Discover Allgäu: Landscapes, Trails and Cultural Heritage

Allgäu combines mountains, rolling hills and tranquil lakes to create a diverse travel landscape. Waterfalls and gorges add to the scenery: the Allgäu Geopark showcases them, along with lakes, as selected natural highlights.

Water, Elevation and Protected Landscapes

The Allgäu Hiking Trilogy lets you experience the region’s diverse landscapes across three elevations. Its three routes are called Wiesengänger, Wasserläufer and Himmelsstürmer. The Himmelsstürmer route leads through the Allgäu High Alps and Nagelfluhkette Nature Park, home to rare plant and animal species. The routes also pass through towns and cities in Allgäu and by their sights.

The Nagelfluhkette Nature Park is located in the wider region between Allgäu and the Bregenzerwald. This large protected area includes rivers and streams, gorges, forests, moors and wet meadows, and is home to diverse flora and fauna. An experience exhibition with free admission provides information about the protected area’s animals, plants, habitats and special features, including its distinctive rock formations. The water exhibition explains the formation and protection of groundwater and drinking water in a playful way and is suitable for children aged eight and over.

Hiking and Cycling Routes Offer Different Experiences

Allgäu also offers guidance for planning a cycling trip: the Allgäu Cycling Loop is 475 kilometres long and has been awarded the ADFC’s 4-star quality route designation. Its connecting routes and numerous rail links make it possible to cycle the route in your own way. If you want to make cycling the focus of your trip, this offers a different route theme from hiking across the three elevations of the Hiking Trilogy.

Outdoor activities available in Allgäu also include winter sports and golf. This range makes it useful to decide what kind of days you want before looking for accommodation: would you like to focus on getting active on hiking or cycling trails, or are you also interested in winter sports and other experiences? Choosing a focus helps you shape your trip around your interests, without assuming there is a single itinerary for the whole region.

Discover Cultural Heritage and Traditions

Allgäu’s UNESCO cultural heritage includes Neuschwanstein Castle and several forms of intangible cultural heritage related to crafts, cuisine, traditional celebrations and customs. The Allgäu-Außerfern Castle Region also offers a glimpse of the region’s architectural heritage: 26 municipalities are home to more than 43 castles, ruins, palaces and town fortifications. The open-air museums in Allgäu invite visitors to take a stroll through the past amid their extensive historic landscapes.

The traditional cattle drive, known in Allgäu as Viehscheid, is a cultural experience in its own right. Farmers and visitors celebrate it as a large folk festival. This tradition brings a sense of community to the celebrations; check specific dates separately when planning your trip. Culture enthusiasts can also choose between historic buildings, intangible heritage and the landscapes of the open-air museums for different ways to explore the region.

Experience Cheese: Watch or Take Part

Cheese culture offers two different ways to explore how cheese is made. At cheese-making schools, visitors can lend a hand and make their own cheese. At show dairies, you can watch cheese production live through a glass window or learn about it on a guided tour of the facility. If cuisine is one of your travel interests, this distinction is useful: you can choose an experience where you watch or one where you take part yourself.

This can help you focus your search on the topics that interest you most in Allgäu.

Discover more destinations: Kitzingen, Haßberge, Chiemsee, Cham, Augsburg, Ebersberg, Forchheim, Bayreuth

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