The Black Forest mountains extend along the Rhine, close to Lake Constance, Switzerland and Alsace. The region is famed for its food and drink, distinctive traditional hats and cuckoo clocks.

With its churches, cheeses and culture this region is shaped by its rural setting. It has lush green hillsides where cattle graze, and a chocolate-box landscape familiar to all.

Few other regions around the world are so densely packed with authentic historical attractions. The sinister Hagen is said to have sunk the gold of the legendary Nibelungs in the Rhine here.

A fascinating cultural open-air museum. Where the vines seem to grow right up to heaven, the local specialities are more likely to come from the cellar than from the kitchen. The region is known throughout the world for its Riesling wines.

Berchtesgaden National Park, Mount Watzmann and magnificent Lake Königssee with the pilgrimage church of St Bartholomew, framed by steep mountains like a Norwegian fjord.

A fascinating region with much to offer, right on the border with the Czech Republic. Besides its traditions of silver and ore mining and wood carving the Erzgebirge mountains are also home to many German Olympic champions.

Spa resorts and the Baroque, nature and culture between Lake Constance and the Danube. If you're not on a bike already then it's time to rent one. There's bound to be a beer garden waiting at the next junction.

Dramatic cliffs, gently shelving beaches of fine, white sand, bays and narrow inlets cut deep into the land. Modern seaside resorts with delightful 1900s villa-style architecture, fishing towns and international seaports.

A remarkable cultural landscape. Wherever you are heading, at every turn you'll encounter reminders of history and places associated with famous figures down the ages.

Germany's windiest region - but so easy to fall in love with. Can you imagine a holiday in North Friesland without a walk across the mudflats? Twice every day they are covered by the sea. If only everything in life could be that certain.