Family Holiday in Germany

cullenswood

Registered User
Messages
69
Hi,

Anyone here holiday in Germany? We have three kids, 11, 9 and 7. Have been to Spain and Portugal for the last number of years, but thought about doing something different next year.

Would like some advice on where to book, and what to book. We were thinking of somewhere down south beside a lake for swimming. Would also like a pool, but not sure we want to do a campsite.

Would usually book through homeaway or the equivalent, for a self catering place. Would this be the best way to do Germany?

Thanks a lot
 
I'd be very interested in a reply on this as well. I also usually book through Homeaway and have been in Portugal for the last few years. I've travelled in Germany for work many times and loved the place and the people but I've never been there on holidays or with kids.
 
We were in Bavaria previously (Garmisch-Partenkirchen) and loved it. Like Purple, booked it ourselves through vrbo (which is part of the Homeaway group). We're thinking of going again next summer, possibly this time to Lake Constance but are considering other options. We're looking for somewhere with decent cycle paths and plenty of outdoor options and Lake Constance seems to tick a lot of the boxes so far. Europa Park is definitely something worth considering as well alright so we might do 1 week in each region.
Last time around we didn't even hire a car, public transport was perfect and I think each local region provide free bus passes once you pay the tourist tax.
 
We stayed in Friedrichshafen on Lake Constance back in the day when Ryanair flew there. Now Memmingen is the nearest airport.. Great little spot. you can hop on the train and run along the lake or cross in to Austria on one of the ferries. Treat yourself to a very expensive flight on a Zeppelin.
 
We are interested in a holiday in the Black Forest area. We're not too sure where we should be focusing our search, what town or lake, which airport. We are a mature couple, interested in sightseeing, walking and self catering mixed with eating out. Open to hiring a car. Any suggestions?

PS. although we are thinking Black Forest, we would also consider Austria, Switzerland and alpine France.
 
We were in Austria last month. Flew in to Munich and got train from airport to Salzburg. Stayed two nights there. Then we got the local bus from Salzburg for the 45 minute journey to St. Gilgen on the lake where we stayed for 3 nights.
You can get a boat/ferry from St. Gilgen to visit St. Wolfgang, lovely. We also went on a day trip to the beautiful town of Hallstatt.
Great holiday altogether.
 
Purple, Slim, or anybody else,

I have been to Germany 10+ times, although never with kids.

If anybody needs any info on trains, please feel free to ask me.
 
Thanks all who have replied. What l am looking for are recommendations for a nice area to visit, such as the Black Forest, lakes and/or mountains. What towns or villages to say in or near, which airport to fly into, hire a car or not, etc? We would prefer to stay in one location for 10 days or so.

No kids with us anymore, no serious hiking either! Cheers!
 
Slim,

I have visited Freiburg maybe three times, twice maybe 15 years ago, and once maybe 10 years ago.

It is near the Black Forest.

It's a nice city, affluent, with green credentials.

It's not in or near the centre of the Black Forest, though. It's on the edge of the Black Forest, south-west corner.

It's said to be the warmest city in Germany.

There are two rail lines into the Schwarzwald from Freiburg:

[broken link removed]
 
Slim,

I have visited Freiburg maybe three times, twice maybe 15 years ago, and once maybe 10 years ago.

It is near the Black Forest.

It's a nice city, affluent, with green credentials.

It's not in or near the centre of the Black Forest, though. It's on the edge of the Black Forest, south-west corner.

It's said to be the warmest city in Germany.

There are two rail lines into the Schwarzwald from Freiburg:

[broken link removed]
Many thanks Protocol. I will have a look at flights to that area.
 
Hi Protocol, we're narrowing down our options for next year and the Black Forest looks like the best bet. Now all we are trying to decide is where best to stay, as a base to visit the rest of the region (and maybe make a few day trips further afield to places like Lake Constance or Strasbourg). Do you know much about Gengenbach or Baden-Baden? We're considering properties in both areas (and one other in Sasbachwalden which is near Baden-Baden).
 
We did a home exchange to Lake Constance several times and found it ideal for both adults and kids. The lake itself is fabulous and you apcan take a boat trip from one side to the other. As you are on the borders of Switzerland and Austria you can easily visit these countries too. Weather in that area tends to be very good. Far nicer taking a holiday here than Spain. Germans are great for having children facilities in every town no matter how small.
 
Ceist Beag

sorry I really only know about Freiburg, and even at that I don't know that much about Freiburg.
 
I spent several years in the area, and visited Baden Wuttenberg on many occasions. Freiberg is a lovely university town, with a heavily pedestrianised centre, bustling on a Saturday, which is when I'd recommend you visit.

Baden-Baden is a more exclusive town, with an older demographic. It was England's base during Euro 2006, so very WAG friendly :) From what I recall, you'd see all the sites in a day (the casino is well worth a visit).

Heidelberg and its castle, further north, is beautiful as is Ludwigsburg Residential Palace near Stuttgart

If you're in the area, I'd highly recommend crossing the border in Alscace. Colmar is very close to Freiberg and is a very pretty medieval city. If you have the time, the "route des vins" is a lovely trip to do especially on a warm summers' day, there are plenty of people who cycle it, if that's your cuppa, with numerous stunning villages dotted around the hills to see too (Riquewihr, Kayersberg, Ribeauville etc).

You're also likely to find things which are open on a Sunday there (including the vineyards), whereas most everything else is shut (shops, supermarkets etc don't open, unless they're in a train station). Haut-Koenigsbourg Castle is very impressive and there's a large car museum near Mulhouse (skip the town itself though). Strasbourg is a nice walkable large city too with plenty of attractions.

Europapark is a fantastic theme park, near "Rust" in Germany. but there are also loads of "luge" on both sides of the border which kids (and big kids) will enjoy.

It's a fantastic area, which I'd highly recommend anyone seeing. Enjoy your holiday.
 
I agree with visiting Colmar. Spent a week there last year. Really beautiful town and a good base to explore from.
 
We stayed in the Pierre & Vacances about 7 minutes walk from old town Colmar by exiting through the back gate. A day trip from Colmar to here on the local bus was easy for a few Euro....

 
I agree with visiting Colmar. Spent a week there last year. Really beautiful town and a good base to explore from.
If you are in Colmar you should see the Isenheim Alterpiece, one of the major works of 16th century European art. (It's in the museum).
 
Back
Top