Stretching from the Alps to the Baltic and North Seas, Germany makes for inspiring, fascinating and invigorating travel. Spend one day exploring half-timbered medieval towns and spectacular baroque palaces in Bavaria, and the next immersing yourself in fast-paced cosmopolitan cities. Metropolises such as Berlin provide a world of variety, with renowned historic attractions Brandenburg Gate and the Berlin wall right next to the top techno clubs on earth. Art and design explode in continual evolution, with Weimar providing the mecca for fans of Goethe, Schiller, and the Bauhaus Movement, and forward-thinking galleries dotted all over the country. Nature lovers have a paradise to explore, including pristine Alpine pistes, huge glimmering lakes, and thousands of miles of dense forest dotted with curative thermal springs. Culinary enthusiasts will delight in Germany's world-famous beer, sausage, and 'stollen'.
Situated in Lower Saxony, Braunschweig, also known as Brunswick, is the largest city between Hanover and Berlin. Once a thriving trading hub in the Middle ages, today Brunswick is a popular destination filled with a variety of historical monuments. This quintessential German medieval town boasts a rich cultural heritage, outstanding architecture and beautiful natural landscapes. Visitors can view the Cathedral of St. Blasius, visit the Richmond Palace, admire the 11th-century bronze Brunswick Lion, and explore the vast corridors of Dankwarderode Castle fringing Burgplatz Square. Other highlights include the Herzog Anton Ulrich Museum, Riddagshausen Abbey, Schlossmuseum Braunschweig and the Magniviertel, one of Braunschweig’s oldest quarters.
Set in the German state of Lower Saxony, the city of Wolfsburg is best known as the headquarters for Volkswagen. With easy access along the high-speed railway line from Berlin, visitors flock here to visit the Volkswagen AutoStadt, the ancient castle dating back to 1302, and the Phaeno Science Centre. Car fans will delight in a visit to the futuristic AutoStadt, or Automobile City, where fresh-out-the -box VWs are transported automatically from the factory and stacked by robots in two silos. Undoubtedly the main highlight of the city, this cutting-edge attraction also features a museum on the history of automobiles, ZeitHaus; the Premium Clubhouse, which has top-of-the-line sports cars and the beautifully designed Porsche Pavilion. History lovers can look forward to visiting the 14th century Wolfsburg Castle, which was turned into a deluxe Weser Renaissance palace in the 1500s.
Quedlinburg, located in northern Germany on a lush plain north of the Harz Mountains, is a postcard-perfect town famous for its wealth of medieval buildings. The UNESCO-listed town features an incredible Old Town Centre and boasts 1,300 timber-framed houses lined by a maze of cobbled streets. Top sites to see include the impressive Romanesque Quedlinburg Castle, housing some of the oldest ecclesiastical artefacts in Germany; and the ornately decorated Market Church, featuring beautiful stained-glass windows and dating back to before 1233. Other highlights include the excellent Lyonel-Feininger-gallery; the Klopstockhaus Museum, dedicated to renowned Classicist classicist poet Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock; and the Harz Narrow Gauge Railway, which allows visitors to take a breathtaking steam-train ride up to the heights of the Harz. Nature lovers have plenty to explore in the town’s alluring surrounds of meadows, forests and hills.
Situated in Lower Saxony, Wolfenbüttel is the capital of the district of the same name and is famous for its Herzog August Library and half-timbered houses. The library is known as the best collection of 17th-century books and features an impressive set of massive medieval globes as well as the world’s most expensive book. Wolfenbüttel boasts the largest number of half-timbered houses in Germany, best seen at Klein Venedig (‘Little Venice’), a picturesque canalled area of the town. Couples will delight in the opportunity to attach a lock to the Stobenstrasse Bridge, which offers some sublime views. Gain an overarching understanding of Wolfenbüttel with a visit to the fascinating Bürger Museum. Nature-lovers should take a day trip to nearby Harz National Park for spectacular mountain, forest, and lake scenery.
