Sixteen states that were separate countries until 1871 and still behave like it. Berlin is nothing like Munich, the trains mostly work, and a bed costs less than in most of its western neighbours.
Germany unified in 1871 and the parts have never fully agreed to it. Bavaria is Catholic, conservative and alpine; Hamburg is a northern port that looks to Scandinavia; Berlin is neither, and spent forty years split down the middle. The differences in food, dialect and attitude are larger than visitors expect.
For travellers this is good news, because it means variety inside a country with excellent transport and low prices. Berlin for nightlife and twentieth-century history, Munich for the Alps and beer halls, Hamburg for water and music, Cologne for the cathedral and Carnival, Dresden and Leipzig for the east at a third of Berlin's cost.
A week does two cities properly. Ten days does three with a day in the countryside — the Rhine valley, Saxon Switzerland or the Bavarian Alps, all reachable by regional train.
Trains are fast and frequent. Deutschland-Ticket flat fares make regional travel very cheap if you have time.
Cheap, scruffy, enormous and the best nightlife in Europe. Also the most serious museum city on the continent.
There is nowhere in the world like Berlin.
A traveller, on Hostelworld
Beer halls, the Alps an hour away, and the most expensive beds in the country during Oktoberfest.
Great city with much to see. Much is easily walkable, and the city public transport is so easy with the MVV app
A traveller, on Hostelworld
Canals, container ships, the Reeperbahn and a music scene that produced half of German rock.
Hamburg was much more beautiful than I expected! Lots to do, great nightlife and restaurants. Could use a few more activities like games bars but otherwise great!
A traveller, on Hostelworld
The cathedral, the Rhine, and a Carnival that shuts the city for a week every February.
Beautiful city, amazing architecture, people are nice if you need help they will guide you !
A traveller, on Hostelworld
Rebuilt baroque centre and the gateway to Saxon Switzerland. Cheap, and often skipped.
Dresden is a beautiful historic city with so much stunning architecture and story, so much to see if the weathers good you can chill by the river or ride the Elbe-radweg by bike, or if you want more alternative vibes the neu-stadt is gonna be up your street so there’s such a great mixture of modern and old it’s in my eyes for a city has pretty much the perfect balance of all, definitely worth a visit!
A traveller, on Hostelworld
The city Berliners move to when Berlin gets expensive. Music, galleries, and lower prices.
A city that has a lot of music culture and stories. I'd stay for 2-3 nights to soak it in. The Christmas markets were pretty cool and budget friendly.
A traveller, on Hostelworld
Banking towers over a rebuilt old town, the best transport links in the country, and a cider culture nobody expects.
Frankfurt is big. It has much to offer. I was s9lo traveling and had a few days before heading to Austria, my destination. I found much culture and sights to keep me busy all weekend. Easy to get around with all the S and U trains, trams, buses. Food, bars, life.
A traveller, on Hostelworld
A reconstructed medieval core, Nazi rally grounds with an honest museum, and the most famous Christmas market in Germany.
We had a fantastic time (short stay) in Nuremberg with a mix of museums, city walks, great restaurants. Exceeded our expectations.
A traveller, on Hostelworld
A castle above a river, the oldest university in the country, and the most photographed old town in the south.
Heidelburg is AMAZE!!!!!! One of my favourite places I've visited
A traveller, on Hostelworld
Altbier in the world's longest bar, Japanese food to rival Tokyo, and a rivalry with Cologne that is taken seriously.
Nice city, beautiful places to photograph, get around and stay quiet.
A traveller, on Hostelworld
Car museums for Mercedes and Porsche, vineyards inside the city, and a wine festival bigger than you would expect.
Great place to stay for a short city break. Stuttgart has so much to see and do - whatever interests you - cars or culture.
A traveller, on Hostelworld
The sunniest city in Germany, on the edge of the Black Forest, with streams running along the streets.
Germany is strongest on nightlife, history and the outdoors. Pick your week.
Berlin sets the standard, and the rest of the country benefits.
Twentieth-century history told where it happened.
Three or four days, one city, no transfers.
Alps in the south, sandstone gorges in the east.
Beer, bread and a lot more than sausage.
One of the cheapest countries in western Europe.
Berlin is the heavyweight and needs at least three days: Museum Island, the Wall memorial at Bernauer Strasse, the Topography of Terror and the Holocaust memorial are the serious core, and the city treats its own history with unusual directness.
Munich's attraction is partly the city — the Residenz, the beer halls, the Englischer Garten with its river surfers — and partly what is an hour away: Neuschwanstein, the Alps, and Dachau, which most visitors find harder than they expect and should still see.
Outside the cities, the Rhine valley between Bingen and Koblenz, Saxon Switzerland's sandstone towers and the Black Forest all work as day trips by regional train, which is where the Deutschlandticket earns its money.
German food is better and more regional than its reputation: Bavarian roast pork and dumplings, northern fish rolls, Swabian pasta, Turkish cooking in Berlin that is arguably the city's real cuisine. The döner as it exists today was invented in Berlin, and a good one costs €6.
Beer is regional too, and taken seriously. Kölsch in Cologne comes in small glasses replaced automatically until you put the mat on top. Munich's beer gardens let you bring your own food as long as you buy the beer — a picnic and a litre is the cheapest good afternoon in the country.
Bakeries are the everyday answer. Breakfast is bread, cheese and cold cuts, lunch can be a €4 sandwich, and supermarkets are cheap enough that self-catering makes a real difference over a fortnight.
Berlin is the reason people fly here for a weekend. Clubs open on Friday and close on Monday, the door policy at the famous ones is genuinely selective, and the culture is no photos, no fuss, no closing time. Go late — arriving before two is arriving early.
Hamburg's Reeperbahn is the other big night, less techno and more live music. Cologne drinks Kölsch in traditional brewery taps. Leipzig and Dresden have the cheapest nights in the country.
Beer gardens are the summer alternative everywhere, open from midday, communal tables, and the closest thing Germany has to a national pastime.
The Deutschlandticket is the single best transport deal in Europe: €63 a month for every regional train, bus, tram and U-Bahn in the country. It excludes the fast ICE services, so journeys take longer, but for anyone staying a few weeks it pays for itself almost immediately.
For speed, ICE trains connect the big cities — Berlin to Munich in four hours, Berlin to Hamburg in under two — and Sparpreis fares booked weeks ahead cost a third of the walk-up price. FlixBus, which is German, undercuts the train on most routes if time is not the priority.
Cities are cycling cities. Bike lanes are taken seriously, and standing in one as a pedestrian will get you shouted at, entirely fairly.
Germany is cheaper than France, Italy and the Netherlands, and Berlin is cheaper than any comparable capital in western Europe. Dorms start around €20, rising sharply in Munich during Oktoberfest and in Cologne during Carnival, when prices can triple.
Supermarkets are the lever. Aldi and Lidl are German, and self-catering plus a beer garden picnic keeps a day near €45. Eating out twice a day pushes it to €70.
Museums are modestly priced and often free on specific days, and the Deutschlandticket removes most transport cost for anyone staying longer than a fortnight.
Germany is a safe country and the cities feel it, including late at night. The usual pickpocket caution applies around main stations — Berlin Hauptbahnhof, Cologne and Frankfurt — and at Oktoberfest, where the combination of crowds and beer does the thieves' work for them.
Berlin's reputation for grit is mostly about scruffiness rather than danger. Kottbusser Tor and parts of Görlitzer Park have an open drug scene that looks alarming and is rarely directed at visitors, though walking through the park alone at night is not advised.
One practical thing: jaywalking is socially policed. Crossing on a red light with children present will get you told off, and it is not a joke.
Germany is in the Schengen area. EU citizens need an ID card only. UK, US, Canadian and Australian passport holders get 90 days in any 180 across the whole zone, counted across all member states rather than per country.
Passports need three months' validity beyond departure and must have been issued within the last ten years.
ETIAS, the EU's pre-travel authorisation, has been delayed several times, so check the official EU page rather than any article for its status. Germany also requires you to be able to identify yourself on request, which is why hostels take your passport at check-in.
Germany is a summer country with a strong December exception. Winters are long and grey, but Christmas markets are the one thing worth booking cold weather for.
Average highs for Berlin. Munich is colder in winter, the Rhineland milder. Oktoberfest runs mid-September to early October despite the name.
Pick how you travel and how long for. Per night, for one person, outside Oktoberfest and Carnival.
Excludes intercity travel. A Deutschlandticket at €63 covers a month of regional transport and replaces most of the transport line.
Two of these make their cities unaffordable for a fortnight. Plan around them in both directions.
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The Nürnberger Altstadtfest transforms Nuremberg into a celebration of Franconian culture, with two weeks of music, theatre, and culinary tradition in the heart of…
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Experience the world's largest beer festival at Oktoberfest in Munich. With over 6 million attendees each year, this event offers traditional German beer, delicious…
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The Cannstatter Volksfest, held annually in Stuttgart, Germany, is one of the largest and most vibrant folk festivals in Europe. Known as the "Stuttgart…
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Experience the magic of the Festival of Lights in Berlin, one of the world's most renowned light art festivals. Each autumn, the city transforms…
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Freimarkt in Bremen, Germany, is a lively and historic fair that transforms the city into a hub of excitement each autumn. With over 300…
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Set against the stunning backdrop of Cologne Cathedral, the Cologne Christmas Market is a beloved tradition that draws visitors from across the globe. Known…
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Experience the festive magic at Christmas City Dortmund, one of Europe's largest Christmas markets, where over 250 stalls fill the city center with handcrafted…
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Düsseldorf, Germany, transforms into a magical winter landscape each holiday season as its Christmas Markets fill the city with festive cheer. Visitors can stroll…
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