Bavarian Forest Bavarian Forest Travel Guide: Best Hotels, Restaurants & Experiences

Germany's oldest national park stretches across 24,000 hectares of primeval woodland along the Czech border, where ancient beech and spruce forests have grown undisturbed for centuries. The region's accommodation scene clusters around gateway towns like Grafenau, Spiegelau, and Frauenau, each offering distinct character — Grafenau serves as the park's southern hub with its baroque architecture and traditional glassmaking heritage, while Bodenmais to the west has evolved into the area's primary wellness destination.

The culinary landscape reflects deep Bavarian forest traditions: game dishes featuring venison and wild boar, freshwater fish from the Regen river system, and foraged mushrooms that appear on menus from August through autumn. Many establishments maintain their own smokehouses. Glassmaking, practiced here since the Middle Ages, shapes the cultural identity — the Glasstraße (Glass Road) connects historic workshops and museums through the forest, and several properties incorporate this heritage into their design.