5 Must Try German Foods

Spätzle

1.Spatzle (pictured above) is a soft egg noodle commonly found in the southern part of Germany. It can be served as a side dish with butter or topped with gravy or cheese (käsespätzle). They don’t require a lot of ingredients, cook quickly, and kids love them. The perfect German dish for everyone.

Wurst

2. Everyone knows about the traditional German sausage, bratwurst, but there are over 1,500 types of wurst. Some of the more familiar are Knackwurst (made from beef and port), Bratwurst (made from veal or pork), Currywurst (pork sausage in a curry-ketchup sauce) and Weisswurst. Don’t miss out on this Bavarian specialty. Weisswurst translates to “white sausage” as they have a grayish white color. They are made of finely ground veal and pork back bacon and spices such as parsley, lemon, and onion. Usually boiled in a pot of salt water, these taste best with a side of sweet mustard and a glass of German beer.

Kartoffelpuffer

3. The name sounds fancy, but in English it translates to potato pancake. These are made of grated potatoes, flour, egg, onions, and seasoning, flattened, then fried. Easy to make and taste delicious with a side of applesauce or sour cream depending on your taste buds.

Brezel

4. Nothing tastes quite as delicious as an authentic German pretzel (brezel). Found from beer halls to street markets, these soft, chewy snacks will make you never want anything but the real thing. The Germans love to slice them in half and slather them with butter (butterbrezel), so be prepared to tell them if you would prefer one without.

Schnitzel

5. There are many types of schnitzel, the most common being Wiener Schnitzel (which originated in Austria). Wiener Schnitzel is made of a thinly pounded veal cutlet, dipped in a mixture of egg, flour, and bread crumbs and then cooked in a frying pan. Today many variations exist and schnitzel can be made of chicken, pork, and turkey. One delicious variation is jägerschnitzel which is the meat topped with a mushroom gravy, and served with a side of potatoes or spätzle. Different regions of Germany often have their own schnitzel specialties that add a special twist to this traditional dish.

Do Not Eat This!

The one German food that’s best left alone is a schneeball. Do not be deceived as it appears very delicious, sadly however, it is not. Schneeball translates as snowball, and this southern German pastry does indeed look like a round ball. They happen to taste like one too. Made from strips of short crust pastry and formed into a ball shape, the pastry is then deep fried and covered with powdered sugar. Bakeries offer many variations including chocolate glazed, marzipan filled, coconut covered. Basically anything they can do to mask the awful taste that lies underneath the top layer. Save your money and skip these “treats”.

Do you have a favorite German food?

Guest post:

Kirsten Maxwell is the founder of Kids Are A Trip, a family travel website created to inspire families to explore the world with their children. She and her husband have visited 25 countries and counting, exposing her children to other customs and cultures. Kirsten is a Travelocity Gnational Gnomad. A native Phoenician, Kirsten currently lives in Chicago with her husband and three boys.

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Visiting here while driving through the Bavarian alps was too much fun. Here you will find a luge course, better known in the United States as an Alpine Slide. There happen to be quite a few luge courses all through the Bavarian Alps, but this is the only one we visited.

At this point I had never been on a luge course, but as soon as I read about them, I know my kids would love it. Not to brag, but I was right! They could have done this all day.

We rode the luge over and over. We bought the multi-ride passes, which, if you are going to ride more than twice is the more affordable option. Granted, this is a super cheap activity no matter how many times you ride

I have since gone to other Alpine Slides, because this one was so awesome. Now that I have something to compare it too, I can easily say this one is my favorite in the world.

My kids also liked the little zip line and playground. Both of those were free.

It took us a long time to find the bathroom, lucky for you I will tell you where to find it.

• The bathroom is upstairs in the restaurant.

The restaurant was not open while we were there, but appears to be open during warmer months.

Cost

Children from 3 to 14 years inclusive 2.00 € per ride or 10.00 € for 6 rides. 

Adults ages 15 and up are 2.50 € per ride or 12.50 € for 6 rides. 

Opening Hours

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday Friday 12:00 PM – 5:30 PM
Saturday and Sunday 10am – 6pm

Since our visit here they’ve added on an insane luge course, climbing tower, and bungee trampolines.

More Things to do in Bavaria

Linderhof Castle

Visit Munich

Edelweiss Military Lodge

Alpspitz

Partnach Gorge

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Alpspitz

While we were in Germany, down in the Bavarian Alps we wanted to go up to the top of one of the mountains and enjoy the beauty.

We decided to go to Alpspitz because is a much more affordable experience than Zugspitze for families.

• Instead of almost 200 euros this was less than 60 euros.
• When you get to the top there are no further costs.
• You do not have to pay to walk out onto the platform.
• Make sure you buy a round trip ticket for the cable car because it is cheaper.

The other reason we chose Alpspitz over Zugsptize was that the day we picked to go Zugspitze was totally covered up in clouds. They have live cameras allowing you to see the conditions before buying a ticket. I do not know how it compares it otherwise. We went up and enjoyed the tremendous views of Garmish-Partenkirchen.

You ride the Alpspitzbahn cable car the mountain and dropped off so far up you can not see where it stops until you are at least half of the way there.

Alpspitz

There is a walkway/viewing platform that hangs you out over the side of the mountain that is pretty cool. I’m not afraid of heights, but heights make me uncomfortable sometimes. With that said I was able to walk all the way out there and it is way up there.  The drop is 3,000 feet.

There were many hiking trails up here and we saw many people going off on hikes. We did not stay and hike because we had already decided to hike the Partnach Gorge.

We also saw people bring bikes up for mountain biking. Here are some German Alps Hiking  Tips.

Whether you are a mountaineer or simply enjoy the beauty of nature, Alpspitz is a breathtakingly beautiful location that all visitors should experience. With unrivaled views and stunning opportunities for outdoor activities, every traveler to these mountains should make sure to include Alpspitz in their itinerary. Spectacular adventures, stunning scenes, and unforgettable memories converge on this mountain terrain and it remains one of the truly majestic features of the Bavarian Alps. Where is your place in the Bavarian Alps? Come explore this amazing wonderland and start planning your next getaway today! The memories will stay with you forever and bring joyous tales of your peculiar journeys to those around you – may they be filled with laughter, friendship, and beauty.

Neuschwanstein Castle

Munich Travel Guide

Linderhof Castle in Germany

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Hohenschwangau Castle

Hohenschwangau Castle or Schloss Hohenschwangau is a 19th-century palace in southern Germany.  It was the castle “Mad” King Ludwig grew up in and lived in while he had Neuschwanstein built. Maximilian II (Ludwig’s dad) actually bought this 12th century castle from the knights of Schwangau in 1832. After Prince Maximilian bought the castle, he had it reconstructed according to the original plans.

Unlike Neuschwanstein, it is a short easy walk up the hill to the castle. Once you get to the entrance there is a little turnstile that you have to walk through. Now why I am mentioning this? It is because it is a small turnstile and our youngest son did not move out of it in time and a Nun came up behind him, she was apparently in a hurry to get in and he got stuck, because it only turns one way I can not be backed up. Lucky for us he is really skinny and it only took a minute or so to get him out. I must say it was a good thing she was a Nun, because otherwise I would have given her a big sarcastic “Thanks a lot!”. Instead, I just stood there dumbfounded by the whole situation. I’ve never interacted with a nun before. Have you?

Check out all these great pictures we were able to snap inside the castle with our GoPro! We’re so sneaky.

The “Hohenstaufen-room” served as dressing room. But it was King Ludwig II’s music room as well. The piano, which is to be seen in here, was probably the one, the famous composer Richard Wagner used to play, when he visited Hohenschwangau Castle.

I cannot remember what this thing is, but I do remember all of the jewels on it, rubies, emeralds, diamonds…

Remember to buy your tickets down in the little village at the huge ticket stand, because they do not sell tickets at either castle. Also, if possible buy your tickets in advance. The line is ridiculous.

Admission is 12 euros for adults and free for kids ages 14 and under! You can also buy a combination ticket for Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau for just 22 euros for adults.

We choose to pay 12 euros each to get into Hohenschwangau (the kids were free) and then buy the Mehrtagesticket family pass for 40 euros that gets you into Neuschwanstein, Linderhof, and the Residenze. We knew we would at least do those three attractions. Rick Steves’ Germany 2014 said in his Germany 2014 guide book, that as long as you did three of the attractions on the pass that it was the most affordable option. In our case this was true.

Keep in mind that the tickets for the royal castles can only be purchased in the Ticket Center and ONLY on the day of your visit. Since the number of tickets available each day is limited, high demand can lead to the tickets being sold out in the afternoon. So get there early!

Munich Travel Guide

Alpspitz

German Alps Hiking Guide

Partnach Gorge an Incredible Hike in the Bavarian Alps

Sommerrodelbahn am Skistadion Garmisch-Partenkirchen

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Edelweiss Lodge and Resort

Edelweiss Lodge and Resort is an awesome place to stay if you’re military!

It is located right in Garmisch but is only for US military members and their families. The room rates vary based on the military person’s rank. The lower the rank the cheaper the room. The higher the rank, the more expensive it is for the same exact room. This is the same as all other military lodges. My ex-husband is an O4, so a regular room for us in an almost sold-out situation was $149 a night when some only had to pay $89 a night. This was in dollars, not Euros, so in my opinion, this was probably the cheaper option for us even with the higher price.

They do run specials, but again we didn’t qualify because of rank. It is worth checking their site though because you never know. They also offer tours, but if you have a car it is much cheaper to do the things they offer on your own. If you managed to catch a military hop you’ve likely rented a car.

The rooms are great. We stayed in a regular room the first night. We had plenty of room and free wifi. The regular rooms only have one bathroom, but they also have an extra sink and mirror in the room. There was a mini-fridge in the room and a coffee pot.

The property has lots of amenities like a

• pool
• small playground
• multiple restaurants
• an arcade
• spa
• gym
• laundry room (We were able to get all of our laundry done for $2 down in the laundry room.)

Both of our rooms had spectacular views of the mountains. The weather was fairly bad while we were, so I can only imagine how amazing the view would have been if the clouds had cleared. Both rooms were also quiet and we were able to get a good rest. 

Family Suite

The next night we stayed in a suite, which meant a room just like the night before, except with a living room with a pull-out couch. It also was one and a half bathrooms instead of just one. The full bathroom had a shower and a bathtub. It had a microwave too.

• • 
    
  •  
• In order to make a reservation, I ended up having to call.
• (011-49) 8821-9440 from USA
• (49) 8821-9440 from Europe
• 08821-9440 from Germany
• vacation@edelweisslodgeandresort.com

Edelweiss Lodge and Resort is the perfect place to stay when you’re looking for a military resort in the Bavarian Alps. With beautiful views, great amenities, and friendly staff, you’ll feel right at home here. Be sure to check out Edelweiss Lodge and Resort the next time you’re looking for a military hotel. And if you have any questions, our team is always happy to help answer them if we can. 

More Military Hotels!

• Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, Coast Guard, and Airmens Club
• Beach Cabins at Bellows AFB
• Military Lodging at Joint Base Pearl Harbor – Hickam

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The Partnach Gorge in the Bavarian Alps, one hour south of Munich is now my all-time favorite hike. I feel like that is really saying something because I live in Oregon and the hiking near us is amazing. Plus, I have been blessed to travel the world and go hiking all over.

Partnach Gorge Hike

The Partnach Gorge is a deep gorge that has been incised by a mountain stream, the Partnach, in the Reintal valley, near the southern German town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen. The gorge is 702 meters long and, in places, over 80 meters deep. The water pumping through here is intense, basically white water rapids.

I saw this gorge on Pinterest and knew that if we made our way to this area that I would want to go on this hike. Even my friend (fellow fighter pilot wife stationed in Germany) mentioned that they did it and loved it when we were trying to decide what to do.

It was simply amazing. The photos I saw online did not do the hike justice. Not only was it beautiful, but it was unique. There were fun tunnels to go under, which makes the hike even more exciting for kids. It is not strenuous or difficult at all, so pretty much anyone could do it.

• Wear a rain jacket, cause you are going to get wet.
• Take a waterproof camera, otherwise, you will get no photos!
• Wear shoes that are not slippery.

I cannot remember how much it cost to walk through the gorge, but you do have to pay. It was not a lot, but I thought I should mention it since usually hiking is free. Before you get to the area where you have to pay, you will walk past multiple restaurants.

The Partnachklamm is open year-round except briefly in the spring when melting snow makes the route impassable.

I’ve read that this place is spectacular in the winter. Hopefully, we can return one day to find out!

The Partnach Gorge is a great hike in the Bavarian Alps, and one I will never forget! It was an amazing combination of stunning scenery and incredible history that can’t be found elsewhere. The surrounding mountains of Murnau provide a breathtaking backdrop to the journey, while the crystalline mountain streams provide refreshment along the way.

All of this adds up to an unforgettable experience that I would highly recommend to anyone looking for an exciting adventure. And if the Partnach Gorge doesn’t appear to you, there are plenty more hikes around Bavaria worth exploring. After all, adventure awaits! So come along and embrace nature’s beauty wherever you may find it – the world’s wonders await those willing to seek them out. Now with all that said, where is your favorite hike?

After this hike, we went to check out Linderhof Palace.

Nearby Hotels

Read Next:

5 Must Try German Foods

German Alps Hiking Guide

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Neuschwanstein Castle

Neuschwanstein Castle (aka Schloss Neuschwanstein) is really something to see in person. It is located in southern Germany near two other castles, all of which are awesome, just outside of Fussen, Germany. It is another of the castles built by Mad Kind Ludwig. After seeing two of the places this guy built and learning his history he was definitely crazy. Be sure to mention to your kids that they will be visiting castles built by a crazy guy, because this seems to make them much more interested!

Neuschwanstein Castle is one of the most famous castles in the world and it is the one Walt Disney used as his inspiration for Cinderella’s castle at Disney World. In fact, one of my kids even mentioned that it reminded them of Cinderella’s castle and they didn’t know this fun fact.

*Neuschwanstein also happens to be Germany’s number 1 tourist attraction, so book your reservations in advance. This will save you from standing in line for an hour just to be told they are out of tours for the day.

It is a long uphill hike to get up to the castle, but for a fee (less than 2 euros) you can take the bus most of the way up. The only problem with this is that they put as many people as they can onto these buses. I hated it, so we walked down. You also have the option of taking a horse drawn carriage up to the castle, but it was raining and the horses smelled awful. I had planned for us to take the carriage, but the kids were not having it with the bad smell.

While you are there, be sure to climb/hike up to Marion Bridge. It doesn’t take that long and this is where we were able to take the first two photos in this post. The views basically speak for themselves. If you are wondering how we were able to take a selfie like that it’s because we got a GoPro HERO3 and it takes amazing wide photos. I love the way we were able to take family selfies everywhere we went. We could not do this until we got a GoPro HERO3 and that had nothing to do with why we got one! Go figure.

The pictures we took of the inside are not the best ever, because we had to be sneaky. I must say GoPros really come in handy when trying to sneak some pictures.

Neuschwanstein is open Monday – Fridays during the summer from 8:30 AM until 6:30 PM and is only seen with a tour guide. You have to stay with a tour guide at all times.

Admission is 12 euros for adults and free for kids ages 14 and under! You can also buy a combination ticket for Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau for just 22 euros for adults.

We choose to pay 12 euros each to get into Hohenschwangau (the kids were free) and then buy the Mehrtagesticket family pass for 40 euros that gets you into Neuschwanstein, Linderhof, and the Residenze. We knew we would at least do these three attractions. Rick Steves’ Germany 2014 said in his Germany 2014 guide book, that as long as you did three of the attractions on the pass that it was the most affordable option. In our case this was true.

Don’t forget to check out the Neuschwanstein balcony.

It is another great place to get a photo. It is near the movie theater, which they refer to as the “cafe”. We went down there looking for food totally confused, but happy to see the balcony!

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Linderhof Castle in Germany

A visit to Linderhof castle is a must when you are anywhere near Munich or the Bavarian Alps. This was the main home to “Mad” King Ludwig II and it is lavish to say the least. We’ve seen five castles/palaces so far in Germany and this one was the richest. They told us that the gold is really gold, at least gold plated metal. I should mention 3 of the castles we’ve seen all belonged to Ludwig II. Apparently he loved having over the top castles.

It is over the top. Just look at the guy’s bedroom! He never married so all this was just for him.

Linderhof is a short drive from Oberammergau and not that far from Garmisch or Munich.

The cost is 8.5 euros or you can do just the grotto for 5 euros. We did not get out to the grotto, which is supposed to be awesome, because it was raining so badly by the time we finished our tour of the castle.

We also didn’t have to pay admission to get in because we had already bought the family pass, the Mehrtagesticket. The pass cost of 40 Euro, but we would have spent that anyway, so this was the cheapest option for us.

Also, we got there pretty late around 4 PM and was able to get a tour without a problem. I read a book that said sometimes they sell out in July, but we found this not to be the case at all. The tour is a pretty quick 30 minutes and was much better for us, because our 7 year old, is miserable during castle tours.

What guide book you are wondering? I actually read two books and I am surprised how different they were and how much I used both. I recommend both books, first Rick Steves’ Germany 2014 and the second Frommer’s EasyGuide to Germany.

• Neuschwanstein Castle
• Partnach Gorge

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