Germany
EUROPE · 6 PLACES
Germany runs from Berlin techno that outlasts the weekend to Bavarian beer gardens, Rhine cathedrals and black fir ridges. Fast trains stitch it together, so city grit and pine forest sit an hour apart.
Berlin
Memorials, museums and the most serious club scene in Europe
Munich
Beer gardens, heavyweight museums and the Alps within reach
Hamburg
Working harbour, Elbphilharmonie and the Reeperbahn to finish
Cologne
Cathedral, Kölsch and the easiest small talk in the country
Dresden
Baroque riverfront rebuilt from rubble, plus a scruffy Neustadt
Black Forest
Freiburg base, cable cars, gorges and Baden-Baden thermal baths
One month here
Memorials, museums and the most serious club scene in Europe
Baroque riverfront rebuilt from rubble, plus a scruffy Neustadt
Beer gardens, heavyweight museums and the Alps within reach
Freiburg base, cable cars, gorges and Baden-Baden thermal baths
Cathedral, Kölsch and the easiest small talk in the country
Working harbour, Elbphilharmonie and the Reeperbahn to finish
Three months here
Rent a flat; it takes weeks to get past the obvious sights
Base for Bavaria, the Alps and day trips to Salzburg
Harbour city that rewards slow weeks and bad weather
Hike the ridges, ride the branch lines, learn the cake
Saxony, Saxon Switzerland hikes and Meissen porcelain
Rhineland base with Bonn, Düsseldorf and Belgium nearby
Festivals worth flying for
Oktoberfest · mid-Sept to first Sunday in Oct
Munich's Theresienwiese fills with beer tents; 2026 runs 19 Sept to 4 Oct. Book beds early.
Kölner Karneval · Weiberfastnacht to Rosenmontag, Feb/Mar
Cologne stops working for six days of costumes, street parties and parades.
Reeperbahn Festival · mid-September
Hamburg's club-crawl showcase across St. Pauli's small venues; 2026 runs 16-19 Sept.
Berlinale · February
Berlin's film festival sells tickets to the public, not just the industry. Queue early.
Christmas markets · late Nov to 24 Dec
Glühwein in every town square; Dresden's Striezelmarkt is the oldest of them all.
In an emergency
Emergency number 112
112 reaches ambulance and fire free from any phone, in English; police is 110. Pharmacies post the nearest night-duty Apotheke on the door.
Language
German. English is easy in big cities, patchier in small towns and the east.
Money
Cards are widely taken now, but carry €30-50 cash: bakeries, kiosks and old pubs stay cash-only.
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