Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Directory A-Z
Accommodation
Bavaria and the Black Forest offer all types of places to unpack your suitcase, from hostels,
campsites and traditional taverns to chains, business hotels and luxury resorts. Reservations
are a good idea between June and September, around major holidays and festivals and, in
business-oriented cities, during trade shows.
» Online booking services include
www.venere.com
,
www.booking.com
and
www.hotel.de
.
For best last-minute rates try
www.hrs.com
.
» The website
www.sightsleeping.by
is a booking portal for rooms in some of Bavaria's
most magnificent properties such as castles, palaces and other historical buildings.
» Many tourist office and hotel websites let you check room availability and make reserva-
tions. Staff can also help you in person or, if you arrive after office hours, have vacancies
posted in the window or a display case.
» Electronic reservation boards, especially common in the Alps, connect you directly to
local properties for free, but don't always work reliably.
» Properties with designated nonsmoking rooms are now the norm, but before committing
to a room at midrange and budget level, go and smell it first.
» If heading to the region in late September (during Oktoberfest) accommodation of any
kind may be very difficult to book at short notice.
» Rooms with air-con are rare.
» Wherever you stay, breakfast always appears on price lists as a separate item, not in-
cluded in room rates. This is due to finicky local tax laws.
» Another extra charge is the Kurtaxe (resort tax), particularly common in the Alps.
Between €1 and €3, it's not included in the room rate but does often gain you a discount
card for local transport and sights.
» Wi-fi at every standard of accommodation is increasingly widespread, but is not free.
Gratis web connection is more common at hostels than at establishments further up the
hotel food chain.
