Alsace/Black Forrest

It depends on whether you want to stay in a city or more of a town. My preference would be for the German side. I stayed in Gengenbach in the Black Forest for 4 nights in 2022 and absolutely loved it. The town is very charming with beautiful half-timbered houses (it's frequently called a "chocolate box" village) and has a beautiful Altstadt, with quite a few restaurants and cafes to choose from. Gengenbach makes a good base as it is right on the main train line, which means it's quite easy to get to Strasbourg from there.

One nice benefit if you stay there is that you receive a KONUS card, which entitles you to free public transport through much of the Black Forest region (although not Freiberg, as they have their own transport card). There are many charming villages in the region that you can visit along the Black Forest Railway, and there is also the Vogtsbauernhof (open-air museum) that is a joy to visit and easily accessible by train.

The town church (Saint Marion) is quite beautiful, and the medieval gates to the city are really interesting. The Benedictine Abbey is also worth a visit, and behind it are some cloistered gardens that were a joy to wander through. This was one of my favorite places. It was peaceful and inviting and I could have stayed for hours. There were little signs of inspiration scattered around, and some children from a nearby kindergarten playing on one side.

Also don't miss a walk through Engelgasse and Höllengasse streets (near the TIC). Here you will find cobblestones and half-timbered houses, flower pots and cats resting on doormats and quaint dolls in the window. I felt like I had walked back in time when I strolled through these quaint and narrow streets. There is also a nice hike you can take that will get you above the town with some absolutely beautiful views of below. The hike ends up at a church called St. Jakob auf dem Bergle that sits above town. The TIC in town will have maps showing you how to get there. it was a really nice hike and as I said, the views are just lovely!

The two regions constitute a VERY large area. You seem to want only one base town. How much total time do you have, and what sorts of activities do you intend to undertake? And how do you intend to get around? This info may help to identify a good base for you.

It is not necessary to book in big / well-known towns. There are many nice smaller places which work well as travel bases, depending on your daytrip destinations. The KONUS towns mentioned tend to be smaller towns.

I've stayed all around the Black Forest. I like Gengenbach very much and it's great for outings to many destinations, but I'd need to know what YOURS are likely to be before making a suggestion.

We will have about 5 days in total. I am not totally opposed to renting a car, but we do like the ease of train travel and not having to pay for parking or just deal with a rental car. I just hate the idea of coming so close to the French side of Alsace and not seeing some of it. We like easy bike rides with the kids, some easy 1 to 2 mile hikes, castle viewing etc..

Welcome to the Forum. I see from your other posts that you’re traveling with kids. Spring break? Short one week trip? Interests include hiking and biking.

Mardee’s suggestion of Gengenbach - where I’ve never traveled - has merit in that it is so proximate to more BF sights to visit and an easy train tip to Kehl and then across the Rhein/Rhin into Strasbourg.

How do you plan to travel? Train? Or car? This forum has many advocates for the Konus pass and train travel through the BF which means staying in cities and at hotels that offer it.

We travel every which way: train, e-bike and car for a few days where that makes sense. For getting through the BF, we chose a car to allow us to see a lot and have time to hike, but then you may run into cities like Strasbourg where cars are partially excluded (ZTLs). If you rent a car in one country be sure that it has a sticker that allows you to take it to the other, if that is your plan.

We stayed in Freiburg where we ditched the car after a 2 day BF journey. Loved Freiburg, though note that it’s near and not in the BF. Great old town, market and some history to share with your kids. Look for the “stolpersteine.” I thought the market there was one of the greatest, anywhere I’ve been. Strasbourg - a bit over an hour train trip from Freiburg - was great for its magnificent Cathedral which celebrates 1000 years of history and a millenium of “chantier,” being a work in progress. Charming “Petit France” area. We e-biked from there to Colmar (3 day e-bike trip through many lovely Alsatian villages plus a ride up to the magnificent 800 year old castle of Haut Koenigsburg that Kaiser Wilhelm and his architect reimagined and rebuilt in the 19th C. when Germany ruled Alsace.

Maybe plan two bases for you and your family? A few days in Germany out of one base, such as Gengenbach. Then a short train trip to Strasbourg or Colmar for your second base.

IF cycling in Alsace is of interest - either a day trip or a 3 (or4) day journey from Strasbourg to Colmar is of interest to explore, SEE

https://www.freewheelingfrance.com/

and

https://www.levelovoyageur.com/en/homepage/

If you’d like to see our SW Germany and Alsace Trip Reports, let me know either through a reply here or a private message.

LATE NOTE. Such a short trip. 5 days. On the theory that less is more, stick with one side of the Rhein. From what you’ve said, the German side. So, Gengenbach, BF, Konus Train Pass; possibly Freiburg day trip. If you want to raise the cycling level, scrap that and enjoy easy cycling along the Mosel, based in Cochem (castles in Cochem and also Burg Eltz and possibly Landshut above Bernkastel) or base in Trier (some incredible Roman history)

Thanks for the reply. For context, last year we did the same week, but in the Netherlands. We loved it! We stayed in the Hague and rented bikes via kiosks and explored local areas. We enjoyed hoping on regional rail and going to "the next" town and exploring there and renting a bike there for a leisurely ride. We stayed in the same hotel the entire trip but stayed away from the hotel for most of the trip. So I would like to recreate that a bit since it worked so well, but id just like to do it in this area. I know its not a perfect fit to recreate that but, something along those lines. I have also considered Basel as the home base for this one since it seems like a lot of the cross border trains hub through there anyways. Gengenbach looks appealing, but I having difficulty finding hotels that are easy to train there.

Thank you for those details.

Gengenbach will likely be a good choice for you.

Gengenbach is in the Kinzig Valley, which is well served by train and is full of bike paths that connect nice towns.

https://www.fahrrad-tour.de/Kinzig/Bilder/KarteKinzigAlle.gif

https://www.bikemap.net/en/c/421800/

Train routes: You can see from the map below the railway betweeen Gengenbach and Freudenstadt (Kinzig Valley) as well as the Black Forest Railway (black/white dotted line) from Gengenbach to Triberg, Villingen and Donaueschingen. This is one of Germany's most scenic railways.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4d/Verlaufskarte_Schwarzwaldbahn_%28Baden%29.png\

I have daytripped with the KONUS card along the BF Railway as well as to Freiburg on the main Rhine Valley Railway:

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bahnstrecke_Mannheim%E2%80%93Basel#/media/Datei:Karte_Rheintalbahn.png

From Gengenbach, it's a 7-minute train ride to Offenburg, where you catch the Regional Express train to Freiburg.

Notice also the railway between Donaueschingen and Freiburg, scenic the Hell Valley Railway; with a longer train ride, this part of the Black Forest is also accessible with the KONUS card:

https://www.eurovapor.ch/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/winterliche_schwarzwald_rundfahrt_verlaufskarte_hoellentalbahn.jpg

Be careful to board only the regional trains and not to board the ICE or other long-disatance trains on the Rhine Valley Railway (which are not covered by the KONUS card.)

Getting to Strasbourg for a day outing is not difficult either. The KONUS card covers you from Gengenbach to the border town of Kehl. An inexpensive day pass called the Europass 24h Family mini covers Kehl > Strasbourg > Kehl. You can buy this at the station in Gengenbach. Details:

https://www.ortenaulinie.de/,Lde/startseite/fahrkarten/europass.html

I also like Gengenbach and will be making my 4th visit there this year. Easy day trip to Strasburg which we usually do. I also always do the alpine coaster ( Sommerrodelbahn ) in Gutach close to the Voghtsbauernhof open air museum.

Previously mentioned were Stolpersteine but no explaination of what they are. They are small, maybe 3” x 3” brass markers in front of houses of those who were removed to WWII concentration camps. They are found all over, not just in Germany. My last trip I saw some in Rome.