Hello-
Without a car and without ability to dig into what seems like the best parts of the Black Forest (towns and sights deeper in, away from the train lines) would you go spend time there? If you were limited to towns right along the Rhine vs more inland?
I’m trying to narrow down priorities for next trip, and I feel like a trip when I come with a car is more appropriate to do this region justice.
I would spend time in the Black Forest -- and already have. In 1996, on my third visit to Europe, I spent a night and a part of the day in Baden Baden, which is on the northern edge of the Black Forest region, without a car. It was a beautiful area. Unfortunately, I was committed to a six-stop trip over two weeks in Germany and Austria and didn't have more time to spend in the Black Forest and wished I had had more time. I remember meeting a group of Germans in a youth hostel. One fellow I spoke with said he had hiked all over Germany and loved the Black Forest region the most.
This is what I’m really wondering- would you say yes adding 2-3 days even if you can only access the fringe towns vs getting deep into region is what you’d do? Or would you save the area for a different trip, when you will have a car?
Mary57, by train you are definitely NOT limited to towns right along the Rhine River. Many railways criss-cross the Black Forest, and it's a great place to travel by train.
Here is the Rhine Valley Railway:
From Offenburg on the map above, you can travel the Black Forest Railway to the eastern edge of the Black Forest and beyond to visit towns like Gutach, Haslach, Hausach, Hornberg, Triberg, Villingen and Donaueschingen. See map:
From Freiburg you can head east on the Hell Valley Railway to towns like Kirchzarten, Hinterzarten, Titisee, Loeffingen, and Donaueschingen. See map:
Look back at the Black Forest Railway and find Hausach. From Hausach you can travel along the Kinzig Valley Railway to Wolfach, Alpirsbach, Schiltach and Freudenstadt. See map:
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Datei:Verlaufskarte_Kinzigtalbahn.png
There are other railways elsewhere as well, but these are perhaps the most common ones that visitors need to know about.
The KONUS card permits unlimited travel on all the Black Forest train lines as well as any connecting buses you might need. The card comes free of charge with your room when you stay in certain Black Forest towns which participate in this promotion (which number about 140 towns.) (Staying in Freiburg or in Offenburg will NOT get you this free rail pass. Participating towns are listed on the flyer below:
As an illustration of Russ's suggestions, when I was staying in Hinterzarten, I left the car parked and spent a day (KONUS card train) in Freiburg. Another day, I took the train to Titisee (a heavily touristed place) and walked back to Hinterzarten, maybe an hour. I'm not a serious hiker (oops, I wore penny loafers that day), but I had the choice of beginner, medium, or advanced trails for the walk, which was mostly level.
Ditto Russ. I’m making my fourth multiday trip to the area this fall and have relied just on the public transpirtation. No problem.
We added three nights in Gengenbach to our Alsace France trip in the summer of 2023. Gengenbach was a fun town to explore by foot and bike, and with the Konus card provided by our AirBnb host, we were able to see everything we wanted in the broader area.
Mary, if I had to choose between accessing only fringe towns now without a car vs. saving the Black Forest for a later trip with a car, I would say it depends. If you were return to the Black Forest in 1 to 2 years, I would say hold off until you can go again. Beyond that, I would say go now. I've been to Germany two times, and the Black Forest doesn't get as many visitors as it should because it's pleasant.
You’ve given me a lot to ponder and look at- thank you! I had read so much “you need a car…” pov I didn’t think enough was possible via public transportation. It does seem a lovely and peaceful area, so I’m off to follow your links and dig deeper!
I feel like a trip when I come with a car is more appropriate to do this region justice.
How long do you plan for your total trip and how does this piece fit in with your total plan? Does anything prevent you from renting a car for just a very few days, for just the Black Forest?
Our last trip involved travel by train (5 days of 30), by e-bike (14 days of 30) and by rental car (5 days of 30). (One day was both train and car).
We drove from Tubingen (near Stuttgart) to the Black Forest one day and then through the Black Forest to Freiburg to turn in the car the next day, so I hear you about how a car can enable you to get to spots that are not easily accessed by train. For us, that included the Black Forest Open Air Museum and Ravenna Gorge.
I'm another one who has stayed in the Black Forest without a car and absolutely did not need one. I spent four nights in Gengenbach in 2022, and loved the experience. It's a wonderful town and just a gem to stay in. Plus, as has been mentioned above, you're entitled to the KONUS card, which lets you travel to much of the Black Forest for free. Your hotel will give it to you when you arrive. And staying in Gengenbach is beneficial because it's right on the main train line, so it makes it easier to get to other places in the Black Forest.
I'm heading back there in December and can't wait. I just love that area.
Both Russ and I were fans of and contributors to Bavaria Ben’s excellent but no longer active website. Despite his moniker ( sounded better than Mailman Mike ! ), more of his travel was in the Black Forest with many of his trips being only trains and buses. While I occasionly come across places in Germany that I don’t visit because of awkward public transportation access, they are very few.
Follow up question. Would you recommend the non car option from Baden Baden also?
I would recommend that you go deeper into the Black Forest than Baden Baden. I don't think that town captures the charm of the Black Forest.
If you want to go deeper into the Black Forest, I would recommend Bad Herrenalb. It's a 45 minute (as I remember) Stadtbahn (basically a streetcar) trip up from Karlsruhe Hbf. You catch the S-Bahn from the plaza in front of the station. I've spent 15 nights in Bad Herrenalb in 4 trips, one time 7 nights when I was commuting into Karlsruhe to do genealogy at the Baden archives there. It has a nice Therme (spa) with a Kleiderfrei (clothing optional) side for the not shy or a more mundane suited side, and is a great venue for hiking. I've also spent 2 nights in Alpirsbach and three nights in Freudenstadt, on, as Russ indicates, the Kinzig line. And I've twice traveled the Schwarzwaldbahn from Hauslach to Triberg (pronounce Tree-bairk, no "i" sound).
Just outside of Hauslach is the Black Forest Open Air Museum, with typical houses from all over the Black Forest. The rail line down the Gutach valley to Triberg is spectacular, with the tracks literally hanging on the side of the steep valley wall.
I'm another one who stayed in Gengenbach (three nights at the beginning of this past July) and truly enjoyed it. My family and I traveled solely by train (with the occasional bus when/where the trains weren't running), and we had a marvelous time. We took the train to the open air museum and rodelbahn in Gutach, went on a hike in the Black Forest that started in town, and meandered through town. If you want to go to the Black Forest, don't cut it out just because you don't have a car. I'm really glad I didn't!
Also, many thanks to the folks on this forum and especially to Mardee for their contributions about Gengenbach. It is now one of my favorite places I've ever been, and I very much hope I can go back!
I'm another person who stayed in Gengenbach... was there 3 nights (planned 4 nights but had a problem with a flight into Frankfurt that lopped off a night)... train in... train out... train for all local transportation. Worked great!
It was not clear to me where you'd be coming from if/when you transfer to the Black Forest. Now that I see you have mentioned the Alsace in a separate post, I will gleefully recommend Gengenbach as well. Besides being a fine little town, Gengenbach works well as a base town not just for visiting the Black Forest towns on those railways I mentioned, but also for a day trip to Strasbourg or a day trip to Freiburg. The KONUS card gets you to Freiburg and back, and as far as the French border when you head to Strasbourg; add a cheap supplemental ticket to cover the border > Strasbourg segment.
Freiburg doesn't feel much like the Black Forest but still makes for a very nice city-visit.
Baden-Baden, with its casinos and high-end spa treatment centers, both of which have served globe-trotting elites for eons, hardly feels like the Black Forest at all. And train travelers who expect to use Baden-Baden as a base town for train outings will be disappointed to find that the train station is a 20-minute bus ride outside the center of town. Why Rick Steves recommends the place is a mystery that I will never untangle.
Thank you all- Russ I don’t understand the Baden rec, and I’ve tried to understand it -which is why I was feeling like I should skip if that was my best option. But this is also why I visit this forum, the human knowledge and experience!! Gengenbach looks like just the sort of town I was hoping for, but not coming up with on my own. I think it would make a lovely base, and extend our time in the general vicinity (with time in Alsace region too) as well.
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