Bavarian Swabia

The Swabia district in southwestern Bavaria, with Neuschwanstein Castle in the Allgäu mountains in the south, and Augsburg and Nördlingen in the north.

This region corresponds to “Allgäu/Bavarian Swabia” in the division used by the Bavarian tourism board, and is defined as the whole Swabia administrative district, including the four cities of Augsburg, Kempten, Kaufbeuren and Memmingen, and districts such as Oberallgäu, Ostallgäu, Unterallgäu, Lindau, Donau-Ries, Günzburg and Neu-Ulm. To the east, the Lech river area separates it from Upper Bavaria; to the north it adjoins Middle Franconia (Franconia); to the west it borders Baden-Württemberg; to the south it borders Austria; and Lindau, in the southwest corner, lies on Lake Constance. Note that part of the Allgäu belongs to Baden-Württemberg (the Western Allgäu) and is not included in this region.

Highlights: Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau castles near Füssen and the Alpsee, plus the World Heritage Wies Church (administratively in Upper Bavaria); in Augsburg, the Fuggerei (the world’s oldest social housing complex) and the Golden Hall of the Town Hall; the circular old town of Nördlingen, which sits in a meteorite crater, and Donauwörth; the lion lighthouse at the harbour of Lindau, an island town on Lake Constance; Oberstdorf in the Allgäu Alps, the Nebelhorn and the Breitach Gorge; and Legoland in Günzburg.

Classic itinerary: 1–2 nights in Füssen to visit the castles and hike around the lake, 2 days in the Oberstdorf mountains, and 1–2 days in Augsburg and Nördlingen, for 4–6 days in total; it can be linked with the southern section of the Romantic Road.

Getting there: Munich to Füssen takes about 2 hours by regional train, and to Augsburg about 30–45 minutes.

Note: Neuschwanstein must be booked online in advance, and morning slots sell out easily in peak season.

Destinations

• Neuschwanstein & Füssen
• Augsburg

Itineraries

• Romantic Road Self-Drive: Würzburg to Füssen – Head south from the wine towns on the Main River, past medieval walled towns, to castles at the foot of the Alps
• Munich, Zugspitze & Salzburg Rail Tour – Use Munich as a base to visit castles by train, stay in the mountains to ascend Zugspitze, and end in Salzburg.
• German Alpine Road: Lindau to Berchtesgaden – Drive east from Lake Constance to Lake Königssee along Germany's oldest scenic route.
• Southern Germany Grand Loop: Frankfurt to Munich – A grand self-drive route connecting Heidelberg, the Black Forest, Lake Constance, Neuschwanstein Castle, and Zugspitze.