What to see and do in Germany

Germany offers a diversity of attractions for the visitor. Some of the most popular ones are:

• wine and beer festivals.
• river cruising on the major waterways.
• the historic castles and palaces found all over the country.
• wonderfully preserved medieval towns.
• the wide choice of vibrant modern cities offering great cultural entertainment.
• the natural landscape ranging from high Alps, to dramatic gorges, huge silent forests and rugged coastline.
  

Touring
Many people prefer to experience Germany by touring along the dozens of tourist routes which give a flavour of some of the above attractions. Especially popular are the Romantic Road, Castle Road and Fairy Tale Road. The road and railway infrastructure in Germany is second to none in Europe and makes touring the country easy and pleasant. 

Festivals
Wine and beer festivals take place all over the country from spring through to autumn. The focus of many wine festivals is the region of the Rhine and Moselle where every town has its traditional annual festival. The "Oktoberfest" beer festival in Munich has an international reputation as the largest festival of its type in the world. However, there are many more similar events taking place across Germany, even if they are all not quite so large!  In context of folk festivals mention must also be made of the carnival season which takes place at the end of lent, but which is celebrated in a major way only in a limited number of areas, notably around Cologne, Düsseldorf, Mainz, Stuttgart and Munich.

Art
Berlin is overall the most important city in terms of its performing arts, museums and collections. However, every major German city offers an extensive cultural programme and in certain areas cities such as Munich, Hamburg, Dresden, Leipzig, Stuttgart, Frankfurt, Düsseldorf and Cologne are just as important. Amongst the many international music festivals held annually in Germany, the Wagner Festival at Bayreuth has perhaps the biggest reputation.  Although it is performed only once a decade, the Oberammergau Passion Play is another German production enjoying a massive international reputation, many fans are already making plans for the next Passion Play which will take place in 2010.

Nature
In terms of natural beauty some of the highlights include the Rhine and Moselle valleys, the Bavarian Alps and lakelands, the Baltic coast, the Harz mountains, Lake Constance, Saxon Switzerland, the Black Forest, the Bavarian Forest and the volcanic Eifel region. Germany stands out by the variety of different landscapes from north to south and some truly breathtaking scenery.

Culture
While Germany enjoys a high reputation for industrial achievement, it is also very proud of its cultural heritage which has been fabulously conserved in many towns and villages across the country. Some of the most famous heritage sites are Bamberg, Goslar and Lübeck which all enjoy UNESCO World Heritage Site status. While the list is almost endless other important historic place names are Heidelberg, Passau, Regensburg, Aachen, Bremen, Trier, Hamelin and Coburg to name but a few.