Germany Trip Plan:
The Bavarian Forest, and the beautiful cities Regensburg and Passau

Bayerisch Eisenstein
[ source: Wikipedia]

Day 1: Arrival

Make yourself home in your perfect holiday apartment in Bayerisch Eisenstein, a small border town to the Czech Republic. Familiarize yourself with the surroundings, buy some groceries or start the first evening with a dinner in one of the restaurants and enjoy their typical Bavarian cuisine.

Zwiesel, CC, author Konrad Lackerbeck
[ source: Wikipedia]

Day 2: Zwiesel

Nearby lies the town of Zwiesel, a state-approved health resort since 1972. The two rivers grosser Regen und kleiner Regen, great and small Rain, confluence in Zwiesel and further on carries the name schwarzer Regen, black Rain. Zwiesel is renowned for its glass industry, Zwiesel AG, crystal factories in Theresienthal and the glass school. For this reason it is also called the Glass Town. Zwiesel is part of the 270 kilometer long touristy route with the name Glasstraße, glass-street, which stretches from the town Neustadt an der Waldnaab to the city Passau in the south. Visit the Glass Museum Theresienthal which holds a collection of glasses, manufactured between 1800 and 1930. The Forest Museum Zwiesel, a former girl's school of the Catholic Church, displays in 17 rooms around 8,000 exhibits from the fields of forest, wood, glass and home. Here you can also learn about animal and plant life of the Bavarian Forest which incudes brown bears and lynxes. A completely preserved town pharmacy inventory from the 1870's will give you a good idea about medicines in the old days! Beer brewing traditions can be found everywhere in Bavaria and Zwiesel is no exception. Visit the Steam Beer Museum, part of the 1st Dampfbierbrauerei Zwiesel which belongs to the Pfeffer family. The historical Erlebnisbraustätte operation provides you, besides typical Bavarian hospitality, with information about brewing history, tradition and modernity.

Great Arber mountain top, CC author Avarim
[ source: Wikipedia]

Day 3: Mountain Großer Arber

Spend a day in the great outdoors and enjoy beautiful views and lots of fun on the highest mountain in one of the largest ski areas in the Bavarian Forest. Cable cars and lifts bring you to the mountain top and the ski areas. Walk around, follow the trails and enjoy the fresh air, or choose your favorite winter sport. Downhill skiing, snow boarding, cross country skiing, tobogganing and snow shoe walking are very popular and if you like to learn one of those sports, a school is always nearby. Because of its perfect ski conditions, the mountain Arber has been taken up by the German Ski Federation as an integral part in the Alpine skiing World Cup calendar. Further winter attractions include walks on prepared winter paths, horse-drawn sleigh rides and torchlight tours.

Regensburg, old stone bridge, GNU, author Karsten Dörre
[ source: Wikipedia]

Day 4: Regensburg

At the confluence of the Danube and Regen rivers lies the city Regensburg. The city center has over 1,000 historical buildings; most of them built before the 1500 century and is therefore declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Walk around the city which is based on ancient Celtic and Roman settlements and don't miss the famous stone bridge! In Regensburg you also find great shopping opportunities and local delicacies.

Old locomotive at the train station Bayerisch Eisenstein, GNU, author Bene16
[ source: Wikipedia]

Day 5: Trip on the Forest Railway from Bayerisch Eisenstein to Deggendorf

Bayerisch Eisenstein has a train station shared by Germany and the Czech Republic. It is a massive granite station with locomotive sheds, a turntable and a museum to explore railway history in the Bavarian Forest. Take a ride with the Forest Railway, which is a picturesque single track line passing through a charming landscape of wooded hills, tunnels, steep-sided valleys with mountain streams and rushing rivers! This is the oldest railway line in the Bavarian Forest and probably the best known. It was built in 1875 and completed in 1877. Before reaching the town Deggendorf the train rolls over the bridge of the Danube River. This area of the Danube was already inhabited about 8000 years ago and Henry II, a Holy Roman Emperor, established in 1002 his supremacy over the area. If you like to learn more about the history visit the Stadtmuseum, which keeps more then 10,000 exponents, including archaeological findings from the Stone Age to the early Middle Ages.

Old City Passau, GNU, Aconcagua
[ source: Wikipedia]

Day 6: Passau

The beautiful city of Passau is also related to the confluence of rivers, this time the Inn and Ilz rivers flow into the Danube River. This fact gave Passau the name three rivers city. The historical old city is located on the point where the Inn joins the Danube and should be the starting point of your day exploring Passau. Don't miss the St. Stephen's cathedral with the world 2nd largest cathedral organ and the Bohemian Glass Museum. You will easily spend hours walking around between magnificent architectural jewels and maybe enjoy shopping; and if you feel tired and like to get a different view, embark on one of the many boats available for a relaxing trip on 3 rivers.

Bärwurz Schnaps
[ source: Wikipedia]

Day 7: Departure

Time to get ready for your flight home! If you like to share a specialty with your loved ones why not get a real local Schnaps. It is called Bärwurz and is the most typical of the Bavarian Forest Schnaps. There are numerous other varieties made from roots, herbs and fruits, and before you make a decision you should taste them and maybe even visit a local museum to learn more about its origins.

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