Planning a 2 week trip in May 2025 to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary. We like active vacations: Hiking, biking, while enjoying immersing ourselves in the country we visit... trips to grocery store, church and some history. We are do not enjoy sitting on the beach. Advice? Thank you.
Posted by
8229 posts
Both countries offer quite a lot for visitors.
My main focus on travel was on history, art, culture and dining. Scenic places were great as well. I loved hiking and biking, but generally not on touring.
I lived in Augsburg, Germany for four years and did a great hike for two days from Garmisch to the top of the Zugspitze, the highest mountain in Germany. No dangerous rock climbing was involved.
Germany is a weather country and you can tell if you visit both countries, but Athens has the amazing sites for ancient history.
Also, Greece has many islands that are great places to visit.
If you visit Germany, my favorite areas to visit are, as follows:
1) Bavaria- You have the Alpine region in the south as well as great cities and towns like Munich, Augsburg, Nuremberg, Regensburg, Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Bamberg, Garmisch and Berchtesgaden (near Salzburg, Austria).
2) The Rhine River Valley from the Dutch border down to the Swiss border. Places like Cologne, Mainz, Heidelberg, Frankfurt, Friberg, the Black Forest and Strasbourg, France.
3) Berlin and Dresden. Lots of great museums and sites in Berlin.
Greece
Athens and the surrounding area, including Corinth (including the canal), a nearby three island tour close to Piraeus, the port for Athens. Day trip to Delphi. Also, islands like Mykonos, Santorini, Crete, and many more. Consider adding a six day cruise of the islands.
Greece would be a bit cheaper than Germany, but Germany has a better rail network. Also, the food in both is great, but love Greek.
Posted by
4939 posts
I became obsessed with the Mediterranean on my second trip to Europe and have rarely gone elsewhere, so I know with certainty that Greece makes for a fantastic outdoor adventure. May is a great time, as if you want islands, they won't be slammed yet (and there are so many, if you skip the two most popular ones you could ignore this possibility entirely). The mainland is a wonder--so many ancient sites interspersed with gorgeousness. We felt we had some places to ourselves when we went in May to the Peloponnese and we plan to return to the north mainland, possibly this year. The Bradt Guides are comprehensive.
I am sure Germany could also be a great destination (Black Forest?), but I have not put any research into an active vacation there.
So, flip a coin? Is there something that drew you to either/both that you could share that might make the choice more apparent? Maybe weather stats? When all else fails, I look at airfares and see if price or ease makes my decision easier.
Posted by
Colorado Mountains, USA
7933 posts
We don’t spend time sitting on a beach, either, and while there are plenty of beaches along the Greek mainland and so many islands, churches are predominantly Greek Orthodox, if that matters. Hiking in Greece (especially on Crete) was fabulous. We’ve ridden bikes on several trips to various European countries, but Greece was not of them. Greek history is vast, of course. Lots to see and do.
Germany: there’s a lot of coastline on the northern border, but beach time there in May probably isn’t on many folks’ list, either. We spent a lovely time in the Black Forest region this summer, with lots of hiking, but no biking (or mountain biking, which is popular there, too) on the steep, fairly narrow roads. We were also just across the border in Alsace, which has been in Germany at times in the past, but is now in France. Again, we hiked, but didn’t bicycle, although that’s quite popular along wine roads in the area. The area is full of history, too - some tragic, all interesting.
We’ve made more trips to Greece than to Germany.