This year we decided to check out the Cochem Medieval festival because we did the Manderscheid Medieval festival last year. You do have to pay an entrance fee and truthfully I think you get more for your money at the Manderscheid one. While the Cochem festival was great for something to get out and explore but it pales in comparison to Manderscheid if your comparing medieval festivals. The Cochem [Read more…]

On our drive back from Salzburg to Germany we stopped at Dachau Concentration Camp in Dachau, Germany just outside of Munich. We used Rick Steve’s book for the self guided tour. We had ages 11 years to 50+ years in our group. This is the first concentration camp we have visited since we have moved here to Germany and it was a humbling experience for all.

Parking was fairly easy to find, follow the [Read more…]

September Things To Do Around Spangdahlem has lots of interesting things to go see during this month, fall to winter tends to be some of the busier months for festivals and activities. One of the most popular ones is one of my favorites, the Hitscherhof Pumpkin festival! Again these are generally no more than 3 hours away, although I may throw in one or two further away ones if I think that they [Read more…]

If your visiting the Eagle’s Nest make sure to check out the Luge Sommerrodelbahn at Alpengasthof Hochlenzer which is super close, just follow the rodelbahn signs. It was about 2 km away and worth the quick stop for some fun before heading to the salt mines in Austria. It was neat for us because it was our first toboggan style rodelbahn experience.

Prices are per ride (€2,50 adult, €2 kids) or [Read more…]

The Eagles Nest (Kehlsteinhaus) in Berchtesgaden, Germany was one of the top sites we visited on our trip to Bavaria in June 2015! Truthfully I was iffy about going or not and almost didn’t go, I did tons of research, talked to people who had been and we ended up deciding that if it was clear (a requirement for it being worth it) we didn’t want to pass up the opportunity and regret it, and I’m SO [Read more…]

If your in the Garmisch area making a stop at Kind Ludwig’s Linderhof Palace is a great way to spend a few hours. I have found many people say that Linderhof is better than Neuschwanstin and overall I’d have to say that I agree. While both are much too gaudy for my liking I think the Linderhof experience offers more bang for your buck.

Know that there are tours offered throughout the day in several [Read more…]

If your looking for the fairy tale castle that inspired Walt Disney’s Cinderella castle then Neuschwanstein Castle is it! While this is probably one of the most famous castles in Germany and it is impressive it’s very gaudy and by far not our favorite. The story about King Ludwig is quite fascinating though! We actually visited this castle in 2004 and went back several weeks ago with my mom and niece.

This [Read more…]

If your heading to Cologne (Köln) you need to check out the Cologne Cathedral (Köln Dom) there. It’s quite impressive and worth the visit. There is also a lock bridge only a 5 minute walk behind the Dom as well.

There is lots of parking in the parking garage under the Cathedral and walkplatz. And NO it is NOT hard to drive in Cologne to get there, I see people say that all the time. I’m not a [Read more…]

August Things To Do Around Spangdahlem has lots of interesting things to go see during this month. Some of the most popular one are the Wittlich Pig Festival and the Hot Air Balloon Festival! Again these are generally no more than 3 hours away, although I may throw in one or two further away ones if I think that they are something to consider.

There are Things To Do for everyone! Some include Medieval Festivals, Wine festivals, Hot Air Balloons, Pig Festivals, Elivs, & more! There has got to be one that you will find interesting and want to check out!

I’ve also included a printable file at the bottom so that you can print it out and easily see what is going on. Some of the events are this weekend so if you don’t get to them this year you can always add them to your list for next year. I’ll also be blogging about the ones that we get to visit so check back and see if they are worth taking a trip to.

Below is a list of upcoming Things To Do, please note many of the websites are in German only so use Google Chrome and it will translate the page for you. It will include the festival, website, dates, and how far from Spangdahlem & Ramstein.

Vianden Medieval Festival – in Vianden, Luxembourg    July 25th-Aug 2rd
Medieval festival with entertainment, food, and fun. Website has more info.
Approximately 48 minutes from Spangdahlem, 1 hour 56 mins from Ramstein.
http://www.castle-vianden.lu/festival-historique-2015/index.html

Castle Festival – in Cochem, Germany    August 1st-2nd
A medieval festival at Reichsburg complete with jugglers, merchants, reenacted battles and more! More info on website
Approximately 50 mins from Spangdahlem, 1 hour 45 mins from Ramstein
http://www.burg-cochem.de/burgfest.html?&L=1

Apple Wine Festival – in Frankfurt, Germany     August 7th-16th
Apple wine, music, vendors, and merchandise, website has more info.
Approximately 2 hours from Spangdahlem, 1 hour 45 mins from Ramstein.
http://www.frankfurt-tourismus.de/en/Media/Events/Frankfurt-Apple-Wine-Festival

Streeta(rt)nimation – in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg    August 8th – 9th
Check out the mimes, musicians, tumblers and more as you stroll through the city, more info on website
Approximately 57 from Spangdahlem, 1 hour 35 mins from Ramstein
http://www.visitluxembourg.com/en/place/specialevents/streeta-rt-nimation

Schuberfouer – in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg     August 21st – September 9th
Huge fair that was originally started in 1340, more info on website
Approximately 57 from Spangdahlem, 1 hour 35 mins from Ramstein
http://www.visitluxembourg.com/en/place/specialevents/schueberfouer

Mosel Ballon Fiesta – in Föhren, Germany    August 14th-15th
Hot air balloons and family fun, see website for more info and map to location
Approximately 35 minutes from Spangdahlem, 1 hour from Ramstein.
http://www.moselballonfiesta.de
We checked this out last year you can read about it HERE

Wittlich Pig Festival – in Wittlich, Germany    August 14th-18th
There will be rides, parade, food, music and more! See the website for program details.
Approximately 18 minutes from Spangdahlem, 1 hour 10 mins from Ramstein.
http://saeubrenner.wittlich.de/
We tried this our last year you can read about it HERE

Historical Burgenfest – in Manderschied, Germany    August 29th-30th
Medieval festival with food, tumblers, jousting, fire eaters, and much more! Website has more details.
Approximately 27 minutes from Spangdahlem, 1 hour 23 mins from Ramstein.
http://www.burgenfest.info/englisch.htm
This was a fun festival we visited last year, read about it HERE

European Elvis Festival – in Bad Nauheim, Germany    August 14th-16th
Concerts, cadillac parade, markets and more! More info on website
Approximately 2 hours 24 mins from Spangdahlem, 1 hour 50 mins from Ramstein
https://www.bad-nauheim.com/culture/elvis-european-home/european-elvis-festival.html

Backfischfest – in Worms, Germany    August 29th – September 6th
Wine & folk festival with Fish, fireworks, fair and more! More info on website
Approximately 2 hours from Spangdahlem, 55 mins from Ramstein
http://www.backfischfest.de/backfischfest/index.php

The printable has the list of the 10 festivals/events that are within 3 hours or less from Spangdahlem, download it HERE **PLEASE NOTE the dates for the Schuberfouer & Streeta(rt)nimation are not correct on the printable so keep that in mind.

We will be checking out the some of these, I’m excited about crossing some of them off our list! If you know of a great festival that I missed that you think should be added please email me or leave a comment 🙂 I’d also love to hear your experience if you get a chance to visit any of the festivals!