THE BLACK FOREST

A HOLIDAY IN SCHWARZWALD

 

　

I have visited Germany many, many times and have travelled through the Black Forest area on a couple of occasions, but I have never spent any real amount of time in the Black Forest, until now.

I was travelling with three adult family members; we were on a motoring holiday in Germany and had already spent three days in the Stuttgart area. We were now moving on to Titisee in the Black Forest for a three day stay at the Parkhotel Waldeck, a four star Golf and Wellness hotel.

 

The Black Forest (Schwarzwald in German) is situated in the Baden Wurttemberg region of Germany and covers an area of 12,000 square km (7,229 miles). It is almost rectangular in shape being some 200 km (120 miles) X 60 km (37 miles). The highest peak in the area is ‘The Feldberg’ which stands at 1,493 metres.

 

The name ‘Black Forest’ goes back to Roman times when the densely forested mountains were referred to as ‘Silva Nigra’ ( Black Forest) due to the fact that very little light got through the dense growth of conifers. Places of interest in the Black Forest include Freiburg (a university town), the Triberg Waterfalls (the most famous in Germany), Schchsee lake and of course Titisee lake where we were staying.

 

The Name Titisee is believed to come from the Roman Emperor Titus, it has an area of 1.3 square km (about 0.78 miles) and a depth of 20 metres. Due to constant movement of the lakes surface it takes some time to freeze over, although it is not unheard of. When it does freeze to an acceptable degree, the local council do allow public access to the lake. In the past the frozen lake has been used as an airstrip but unfortunately this led to a tragic accident when one of the tractors used to keep the runway free of snow broke through the ice and sank to the bottom of the lake, taking the driver with it.

 

We had booked our hotel on-line a few weeks before arriving and we were very surprised to find that many of the hotels in the area were already fully booked. The Parkhotel Waldeck only had a suite available, at 90 square metres it was a large suite with two double bedrooms, two shower/bathrooms, a lounge and a large landing with a pull-down double bed allowing accommodation for up to six people.

 

We arrived in Titisee at 13:15 and as we could not occupy our accommodation before 15:00 we went to a local restaurant and had lunch. It was a glorious sunny day and it was a delight to sit outside having lunch whilst watching the world go by. After lunch we checked into the hotel and made use of some of its facilities which include, swimming pool, hot tubs, sauna and steam room, treatment rooms for massages etc, internet, library, billiard room , bar and lounge area. Our suite was perfect for our stay and was very clean, it was on two levels with one bedroom downstairs and the other upstairs. There was a balcony which afforded wonderful views. A nice touch was the bags with everything that you needed for the Spa, (dressing gown and two towels).

 

Many of the hotels in the Black Forest operate a scheme whereby if you stay at least two nights you get a ‘Hochschwarzwald’ card. This card gives you free admission to many facilities as well as discount off many others and free rail travel in certain areas. We used the card for a free boat trip on the Titisee lake, a free electric bike ride and a 15 minute trial on a Segway.

 

During our three day stay in Titisee we visited Freiburg im Breisgau which is a University town, founded as a free market town in 1120. The centre of Freiburg is closed to private cars and the only way to get around is by foot or on one of the many trams that criss-cross the town centre. There are many old buildings and winding little streets to explore and two of the towers and part of the old wall still stand. As Freiburg is not car friendly, we left the car in Titisee and caught the train which took about 45 minutes and was a very scenic journey, albeit, on this occasion, a rather hot and crowded train owing to the exceptionally hot weather.

 

On another day we visited the Deutsches Uhrenmuseum (German Clock Museum) in Furtwangen. This was a fascinating place to visit, ideal for a rainy day, as it was when we visited. We used our Hochschwarzwald card to get discount on the entrance fee. That same day we visited Schuchsee lake which at 930 metres above sea level is the highest reservoir in Germany and the largest lake in the Black Forest. The lake is 7.3 km long (4.4 miles) and 1.4 km wide (0.84 miles) and has a maximum depth of 61 metres. The 63.5 metre dam was built between 1929 and 1932.

 

One of the things that I love about Germany is that no matter where you are, you can always be assured of finding wonderful hotels and restaurants where the food and service are excellent. We had no problems on this trip finding places to eat, even in the most out of the way locations. An example of this is when we were travelling from the clock museum in Furtwangen to Schuchsee Lake and wanted somewhere to have lunch. We came across the small village of Waldau and the ‘Hotel Sonne Post’, this is a family run hotel and the food and service was second to none.

 

When our three nights at the Parkhotel in Titisee were over, we decided that we wanted a fourth night in the area and booked ourselves into the three star Schwarzwaldhof hotel in Hinterzarten, a small village Just a few miles from Titisee). This was actually one of the hotels that we had first tried to book for our visit but it was fully booked. Even for our one night stay they only had two rooms available which were not in the main hotel but in their guest house. The rooms were excellent and had balconies that afforded wonderful views over Hinterzarten and the surrounding mountains with the four ski jumps clearly visible. Continental breakfast was served in their own dining room so no need to go to the main hotel for that, although, we did have an evening meal in the hotels main restaurant. A beautiful area, well worth a visit.

　
　

　

GERMANY

HERRENBERG AND STUTTGART

Germany is made up of 16 states and the third largest of these in both area (13,800 square miles) and population (10.7 million) is Baden Wurttemberg. Situated in the south western part of Germany to the east of the Upper Rhine, many of the states major cities are built on or near to the Neckar river.

On this particular trip I was visiting the state capital Stuttgart as well as Herrenberg which is situated some 30 kilometres south of Stuttgart. I have visited both places and the surrounding area on many occasions and have always found the area to be of immense beauty and interest.

 

My first stop was in Herrenberg which is the fourth largest town in the district of Boblingen, originally formed from the hamlets of Muhlhausen and Raistingen in the 13^th century. In 1972, following the incorporation of formally independent municipalities, the number of inhabitants exceeded 20,000 for the first time, the population today is in excess of 31,000.

 

I travelled to Herrenberg by car with three family members, having crossed the channel from Dover to Calais and then driving through France, a total of 479 miles. We had broken up the journey with an overnight stay in France in order that we arrived in Herrenberg early afternoon, having stopped en-route for lunch.

 

Our hotel for our three night stay was the four star Gasthof Hasen which is a member of the Ringhotels group. It is a family run hotel, run by the Nolly family and it is the hotel that I have used on almost all of my visits to the area.

 

The hotel has 68 guest rooms, ranging from single rooms and double rooms to suites which are ideal for families with children. The facilities at the hotel include a restaurant seating 85 guests, a “Tessiner Grotto” which is a small restaurant/bar seating 50 guests, a terrace and beer garden, a sauna, smoking room and library. There is also a conference room for up to 120 people, and new since my last visit, a bar and seating area near to reception. The hotel also provides ample free car parking spaces.

 

Our main reason for this trip was to visit family who live in the area so most of our time would be spent in the company of family in their homes, however, we did do some sight seeing and have done much more in our previous visits. The main places of interest in Herrenberg have to be the market place with the beautiful old timber framed buildings and the church which stands majestically on the hill overlooking the town. There is also the remains of a 13^th century castle which sits right on the top of the hill and entails a good walk to get to it from the town. I visited the castle twice on this visit, the first time was on a pre-breakfast walk on my own when I used the steps opposite our hotel to climb the hill, all 366 of them. The second visit was with other members of my family and so we took an easier route which takes you past the church and through the woods.

 

The market square is one of my favourite places in Herrenberg as I love the style of the buildings, so typically German, it is also the place to buy your fresh fruit, vegetables and meat on market days. The market also hosts the annual town festival every July where some 25,000 people will come out to celebrate, eat, drink and listen to the music.

 

Of course if you are staying in this area then a visit to Stuttgart the state capital of Baden Wurttemberg is a must. Stuttgart is the 6^th largest city in Germany with a population of around 600,000. The city is spread across a variety of hills, valleys and parks and is ranked number 30 in Mercer’s 2010 liveability rankings (7^th in Germany).

 

The first settlement in the area was at the end of the 1^st century with the establishment of a Roman fort and Stuttgart was founded around 950 AD. The main train station was opened in 1846 and is now the subject of demonstrations as locals voice their disapproval at the vast amount of money being spent on updating the station and track. The Schlossgarten is now home to many of the demonstrators in their makeshift camps.

 

Places of interest in Stuttgart include the aforementioned Schlossgarten as well as the Schlossplatz, two castles, zoo, TV tower, museums and an art gallery. There is also a very good shopping area. One of the highlights of the Stuttgart year has to be the beer festival which comes second only to that of Munich, they also hold a very good wine festival with some excellent locally produced wines.

Local transport is very good and inexpensive. For our trip into the city centre we left our car at a family members house and caught the bus into the centre as it is so much easier than driving and then having to try and find somewhere to park.

 

Another place of interest that comes to mind is that of Hundertwasserhaus in Plochingen. Although I didn’t get to visit it on this occasion, I have in the past and I found it fascinating.

Born Friedrich Stowasser in Vienna in 1928 (he later changed his name to Hundertwasser), Hundertwasser was a Jewish Austrian painter and architect with buildings designed by him in many locations around the world, including Plochingen, a short drive east from Stuttgart. The building is a brightly painted and eccentric building which can be easily spotted from the main road as you head towards Ulm and Munich.

 

The Black Forest is within easy travelling distance of Stuttgart and even Munich and Bodensee are within two or three hours drive. Bodensee is a large lake which is on the borders of Germany, Austria and Switzerland, it makes for an interesting and enjoyable drive to completely encircle the lake, driving through all three countries.

　

FRANCE BY CAR

CALAIS TO DOVER

 

 

We arrived in Calais at 14:20 local time having travelled across the channel from Dover with P&O on ‘The Pride of Kent’, a 90 minute journey. The crossing had been very calm and as we had eaten on board the ferry, we were ready to set off on our journey.
There were four adults in our vehicle and we had a journey of about 290 miles to get to our stopover for the night at Woippy near Metz. We were travelling through France on our way to Germany, our final destination being Herrenberg near Stuttgart, a total journey of 479 miles from Calais.
We had chosen Woippy as our overnight stay as it meant very little deviation from our planned route which involved the A16, A26 and A4, all very good roads which included toll roads for which we would have to pay out in excess of 40 euros, but well worth it for the clear open roads that meant we could make good time with very few hold ups.
As we had driven 124 miles already that first day, driving from our Essex home to the port of Dover, we didn’t want to drive too many miles before having a break and we wanted to get to our hotel in time for dinner.
Driving off of the ferry onto French soil, you do need to remind yourself that you have to drive on the right hand side, making a mental note that everything now is different. It is amazing however, how easily you do fall into the pattern of driving on the opposite side of the road, the motorways are fine as all traffic is flowing in the same direction and all you really need to remember is to overtake on the left hand side, not the right. Driving in the town is a little different as you have to remember to go around roundabouts the opposite way to that which you are used to, and there are unusual circumstances when you have to give way to traffic coming out of side roads. However, as long as you keep your wits about you and pay due care and attention, you should have no problems.
For most of our journey the motorway speed limit was 130 kilometres per hour, approximately 81 miles per hour, and the miles just melted away. French motorway services vary a lot and depending on where you stop you may find a garage with a drinks vending machine and little else or a much larger complex with shops and restaurants serving hot and cold food, similar to what you would expect to find in the UK. On our stop we were unlucky to come across a services which were undergoing refurbishment, the mens toilets were closed and we were re-directed to a porta-loo where unfortunately the water had run dry. Thankfully we had not intended to eat at this stop as there was very little choice in the food department, we did however, have a very good cup of tea.
The hotel we had chosen to stay in at Woippy was an Ibis hotel, we had stayed there many years ago when it was a Mecure. We had booked our stay on-line a few weeks before departing and although at first glance the price seemed reasonable, by the time you added breakfast to the room only price and the obligatory town tax, the total came to £206 for the two rooms. Whilst this is still a reasonable price (we have often paid this much and more for one room), for a basic stopover, I did find it somewhat expensive for what it was.
We arrived at the hotel at 18:50 and after checking in to our rooms and freshening up, we went to the restaurant for dinner. The choice and standard of food was very good and we all enjoyed our meals. The other facilities in the hotel are basic, with free internet access in the reception area and a small bar and lounge area. The hotel is situated on a busy road near an industrial area and there are no footpaths along the road, this meant any walks were confined to the hotel grounds.
The next morning, having had a walk around the grounds and having made use of the free internet services, we sat down to a reasonable continental style breakfast before once more hitting the road and driving onwards to Germany, crossing the boarder not far from Strasbourg.
After our holiday in Germany (you can read about this in another of my reviews), we travelled once more through France, this time driving through the centre of Strasbourg before following the route that we had used to get to Germany a week earlier. On our return trip we had not booked our hotel en route or even our ferry back to the UK. Our plan was to see how the drive went and get as near to Calais as possible, allowing enough time to find a hotel and somewhere to have dinner.
We knew we wanted to get nearer Calais than Woippy so we had ruled out staying at the Ibis as we had on our outward journey. However, as I had picked up one of the Ibis hotel books at Woippy I used this to try to find somewhere to stay the night. We decided to try the Ibis in Saint Quentin, we had never ventured into the town of Saint Quentin before, only ever seeing the signs for it as we drove by on the motorway. As we negotiated the busy streets to find the hotel in the centre opposite the cathedral we were all surprised how big Saint Quentin town was. At the Ibis Hotel we viewed the rooms that we were offered, they were basic, clean, but very small. As the rooms were situated at the front of the building, overlooking a very busy and noisy street, we decided to try elsewhere.
Unusually, we had no more hotel books with us (very bad planning as I have dozens at home), we had to rely on the satellite navigation to give us the information we required, the only problem with this is that it doesn’t give any real indication of the standard of hotel. We decided to give the “Chateau Roupy” a look as it was only a few miles from where we were. Unfortunately, it appeared to have closed down and even a couple of locals that we spoke to seemed unaware of its existence. We searched the satellite navigation again, this time it took us five miles in the opposite direction from whence we came to yet another Chateau, Le Chateau de Neuville, St Quentin. Fortunately, this one was open and we managed to get two rooms for the night at a price of 87 euros per room and 12 euros each for breakfast.
The bedrooms were a little tired and old fashioned for my liking but the Chateau was set in beautiful grounds and the bar and restaurant were fine with good views over the gardens and serving some very tasty and generously proportioned meals. All in all a lucky find and a pleasant end to our holiday, only 113 miles from Calais.

CROSSING THE CHANNEL WITH P&O

 

(WITH CAR)

OUTWARD JOURNEY ONBOARD ‘THE PRIDE OF KENT’

　

Taking a car abroad can be a daunting prospect but as long as it is planned properly there is no reason why it shouldn’t be a stress free and convenient way to travel. I have driven in Europe on many occasions and I can assure you the thought of undertaking such an adventure is far worse than the real experience, indeed once you have made up your mind and you venture out on to those excellent roads, it becomes a pleasure.

The first thing of course is preparation, different countries will have different laws regarding what is necessary to carry in your vehicle. The most common ‘must have’ items are first aid kit, safety triangle, high visibility vest and adjustment to your headlights for driving on the right. You also need to check with your insurance company and breakdown service that you will be covered whilst abroad and get their European emergency telephone numbers. The other things to remember are, as with any foreign holiday, to make sure you carry your EHIC card for any medical attention you may require and ensure you are adequately covered by travel insurance.

On my most recent trip to France, I travelled from Dover to Calais with a car and four passengers on the 11:50 P&O service on board the ‘Pride of Kent’. I had booked the crossing several weeks in advance on the internet and was extremely pleased with the very low price of £39. We had arrived at the port from Essex via the Dartford crossing, M25 and M2/A2. You can also approach Dover from the M20 and for those not taking their cars, there are trains from London Victoria and Charing Cross to Dover Priory with a regular shuttle service to the port. National Express Coaches also operate a service to the ferry port.

Check in was quick as we had pre-booked, allowing us to drive directly to the car lanes ready to board, showing our passports and booking reference at the booth en-route. We were in the car lanes by 11:10 and boarding started at 11:20. Once on board we made a note of the car deck that we were on and the colour of the stairs that we used to access the upper decks, this would help us locate our vehicle when we arrived in France.

There are a few companies offering services across the channel from various UK ports to a number of European destinations, P&O operate up to 46 channel crossings a day with the Dover to Calais crossing taking approximately 90 minutes. The Pride of Kent was launched in 1991 and operated as the European Highway between 1992 and 2003, she is some 30.36 tonnes and has a speed of 21 knots. There are 6 active decks and 3 car/freight decks and maximum capacity is 2,000 passengers, 650 passenger vehicles or 120 freight vehicles. The amenities on board include a self service cafeteria known as “The Food Court” (this is where most people head for and it can get very busy at meal times), 2 Costa Coffee Cafes and ‘Langan’s Brasserie’ Restaurant (a very peaceful and civilised way to while away the 90 minute crossing). There is a shop which offers offshore shopping at French duty paid prices and two open decks on decks 8 and 9. There is a non smoking policy throughout the ferry apart from designated areas on deck 9.

We made our way to the “Food Court” and sampled their fish and chips which were both tasty and reasonably priced. After eating we had a stroll around the ship and then relocated to the café for a cup of tea whilst we waited to be called to our car. As we sat waiting we saw the French coastline appear and enjoyed the view as we sailed into Calais.

In no time at all we had crossed the channel and were back in the car ready to proceed on our journey. When we disembarked we drove straight out of the port (no passport control) and onto the open road, fed and relaxed we were ready for the start of our adventure.

　

THE RETURN JOURNEY ONBOARD ‘THE PRIDE OF CALAIS’

For our return crossing, we had left things to chance as our holiday had been somewhat “open ended”. We had stayed overnight in the Saint Quentin area of France and had an easy two hour drive to the ferry terminal at Calais. We arrived at about 12:05 and as we had not booked we had to go to the P&O ticket office which is located just off the roundabout before you enter the car lanes for the ferry. We booked our car and 4 passengers on the 12:50 crossing to Dover, the price of £107 was very different to the £39 we had paid coming, this shows the savings to be had by booking in advance on the internet.
With ticket and passports in hand and our car lane number hanging from the rear view mirror, we made our way to the designated lane and awaited boarding. Once again it was quick and efficient and in no time at all we were once again making a note of our car deck and stairs for when we had to locate our car at the end of our journey.
For our return journey we were on ‘The Pride of Calais’, which has very similar amenities to that of ‘The Pride of Kent’. This ferry was launched in 1987 and was owned by Townsend Thoresen until 2006, she is due to be phased out in the autumn of 2011 when she will be replaced with the larger ‘ms Spirit of France’. At 26,433 tonnes she is lighter than ‘The Pride of Kent’ but can accommodate more passenger with a maximum capacity of 2,290 and has a speed of 22 knots.
This time we treated ourselves to a meal in ‘Langan’s Brasserie’ where we could choose from the menu of the day or the al-la-carte menu. It was a more relaxing eating experience than the self service cafeteria and we spent the entire crossing enjoying our meal and chatting about our holiday, a most enjoyable end to a great trip.