The most beautiful cities in Germany

Germany’s most beautiful cities and towns stand among the best places to visit in the European Union. They span almost the full range of European variety. Raven Travel Guides Germany include:

• Cities with Roman origins and remains such as Trier, Cologne, Regensburg and Mainz.
• Medieval cities such as Nuremberg, Erfurt, Bamberg and Worms and the half-timbered Harz region towns of Goslar, Quedlinburg and Wernigerode.
• Renaissance showpiece cities such as Lübeck, Augsburg or Bremen.
• Cities with Baroque survivals, including Dresden, Heidelberg or Passau.
• Plenty of German cities have beautiful palaces on their streets or nearby, like Potsdam, Munich, Stuttgart, Würzburg and Weimar.
• The great cathedrals such as Cologne, Regensburg, Bamberg, Mainz, Erfurt, Worms, with countless other churches, sometimes in Romanesque but more commonly in the Gothic style. The münster of Ulm has the tallest spire of them all.
• Museums of culture and art among world’s best, including Deutsches Museum, Deutsches Nationalmuseum, Alte Pinakothek and the Pergamonmuseum.

All these places can be reached by train and bus (Quedlinburg is on a branch line). All offer a range of hotels, hostels, guest houses and other types of accommodation. All are very walkable and, like most German towns and cities, are really best seen on foot. But trams and buses help get people to and from hotels or attractions and for the bigger centres, Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, Stuttgart, Düsseldorf and Nuremberg, there are fast regular options in the form of S-Bahn and U-Bahn trains and light-rail transport.

Munich

Munich is much more than beer and pretzels. Take a look at its palaces, museums and concert halls - the city is a giant of culture.

The city centre is Marienplatz, marked by the old and new town halls and the medieval church Peterskirche. Along Neuhauser Straße are the unusual historic churches Bürgersaalkirche and St-Michaels-Hofkirche. The twin towers of the nearby Frauenkirche dominate the inner area.

To the north are the Nationaltheater at Max-Joseph-Platz and the various buildings of the princely Residenz, a sprawling palace complex that now houses museums, including an amazing Renaissance hall and the recreated Cuvilliés-Theater. The city's Kunstareal precinct comprises five art museums that include most of the art highlights, though there are several other institutions of art and art history. The vast Englischer Garten is one of Europe’s early public parks.

More palaces can be visited at Schloß Nymphenburg and its royal park west of the city, or the three Oberschleißheim palaces to the north.