I have been a Slow Travel reader for some years however I am yet to experience slow travel abroad (I am Australian). I am keen for an extended escape and thought visiting Germany would give my children (13 & 10) an opportunity to improve their classroom german (maybe that is simply an excuse to bring them along) BUT noone seems to ever escape to Germany - Tuscany, Provence, but Germany? Am I crazy? Thanks Mum & Kids
here's a Mami, that regularly "escapes" to Germany with her kids albeit mostly to visit family. And yes, goal number 2 is to improve their German. However, to be quite frank, that goal is only achievable if I'm out of the picture as they simply know all too well that they can speak English with me just as they do at home.
One year we had a great experience spending a week in a castle on the Rhine that offered a family program on a "Ritter" theme. While such a program might not appeal to your teen the Rhine and its castles appeal to all ages. There are quite a number of youth hostels located in castles all over Germany offering affordable and *interesting* accommodation.
I would check out the family programs the DJH (the youth hostel organization) runs. That way there is a better chance that you are immersed with other German families and your kids get to speak German regularly. My goal for one of the upcoming trips is to take one such organized family programs and do a bike tour along the Mosel.
Posts: 23 | Location: Canada | Registered: 22 July 2008
I also second that Germany is a wonderful, beautiful country for Slow Travel. It is a country with so many facets, so many sides to it, so much history and culture and art and music. I lived there for years and really only experienced a small part of what there is to experience. Of course the romance of the south of France and of Italy is very different than Germanic culture. But it is the country of Beethoven and Goethe and Klee, and there is alot to be explored. Tell us what your interests are and what time of year you would like to travel.
I just came back from Germany. My son and I went to Hohenschwangau in Bavaria where the fairytale castle is. There are actually 2 castles there inhabited by King Ludwig the 2nd. I stayed at Romantic Albrecht Pension with a balcony view of the castle. It was wonderful. Then we took the train to Munich and stayed the weekend. We went to the Virtuliken Market, The Resdidenz where the crown jewels are, the Hofbrau Haus to eat and drink and we took a bus tour of Munich where we could hop off at the Nymphenburg palace where we spent 3 hours. You would defintely get to practice your german, as the guides at the palace and the Residenz did not speak English, everywhere else they did but you can speak German if you want to. It was a wonderful trip. We also went to Austria where they speak German too. It is in the middle of the Alps and I highly recommend Helga Lenz Zimmer bed and breakfast in Hallstatt, Austria, the most beautiful place on earth.
My favorite area is Baden-Baden, just such a neat place for relaxation,
We love Baden Baden too. Once a year, we drive from the UK to Puglia, and it's become a tradition that we spend the first night in Baden Baden: the marvellous Caracalla Spa is a great place to slowly unwind after a long day's drive.
Off there in a fortnight's time
Jonathan
Posts: 2941 | Location: Stroud, UK | Registered: 18 November 2001
Originally posted by Diana Strinati Baur: kriscat, it would be great if you could do a review here on the ST main site -- of that great B&B in Hallstatt. I would be very interested.
If you really want German practice, I would head for Northern Germany - they speak very clear German there. (Much as I love my adopted home in Bavaria, the dialect is definitely a challenge!). The area is quite far off the usual tourist track but there is so much to discover. Hamburg is a wonderful city, with the Alster lakes in the centre, the port area with the big Hanseatic trading buildings in the city too. To the East there is Luebeck, another Hanseatic port, to the West is Bremen, ditto. To the North, the countryside is rather flat, but there is the lake area at Ploen and I remember Flensburg as being an interesting port town, and there is also the Kiel canal and the coast. To the South there is the Luenburger Heide - a bit like the New Forest in England, lots of horses - and some really pretty small towns. I spent a lot of time in Hamburg in my teenage years, doing am exchange with another girl there, and I still have happy memories of the area.
Northern Germany is the home of High German, to be sure, with Hannover being the city where the purest German is spoken. In Hamburg, it is very possible to learn high German, and the instructors there are accent free. Hamburg itself has indeed a local accent and several different dialects taken from Plattdeutsch, or low German - a historic blend of Germanic languages, English and Celtic which is still spoken throughout Northern Germany.
Still, even with the Plattdeutsch inflection of the north, the spoken German closer resembles High German than many of the dialects and accents spoken in the rest of the country, Switzerland or Austria.
I second Margaret's recommendation for a North German getaway. It is a remarkable area, and very different than what is normally considered "German" in the traveler's mind.
Thank you all for your suggestions. My children's german is very basic but I have told them they can order whatever they like to eat as long as they speak in German, so that may motivate them. I am very interested in staying in a castle that has a program for children, so 'Canadabaerchen' if you can remember the name of the castle I would very much appreciate it. Also, I am loath to drive on Germany's autobahns, will we see enough if we are limited to trains? By only traveling by train, I am worried we will be limited to staying in cities, for example Munich and only getting to Hohenschwangau on a day tour which tends to cost more. For example recently I had a free day in Paris after a work trip and my colleague and I decided to spend it at Versailles. It cost 130 euro with a tour but we found out we could get a combined metro/entry ticket for around 30 euro and could stay as long as we liked. thanks for your advice
Being Australian, I also dislike the idea of driving a car anywhere in Europe.
We stayed in Rudesheim on the Rhine and found train and river travel great. We did however have a rail pass bought in Australia prior to leaving.
Scenery by train is great and a wonderful relaxing experience. No designated driver who can't possibly see anything for fear of losing concentration whilst driving.
Elly
Posts: 1066 | Location: Western Australia | Registered: 27 March 2005
We stayed at the Schönburg in Oberwesel. That particular castle has a very nice posh hotel in one part, a youth hostel in the other part of the castle. The special family program runs only once or twice a year. Their website is in German only but you can contact the manager Anja directly to inquire about the 2009 program. She speaks excellent English:
You'd have more choices if you go the DJH website. You can do a specific search for family programs in castles. Choose age 12-14 and "Schloss" on the very bottom to get the most appropriate options. Not sure if there is a way to do that in English, I can help you if you want.
In terms of cost: our family of 4 paid about 1000 Euro for a week which included accommodation in two separate rooms, each with ensuite bathroom (simple, tiny but functional), 3 meals/day, morning programs for the children and 2 family excursions with boat trip on the Rhine and a medivial festival at Ehrenburg
Posts: 23 | Location: Canada | Registered: 22 July 2008
As someone who made several excursions along the MittelRhein/Rheingau some years ago, I would heartily recommend either Rüdesheim or Oberwesel, which are on opposite banks of the river. Here is a website about the Schönburg Castle in English, but it only references the hotel, not the hostel.
And here is a website about this section of the Rhine which includes information about boat trips which you could take. Also, if you didn't want to drive on an Autobahn (which I'm not sure I'd want to do now either), you could get to your destination by train or bus and then, say, rent a car for a day and drive on the river road between towns and villages along the Rhine or drive up into the surrounding mountains.
Train travel is very easy in Germany and not at all expensive. In Bavaria, we have an all day ticket (Bayern Ticket) for 5 people costing only 27 Euros in total, provided you travel after 09.00 in the morning. As far as I know, other regions have the same thing under a different name. Certainly you cannot get to every single little place by train, but you can get to most places and for those you can't, the bus services are good. For me, the disadvantage of train travel compared with driving is that you have to carry your luggage with you. But if you can travel light, the trains are excellent.
I can't say anything about northern Germany, since I haven't been there, but my family and I have "escaped" to Germany several times to Munich and the Bavarian Alps. Last month we rented an apartment in Garmisch, and I think that is a fabulous location especially if you don't have a car. The train station is right in the center of the town. I believe there is a train to/from Munich just about every hour, plus good bus connections. You could base here and visit Munich, Innsbruck, Mittenwald, the King Ludwig castles etc. Plus there are train/cable car trips up many of the beautiful mountains that surround the town.
Here's a link to their tourist office website (english version), and you can request a package of information that I found very helpful.
A family trip is much easier with a rental house or apartment, since you will have much more room to spread out. And you'll have a kitchen where you can prepare some of your meals, which also helps make the trip more economical.
