Swabia

A panorama of Ravensburg.

Upper Swabia is a part of Germany all its own, with its own dialect and proud pre-Celtic, pre-Teutonic heritage—and some of the best castles in Germany

From the shores of Lake Constance to the castle-topped peaks of the interior to the great Gothic cathedral of Ulm on the banks of the Danube, this is Germany's Oberschwaben region.

Top Upper Swabia experiences

Lake Constance ★★★

The Bodensee is the jewel of Upper Swabia, a long lake backed by the Swiss Alps on the far shore and lined by vineyards, flower-bedecked islands, half-timbered villages, university cities, and historical sites from Bronze Age to the Zeppelin Age—and is so amazing, it gets it own section... » more

Hohenzollern Castle★★★

The Hohenzollern is the picture-postcard castle of southwestern Germany, all spires and turrets atop a forested mountain peak... » more

Ulm cathedral ★★

One of the world's greatest Gothic cathedrals soars above the Danube in a glory of stone tracery and sky-scraping spires—and the carved stonework up close is even more impressive. Climbing the 768 steps to the top of the main spire is a tourism rite of passage... » more

Lichtenstein Castle★

Lichtenstein Castle, rising out of a sheer cliff face above a stream-fed valley in the Swabian Jura, is one of those postcard-perfect Romantic-era castles built in the 19th century... » more

Ravensburg ★

This bustling little city still bristles with the medieval towers that once picked out the ring of its city walls, and its top museum is devoted to the games and puzzles of its most famous corporate citizen, the Ravensburger toy company... » more

Waldburg Castle ★

Waldburg Castle, on a hill above Swabian farm country, is one of the homiest castles you can tour, and it comes with a surprising American connection... » more

Where to stay in Upper Swabia

Schloss Weitenburg ★★

This refurbished 11th century castle above the Neckar River village of Starzach is well-sited between the Black Forest and the Swabian Alps, its rooms a period mishmash of Renaissance, baroque, and Neo-Gothic. [€€] » book

Schloss Neutrauchburg ★★

Just 13 spacious, stylish, contemporary rooms in a gorgeous 18th century Schloss in the Allgäu countryside east of Lake Constance toward Bavaria that was built by the counts of the Waldburg-Zeil branch of the Waldburg family. [€€] » book

Ferienhof Tiergarten ★★

Somewhere between a petting zoo and an agriturismo, this collection of eight family-oriented apartments on a farm in Upper Swabia is family-perfect: Goats, ponies, and pigs to pet, deer to watch canter past, two sizeable playgrounds, and homey apartments with large kitchens, living rooms, an adult bedroom, and kid-themed bedrooms (mine was castles-and-Rapunzel). [€€] » book

Burg Katzenstein ★

The rooms are blandly modern and functional (with the occasional exposed stone wall for atmosphere), but they cost less than €100—and the 12th century castle itself: Wow! It's just postcard-perfect. [€]... » book