Hiking in nature in Black Forest of Baden-Württemberg

Black Forest is the most important recreational region in Baden-Württemberg and the most visited holiday destination among the German low mountain ranges. It is particularly known for its romantic valleys, gorges, mills and typical farms as well as the place of origin of the cuckoo clock. It is also a popular hiking area because of its good network of long-distance hiking trails such as the Westweg. Winter sports have a long tradition around the Feldberg (1493 m), the highest mountain in the Black Forest, as well as in many other places in the Black Forest.

Lake Constance with the Alpine chain in the background is also a well-visited travel destination and also a local recreation destination for city dwellers; Here you can find evidence of a wide variety of eras with the Unteruhldingen pile dwellings and the UNESCO World Heritage monastery island of Reichenau. On the lake, the flower island of Mainau and the old towns of Konstanz and Meersburg have the highest number of visitors. Not far from the region around Lake Constance are the Danube Valley and Upper Swabia with the old imperial towns of Biberach an der Riß and Ravensburg. The Upper Swabian Baroque Road leads through this Baroque centre north of the Alps. Other major cities are Freiburg im Breisgau, Heidelberg, Ulm, Heilbronn, Pforzheim and Reutlingen.

The Allgäu in Württemberg attracts with its landscape and many hiking opportunities, as does the Swabian-Franconian Forest Nature Park further north.

The Swabian Alb is known for its small romantic towns (e.g. Bad Urach), the heathland landscapes, the extensive forests, the caves, castles and palaces (Hohenzollern Castle, Lichtenstein Castle, Sigmaringen Castle). Baden-Württemberg has around 60 spas and health resorts, especially in the Black Forest and Upper Swabia.Baden-Württemberg is the German state with the highest exports, the second lowest unemployment rate, the fifth highest gross domestic product (GDP) per capita as well as the most registered patents per capita and the absolute and relatively highest research and development expenditure.

Bicycle tour Lower Remstal - Waiblingen as a destination

And again, our hosts, Heidi and Rainer, had come up with an interesting bike tour that was to guide us through the wonderful Lower Remstal to the city of Waiblingen, which is a medieval town known for its connections with the royalties of Staufer. Especially the Old Town area, with its magnificent half-timbered houses, points to the long history of the city, which was particularly important in the Middle Ages.

Ludwigsburg - at drawing board planned city

Deeply impressed by the huge park of the Ludwigsburger Residential Palace, which we got to know during the street music festival, we had started to a tour of the city, which should bring us further peculiarities of this planned town at the beginning of the eighteenth century together with Heidi and Rainer.

Passing Lower Remstal to the medieval centre of Waiblingen

Our first visit to Waiblingen by bicycle through the Lower Remstal had led us into the mediaeval town center of Waiblingen, which had a lot of interesting half-timbered houses, remains of the city wall and the High Observing Tower on the Zwinger, which are really visitable places, not to forget the Park-like landscape on the Remsinsel (island).

Rottweil colorful - a city also relies on guild signs

The guilds that were so important and powerful during the Middle Ages have long since passed away, but their signs in the form of symbols still exist today high above the shop windows and doors of shops and businesses, which we noticed especially when strolling through the city in Rottweil.