More about hotels in Bavaria
Bavaria pulls off something few places manage: a beer garden under chestnut trees, a jagged snow-capped Alp, and a walled medieval town with cobbled lanes, all within a couple of hours' drive of each other. It's Germany's biggest state by a long way, running from the Alpine border with Austria up through the rolling hills of Franconia, and it never really settles on one identity because it doesn't need to. Add a scatter of turreted castles built purely for one king's fantasy, and it's easy to see why Bavaria pulls in more overnight stays than any other German state.
Whatever kind of Bavarian trip you're planning, a beer hall weekend in Munich or a slow loop of fairytale castles and lake towns, there's a base to match. Here's where to stay, what it costs, and a few tips for booking smart.
Where to stay in Bavaria
- Munich - the state capital, and the easiest base if you want beer halls, museums and an airport with direct flights home. A good pick for first-timers who want everything close by in one city.
- Nuremberg - a walled old town of red-roofed houses and cobbled lanes, home to an imperial castle, a centuries-old gingerbread tradition and one of Germany's biggest Christmas markets. It anchors the wider Middle Franconia region.
- Rothenburg ob der Tauber - the best-preserved stop on the Romantic Road, all half-timbered houses and a town wall you can still walk the full loop of. Book a room inside the walls for the full effect.
- Bamberg - a Unesco-listed old town spread across seven hills, and the unofficial capital of Franconian beer, with more breweries packed into the surrounding countryside than almost anywhere else on earth.
- Garmisch-Partenkirchen - the main gateway to the Bavarian Alps, sitting right under the Zugspitze, Germany's highest peak. A solid base for hiking, skiing and day trips out to Neuschwanstein Castle.
- Upper Bavaria - the broader region wrapping around Munich and the Alps, dotted with lake towns like Tegernsee and Chiemsee. Worth a look if you want somewhere quieter than Munich but still close to it.
How much is Bavaria accommodation?
Expect to pay around AU$150 a night on average across Bavaria, though that swings a lot between a quiet Franconian guesthouse and a five-star spa in the Alps. Here's roughly what each tier gets you:
- Hostels and backpacker beds - from AU$35 per night. Dorm beds in Munich and Nuremberg, handy for solo travellers hopping between cities.
- Budget hotels and guesthouses - from AU$80 per night. Family-run Gasthöfe in Romantic Road towns, often with a bakery or beer hall downstairs.
- Mid-range hotels and apartments - from AU$150 per night. Three and four-star business hotels in Munich and Nuremberg, or a serviced apartment if you're staying a week and want your own kitchen.
- Boutique and historic stays - from AU$230 per night. Restored townhouses and inns inside old-town walls, the kind of place with creaking floors and a story behind every room.
- Luxury and resort stays - from AU$480 per night. Five-star hotels in Munich and spa resorts tucked into the Alps, usually with a proper restaurant and mountain or lake views worth the extra spend.
Top-rated hotels in Bavaria
- Rosewood Munich - a five-star hotel built inside the former Bavarian State Bank headquarters, a short walk from Marienplatz, with the first Asaya Spa in Germany.
- Le Méridien Grand Hotel Nürnberg - a grand hotel a few minutes' walk from Nuremberg Castle, an easy pick if you want the old town right on your doorstep.
- Hotel Eisenhut - four 16th-century patrician houses joined into one hotel on Rothenburg's market square, all timber beams and creaking floors you can't build new.
- Welcome Hotel Residenzschloss Bamberg - a grand hotel named for Bamberg's historic Residenz palace, with rooms looking out over the Unesco-listed old town.
- Schloss Elmau - an Alpine retreat tucked into a quiet valley near Garmisch-Partenkirchen, with multiple spas, its own concert hall and Michelin-starred dining.
Tips for finding the perfect accommodation in Bavaria
- Munich prices spike hard during Oktoberfest (late September to early October) and the Christmas markets in December. Book those windows months ahead, or base yourself in a nearby Franconian or Alpine town instead.
- Chasing Neuschwanstein Castle? Stay in Garmisch-Partenkirchen or Füssen rather than Munich. It cuts the drive to under an hour and gets you there before the tour buses do.
- Winter turns Garmisch-Partenkirchen and the wider Alps into ski country, so book early for snow season if you want a room with a mountain view.
- A room inside a Romantic Road town's old walls, in Rothenburg or nearby Nördlingen, costs more than one on the outskirts, but you'll be able to walk everywhere once the day-trip buses leave.
- Filter your search for "Altstadt" (old town) in any Bavarian town. It's the fastest way to land somewhere walkable instead of stuck out on a ring road.
