Villas in Bavaria

Regensburg suits a Danube city base, Augsburg suits history, and the Franconian lakes near Spalt suit swimming and cycling. This page covers Bavarian homes outside our mountain, forest and Franconia pages. They are holiday flats and houses, not villas, spread thinly across the state, so choose a base by what you want to see and bring a car.

Where

Villas: 63
From, per week: £224
Cheapest month: July
Nearest airports: Munich suits Augsburg, Landshut and Regensburg. Nuremberg suits the Franconian lakes and Wackersdorf. Frankfurt is closest to Aschaffenburg and the Spessart. Flights from London take around an hour and a half to an hour and three-quarters.

Where to stay in Bavaria

Regensburg and the Danube (Regensburg, Pentling)

Regensburg's medieval old town and Stadtamhof, across the Stone Bridge, are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, full of tall merchants' towers, Romanesque churches and the old sausage kitchen by the bridge. Pentling is on the southern edge. The Walhalla temple above the Danube is about 20 minutes east, and boats run through the Danube gorge to Weltenburg Abbey from Kelheim, around 40 minutes west. Munich airport is around an hour and a quarter away.

Best for: A city base with day trips along the Danube

Not for you if: You want rural quiet: these are city and suburban homes.

The Upper Palatinate lakes (Wackersdorf)

Wackersdorf sits among the lakes of the Oberpfälzer Seenland, former lignite pits now used for swimming, sailing and cycling. The Murner See and the Steinberger See both have beaches, and a viewing tower looks out over the Murner See. In the 1980s the town was the scene of mass protests against a planned nuclear reprocessing plant, which was eventually abandoned. Regensburg is about 40 minutes away, and Nuremberg airport around an hour and a quarter.

Best for: Lake swimming, cycling and water sports in summer

Not for you if: You want old villages: these lakes are flooded lignite pits in a working, modern landscape.

Augsburg and the Western Woods (Augsburg, Altenmünster)

Augsburg was one of Europe's richest cities in the 16th century. The Fuggerei, founded by Jakob Fugger in 1521, is still lived in by residents paying a token rent, and the city's historic water system is UNESCO-listed. The Augsburger Puppenkiste puppet theatre is a draw for children. Altenmünster is in the Augsburg Western Woods nature park, about 30 minutes north-west. Legoland at Günzburg is around 45 minutes away, and Munich airport about an hour.

Best for: Renaissance history, puppet theatre and an easy trip to Legoland

Not for you if: You want mountains outside the window: the Alps are around an hour and a half south.

The Franconian Lake District (Spalt, Gunzenhausen, Weißenburg)

The Fränkisches Seenland is a group of reservoirs created in recent decades south of Nuremberg. The Großer Brombachsee has sandy beaches, sailing and a passenger boat, and the Altmühlsee at Gunzenhausen is shallower, with a bird island. Spalt is an old hop-growing town with a hop and beer museum. Weißenburg has Roman baths and a fort on the Limes frontier. Nuremberg airport is around 45 minutes to an hour away.

Best for: Families who want swimming lakes, sailing and flat cycle routes

Not for you if: You want the lakes to yourself in August: the Brombachsee beaches are busy on hot weekends.

Aschaffenburg and the Spessart (Kleinostheim, Bessenbach, Heimbuchenthal, Frammersbach, Blankenbach)

Aschaffenburg, on the Main, has the red sandstone Johannisburg palace and the Pompejanum, a copy of a Roman villa. The Spessart behind it is one of Germany's largest areas of mixed forest. Heimbuchenthal is a few minutes from Mespelbrunn, a moated castle in a wooded valley, while Frammersbach, Bessenbach and Blankenbach are forest villages with signed walks. Kleinostheim is on the edge of Aschaffenburg. Frankfurt airport is about 40 minutes from Aschaffenburg.

Best for: Forest walks and the shortest transfer from Frankfurt

Not for you if: You want Alpine Bavaria: this north-west corner feels closer to Frankfurt than to Munich.

Landshut and the Isar (Kröning, Dingolfing)

Kröning is a farming area in the hills between the Isar and the Vils, with a long history of pottery. Landshut, about 20 minutes away, has a broad Gothic main street, Trausnitz castle above the town and the brick tower of St Martin's church. Every four years it stages the Landshut Wedding, a medieval pageant with thousands of costumed locals; the next is in 2027. Dingolfing is downstream on the Isar. Munich airport is around 40 minutes away.

Best for: A quiet rural base close to Munich airport

Not for you if: You want plenty of choice: there are only a handful of homes here.

When to go to Bavaria

Bavaria away from the Alps is mainly a spring-to-autumn destination. May, June and September suit cycling and city sightseeing. The Franconian lakes are at their best in July and August, when the Bavarian school holidays, from early August to mid-September, make weekends busy. Regensburg and Augsburg work all year, and their Christmas markets run through Advent. Winters are cold and often grey, lake beaches and boats shut down, and there is little snow outside the mountains.