If You Like

If You Like

Bicycling

Bicycles can be rented in nearly all towns and many villages. The Deutsche Bahn, Germany's national railway, has excellent deals on bicycle rentals at train stations. Several regional tourist offices sponsor tours on which the biker's luggage is transported separately from one overnight stop to the next. Six- to 10-day tours are available at reasonable rates, including bed-and-breakfast and bike rental.

Hiking & Walking

The Black Forest is ideal for walkers. The principal trails are well marked and cross the region from north to south, the longest stretching from Pforzheim to the Swiss city of Basel, 280 km (174 mi) away. Walks vary in length from a few hours to a week. As in many other German regions, the tourist office has gotten together with local inns to create Wandern ohne Gepäck (Hike without Luggage) tours. Your bags are transported ahead by car to meet you each evening at that day's destination.

Spas & Health Resorts

There's an amazing variety of places to have a relaxing soak, from expensive spa towns to rustic places deep in the woods -- any town that begins with "Bad" is home to either natural thermal or mineral springs that are pumped into modern spa facilities. Many Germans come here for two- to three-week health treatments; others use the same healing waters as a weekend refresher. Baden-Baden is the most stately and expensive of the spa towns. Hinterzarten also provides opportunities to hike. Many of the spas offer special rates for longer stays.

Winter Sports

Despite Swiss claims to the contrary, the Black Forest is the true home of downhill skiing. In 1891 a French diplomat was sighted sliding down the slopes of the Feldberg, the Black Forest's highest mountain, on what are thought to be the world's first downhill skis. The idea caught on among the locals, and a few months later Germany's first ski club was formed. The world's first ski lift opened at Schollach in 1907. There are now more than 200 ski lifts in the Black Forest, but the slopes of the Feldberg are still the top ski area.