers only contain of water, hops and malt and beers such as Weissbier, not using only barley-malt must be top-fermented.

Pils © leah.jones/flickr.com

Beer was first mentioned in Germany in the Bavarian town of Geisenfeld in 736 and a document from 766 says that beer was delivered to the abbey of St Gallen in Gaisingen on the banks of the Danube River.

In Germany you can get about 5000 different beers many of them produced in small regional breweries. So if you wanted to try a different beer every day, it would take more than 13 years to try them all.

The most popular certainly is Pils or Pilsener, a pale lager with a light body and a prominent hop character. Export is maltier and less hoppy than Pils. Weissbier (wheat-beer) is very popular in the south. In Cologne the most popular beer is the Kölsch a pale beer with a light body too, whereas in Düsseldorf people drink Altbier, dark amber, hoppy beer.

Typical for Berlin is the Berliner Weisse, a pale and sour wheat beer. In Bamberg you can get the so called Rauchbier with a dark colour and a smoky taste as it is made of smoked malt.  But as you can imagine these are only a few German beers. Wherever you are, you will for sure find the right beer to suite your taste.

The town and island of Lindau, Bavaria are located on the eastern shore of Lake Constance. On the island you can find the town’s landmark, a lion sculpture, and Bavaria’s only lighthouse.

In Lindau you can see all kinds of fountains, as in ancient times they were the town’s water supply. Today they are still very popular with tourists and locals.

Town Hall © Stefan Munder/flickr.com

The most famous probably is the Lindavia Fountain at the Old Town Hall. The base is made of marble with a sculpture of the town’s patron Lindavia holding a lime twig on top. The basin’s sculptures show the former wealth of Lindau based on shipping, fishing, winegrowing and agriculture.

Another beautiful fountain is the Narrenbrunnen (fool’s fountain) with its sculptures.

About every part of the town has its own fountain and at Easter they are beautifully decorated.

But besides the fountains there are also the towers of Lindau. The most famous probably are the lighthouses at the harbour. The Old Lighthouse with a height of 37 metres was built in the 13th century. Its colourful roof dates back to the 19th century. At the entrance of the harbour there are the statue of the lion and the New Lighthouse built in 1856. If you climb up the 139 steps you have a stunning view of Lindau , Lake Constance and the Alps. You can even look as far as Bregenz, Austria.

Very popular at dusk is the promenade at the Pulverturm, the former magazine dating back to 1508. Standing on the western tip of the island, it was integrated into the town wall in the 16th century.
The Malefizturm or Diebesturm (thief‘s tower) was built during the Middle Ages and served as a prison. The coloured roof tiling dates back to the last century.

St Peter’s Church next to it is Lindau’s oldest church and was built around 1000 AD. Having been the town’s parish church until 1180 it has been a war memorial since 1928. Inside the church you can see frescos created by Hans Holbein the Elder at the end oft he 15th century.

There are a few more towers waiting to be discovered as well as the Stadgarten (town gardens).
And there are many more historical buildings to be explored as the historical town centre is well preserved.

The Old Town Hall was built between 1422 and 1436 and is the most impressive building in Maximilianstrasse. In 1496 the German Imperial Diet took place in the town hall which today is the home of 23,000 books of the Free Town Library that dates back several centuries. Besides the town hall there are also many patrician homes in Maximilianstrasse.

Lighthouse © vauvau/flickr.com

The most beautiful houses can be found at the market square. The former house of the Kawatz family with beautiful paintings on the front now is home of the Lindauer Stadtmuseum (town museum). Inside the building you can also see paintings and sculptures from the 15th to 18th century and collections of porcelain, tin and pottery.

And of course you shouldn’t miss out on a boat trip on Lake Constance. An excursion with on the MS Bayern is not only very informative but also a culinary trip. The ship is sailing from April to October and also around Christmas.
Swimming, surfing and sailing are of course only a few of the water related activities you can do at Lake Constance.

In the area you can also go cycling and even cycle around Lake Constance. Bett & Bike will provide you with accommodation and you can of course hire a bike.

Perfect destinations for a great day out with all the family also are Legoland and Connyland.

And Lindau has great shopping facilities to offer. You can buy regional foods on the farmer’s markets and also find old shops that have been there for many generations. Discovering them is like a step back in time.

Weissbier (white beer), also called Weizenbier (wheat beer) or even Hefeweizen, is a top fermented, unfiltered, bottle conditioned wheat beer with yeast sediment and a cloudy appearance.

Weissbier © Moe_/flickr.com

The typical Weissbier or Weizenbeer is a Bavarian specialty beer with a significant amount of malted barley being replaced with malted wheat. According to German law it must be made with at least 50% malted wheat, but most Bavarian Weissbiers contain 60 to 70% of it.

It is not quite clear whether it is called Weissbeer due to its paler colour or due to its content of wheat as both words are of the same origin. It is quite sweet and fruity with a full body.

You get special glasses for Weissbier and it should be poured smoothly not to produce too much head. When there is about a quarter of it left in the bottle, swirl it to lift the sediment and pour it into the glass. This will give the beer its cloudy appearance. Serve it chilled at about 6-8 °C.

Some people add a slice of lemon to a Weissbier but you will hardly see any Bavarians do this, as it ruins the taste of the beer and kills the head. It is more common to add lemon slices to Kristallweizen, the filtered version of Weissbier.

The Bavarian city of Bamberg is located in Upper Franconia on the River Regnitz and is one of the few cities in Germany that was not destroyed during the Second World War.

Because of its authentic medieval appearance and the many valuable architectural monuments the old town of Bamberg is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Old Town Hall/Altes Rathaus © Qole Pejorian/flickr.com

Two of the most outstanding buildings are the Romanesque cathedral and the Old Bridge Town Hall, built in the middle of the Regnitz and accessible by two bridges.

The Bamberg Cathedral (Bamberger Dom St. Peter und St. Georg) is Bamberg’s most famous landmark and one of the best-known architectural monuments in Germany. The late Romanesque building has four imposing towers and was founded in 1004 by Emperor Henry II. The magnificent marble tomb of the founder and his wife, Empress Cunigunde is considered to be the masterpiece of the famous sculptor Tilman Riemenschneider. It was carved between 1499 and 1513.

Another very famous treasure is an equestrian statue inside the cathedral called the Bamberg Horseman (Bamberger Reiter). Over the years people have tried to guess who the knight on horseback really was but as the sculptor has not carved his name on the statue, it isn’t even clear how old it really is. But it is now thought that the statue shows 11th century Hungarian King Stephen I.

Bamberg Cathedral/Bamberger Dom © liquidbonez/flickr.com

At a time the river was a boundary between the merchant and episcopal parts of the city, the old town hall was built on an artificial island in the middle of the River Regnitz, as according to the legend neither side could agree on a location.
Even though the façade of the town hall is painted in a baroque style, the core of the Gothic building of 1763 has still been preserved. The half-timbered Rottmeister House (1688) next to it seems to float on the river.

Also worth a visit is the row of neatly kept houses along the river known as ‘Little Venice’. Most of them are finely restored half-timbered fishermen’s houses dating back to the Middle Ages. Many of them have balconies and tiny front gardens with moorings for barges.

But Bamberg is also a beer city with 9 breweries within the town boundaries producing more than 50 different beers. You can not only try the smoked beer but join the Sandkerwa summer beer festival at the end of August, visit the Franconian Brewery Museum or one of the many beer cellars in town.

Bamberg boasts a total of 14 museums and you can learn about the history of Levi Strauss, who became world-famous because of his jeans, and many other things.

Especially in winter the German Erz Mountains are a great travel destination for all the family as they offer great winter sports facilities.

Oberwiesenthal is the alpine centre of the Erz Mountains and there you can go downhill skiing and snowboarding. The bobsled in Altenberg is one of the most modern in the world and therefore world famous and the right destination for curling-fans would be Geising. If you want to go cross-country skiing the Kammloipe ski run between Johanngeorgenstadt and Schöneck will certainly be your number one. But there are many other cross-country ski runs everywhere in the Erz Mountains.

Erz Mountains ©ohaoha/flickr.com

Oberwiesenthal close to the Czech border has the highest peaks of the Erz Mountains, the Fichtelberg (1215 m) and the Czech Klinovec (1244 m). Oberwiesenthal not only is a spa town but Germany’s highest town. Besides skiing, snowing and cross country-skiing you can also go hiking in the nature reserves and forests in the area.

Altenburg offers not only the famous bobsleds but also more than 30 kilometres of cross-country ski runs, over 30 kilometres of ski-hiking trails and of course downhill-pistes.

Johanngeorgenstadt was founded in 1654 by the elector Johann Georg I and was famous for its silver, tin and iron-mining. From 1960 on it became a centre of tourism with cross-country ski runs as well as downhill pistes.
Of course the Erz Mountains also offer a great variety of accommodation matching everybody’s taste.