Bavaria, one of the most beautiful landscape routes I biked
The cycling network of the Algäu region in Germany is one of the best in the world. You can pedal here from town to town, without the unpleasant need to cross busy roads, or the need to slalom among the pedestrian crowd on the sidewalk. Actually, you can bike for kilometers through meadows, forests, and along lakes, with spectacular views of the Alps, using straight asphalt roads, built exclusively for bike fans. It was my first time visiting Bavaria and it was a huge discovery for me. Although everywhere else, if I have the opportunity, I rent a bike to explore the area, I often come across problems. Either there is no possibility of renting a bicycle, the equipment is in a bad shape, there is no bicycle path at all and there is only a sidewalk, or I have to bike on a street full of cars. In Bavaria, I can definitely admit that the bike routes are comfortable for bike lovers in every respect.
We rented our bicycles at the Füssen railway station, nice Vermont equipment, full day fee – 15 euros per person. Bikes worked perfectly and they were great, even uphill.
The cycling route around the Forggensee lake, starts from the town hall in the small Bavarian town of Füssen. For a short distance it runs along the road leading to the city, shortly after disconnects with it, diverting into a forest.
The first stop on the route is Ludwigs Festspielhaus – a local theater. From its well-kept, French style gardens, spreads a great view of the lake. In the distance, lays the fairytale castle of Ludwik Bawarski – Neuschwanstein, hung majestically on alpine rocks. The place is so beautiful that it is worth coming here, for the entire day, with a blanket or a sunbed and make some time for wading along the shores of Lake Forggensee. For lunch, you can go to the theater’s restaurant, admiring the castle in the distance, from its terrace.
Continuing our bike trip, while we cross meadows that bring to mind the idyllic landscapes of the Sissi Princess movies, we turn right to get to the other side of the lake. Immediately after turning, the Alps show themselves to our eyes in all its glory. Along the way you can find many nice places to rest on the grass or drink coffee / tea and treat yourself to an exceptionally tasty home-made cake of the Bavarian cuisine.
The bike route leads along the lake towards Schwangau and arrives to a place between Lake Forgensee and Bannwaldsee. Here, the area resembles a wild mountain landscape. There is a forest, silence and wonderful meadows that bring me to a dreamy mood, while flowers bloom during May.
Then it heads to Schwangau, passes the church and gets to the road along the pastures. At the intersection we find Hotel Steiger on our right. Its terrace is good for a short rest and gives soothing views, of the ubiquitous greenery and Füssen on the horizon. We ride down and cross the dam, which is not far from the city itself.
In the map you get in the tourist info, the route takes 2.5 hours. It took us about 4 hours, including the time for frequent stops.
Purchase the Füssen cycling map
The fee is 2 euros
This is a map of 10 bicycle routes, around the surroundings of the city of Füssen in Bavaria, along with a short description of it (also contains a route around Forggensee lake, described by me in the article).
