Wonderful wide-open spaces – The hiking trail along the Romantic Road

There are sections on the route where the setting is almost surreally idyllic and civilisation is very far away. The Romantic Road’s about 500 kilometre long-distance hiking trail is also know as the ‘Pleasure Trail’ – and the name lives up to expectations, because you really can derive perfect pleasure from this journey on foot. If tiredness sets in, there are places to take a break by rivers and streams, and there’s no tiresome searching for parking spaces in the towns. If it rains, you can simply change your plans spontaneously and have another cappuccino in a café on the historic market square.

Stunning views

Experiences of culture and nature blend seamlessly here: after a walk around the town of Tauberbischofsheim, you can continue through the Tauber Valley till you reach Lauda-Königshofen, which is surrounded by gentle hills and vineyards. Schillingsfürst Castle is set within the Franconian Heights (Frankenhöhe) and an impressive view of the Ries geological park (Geopark Ries) awaits you from the top of the Wallerstein rock. Then come the Free Imperial Cities of Donauwörth and Nördlingen, the gardens of Rain, Harburg Castle, Augsburg, city of the Fugger family, and finally the Lech Valley, followed by a dip in the Friedberger Lake, a picnic by the stream in Hohenfurch, and a chance to gaze in wonder in Rottenbuch church. After Wildsteig and Steingaden, the hills become higher, the pastures and hay meadows more numerous, and the views more and more spectacular. The mountains close in. In Halblech, the Ammergau Alps and twelve lakes tempt you to take a good long break, before continuing past the dream setting of Neuschwanstein Castle and the Alpsee, and finally to Füssen, where the trip ends just as it began: wonderfully.
The sections of the romantic hiking trail

From the Main to the Tauber

Würzburg – Wertheim – Tauberbischofsheim

The Tauber Valley

Tauberbischofsheim – Lauda-Königshofen – Bad Mergentheim – Weikersheim – Röttingen – Creglingen – Rothenburg ob der Tauber

The Franconian Heights

Rothenburg ob der Tauber – Schillingsfürst – Feuchtwangen – Dinkelsbühl – Wallerstein

From the Ries region to the Danube

Wallerstein – Nördlingen – Harburg – Donauwörth

The Lech Valley

Donauwörth – Rain – Augsburg – Friedberg – Landsberg am Lech – Hohenfurch – Schongau – Peiting

From the foothills to the edge of the Alps

Peiting – Rottenbuch – Wildsteig – Steingaden – Halblech – Schwangau – Füssen