I and my wife are planning to visit Black Forest area from Heidelberg. We have German Rail Passes, so can take any train. But a few doubts:
Is this trip feasible as a day-trip? We really want to visit this part of the country.
Since Black Forest is a big area, which places should we visit? A mix of touristy, non-touristy and offbeat would be great for us. We don't hike much, but a short walk is fine for us.
Please guide.
Consider renting a car. The scenic train is in the southern half of the forest-- farthest from Heidelberg.
The top scenic drive starts in Baden Baden, closet to Heidelberg. If driving, you must get the Michelin Green Guide to show you the route. Green Guide lists 3 road trips thru the forest Top choice, The Crest Road from Baden Baden, takes 4 hours. The other two routes are a day each.
Thank you for your insights. But since I'm from a Commonwealth country, we have right-hand drive in my country. Hence won't be able to drive. Is it not feasible by train?
What about I take the train from Heidelberg to Freiburg (early morning)
Explore Freiburg a little.
Then take the train to Titisee.
Explore.
Return. Is this possible? Or is there a better alternative?
Heidelberg to Freiburg to Titisee to Heidelberg works pretty good. About 2 hours to Freiburg. Trains to Titisee from there are every 30 minutes and it takes 38 minutes to get there. Return same way with trains back to Heidelberg every hour. If that is what you want to do, do it.
Schedules at www.bahn.com
"We really want to visit this part of the country... A mix of touristy, non-touristy and offbeat would be great for us."
Freiburg itself isn't very "Black Foresty" and Titisee is among the most touristy places.
I suggest you start with a visit to the Black Forest Vogtsbauernhof open-air museum in Gutach (Gutach Freilichtmuseum station is at the doorstep.) This place gives you the best one-stop introduction to local life and culture.
From there you might want to ride the scenic Black Forest Railway line up and into the more mountainous central part of the Black Forest as far as the town of St. Georgen (station with the highest elevation.) This ride was an engineering marvel at the time of its construction and one of Germany's most scenic routes. There's nothing interesting to speak of in St. Georgen - take the next train back from there.
Map - Gutach Freilichtmuseum stop is new and not shown, but it's near Hausach: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4d/Verlaufskarte_Schwarzwaldbahn_(Baden).png
Stop in Triberg on the way back if you wish but it's a very touristy town.
Haslach is a very handsome and nice normal town on the BF Railway with a museum that displays local traditional costumes. Just outside town there are a couple offbeat things - a Nazi work camp memorial site - Gedenkstätte Vulkan - and an old silver mine (Segen Gottes.) (Try google translate feature on this page.) You might need a taxi for these last two.
An even more attractive half-timbered town is Schiltach - just off the Black Forest Railway on an offshoot railway from Hausach.
On the way back to Heidelberg you will also pass through the old walled town of Gengenbach - might be a nice spot for an evening meal. This photo of the town captured a wine fest.
This is an over-full plate for one day, even a very long day, so you need to pick and choose what looks best for you. But I think you'll get a better idea of what the Black Forest is about by taking this route.
Switching driving sides isn't difficult for many. Thousands of Americans in the UK, many picking up their cars at Heathrow and plunging straight into the maelstrom of motorways; equally many thousand of Brits who take their cars to France and Germany - I'm one. Driving with the steering wheel on the correct side for the country in which you are driving is easier than having your own car with the wheel on the wrong side.
But changing sides can be done, if you want to. If you don't want to, that's fine too.
Heidelberg is really close to the northern Black Forest. Train Heidelberg to Offenburg (make sure to spell correctly, there is an Offenberg (with an e) in Bavaria, not the one you want), change to the local train which goes through the Black Forest passing many lovely villages along the way, also tunnels and viaducts, all the way down to Titisee if you want or even Landau on the Bodensee - although that last is a fair distance for a day trip.
There's nothing interesting to speak of in St. Georgen
Anyway I don't get why everyone is trying to force you to drive. Trains in the Black Forest are fun, even if there's so many tunnels in the "scenic" routes that you don't actually see that much at the highest elevations. Russ has good advice except for his monumental overlooking of one of the best pubs in Germany.
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