Southern Germany, where you do park safely?

Once I have got about 3 hours from Calais in any direction I feel comfortable leaving my bike at the front of a Hotel - France, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Austria etc.

The only caveat would be cities, where I do look for a Garage, although I think criminal gangs are on the rise, they will be in places with a lot more bikes, so once in the countryside you are much safer.

A visible lock and chain are a minimum. I will be in Vosges area and Germany in May, despite having a GS stolen last year in Grenoble.
Germany has always been fine, …so far.
I now always google street view to get an idea of exposure to public view for the bike.
Sensible precautions about how and where you park are exactly that…sensible. It doesnt mean dont go. The knock on affects for insurance and have a holiday/trip spoiled are significant.

Worrying? Dont, just a few precautions.
 
If there was a voting button I’d go for “Skip It”.

On my first naive trip I took a steel rope with wee shackle. Never again did I lug a few kilos of metal with me. And I won’t be packing one on Tuesday. Maybe T shirts instead.
 
Been riding in Europe for nearly 30 years now, done more weekends away in France than I can count, plenty of tours in neighboring countries too

The only time I’ve ever taken a lock was when I stayed in a hotel for a DGR in Lyon

I use the steering lock in the daytime when we stop and I’m careful where I park at night, I try to get a garage or closed parking, maybe I’m naive or just lucky but so far I’ve never had a problem

I also leave jackets on the bike when the panniers are full, attached with a small Abus retractable cable lock
 
To answer the OP’s questions and to hopefully put other minds to rest vis-a-vis the future:

Q. Southern Germany, where you do park safely?​


Southern Germany is generally considered safe, though increased awareness of the risk of theft of a motorcycle might well be sensible in the larger towns or cities.

Q. I'm wondering what other people do in terms of parking safely.

A. Hopefully, most people take sensible precautions, though some might view the theft risk as so low that they do little or maybe even nothing. This though might be through laziness, over familiarity or some other factors.

Q. Are garages vital or is the place pretty safe

A. As above, the area is regarded as generally safe. That said, a (presumably reasonably secure) garage - if one is available - might well be an added line of defence, in addition to the locks that you are carrying.

:beerjug:
 
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I would say that I have made many trips trips in France, Had various bikes whilst living in Corréze, and the garage was far from secure. Germany, Austria, Spain etc and there has never been an issue. One was enough for me to increase security though..
Most bikes never had locks fitted, though the GS had Roadlock.
 
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Foreigners can't be trusted, I here it on here all the time.
 
One was enough for me to increase security though……

You only need a bike nicked once, no matter from where, when or why, to realise the impact of the loss. It’s no more comfort if it’s pinched from “It’s super quiet. Nothing can happen here, surely” , than from a city centre.
 
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The way I read it, which is exactly how it was written the post was stating how much safer motorcycle parking was in southern Germany. That is what the post was saying. Why you seem to think it said something else I’ve no idea.
The original post was pretty helpful for me as I’m currently arranging a bike trip to that area next year. The post subsequently got changed which made it less helpful as it now appears to be asking about safe parking. Why you seem to have a problem with that is again beyond me. The reason I wasn’t communicating with the OP was because his post originally seemed like a post advising that parking is indeed much safer in southern Germany. This didn’t need a reply.
The post was not changed. I don't believe you can change a post after people have replied. I can understand some confusion with the title if that's all you read, but the post content was as intended and made perfect sense.
 
The post was not changed. I don't believe you can change a post after people have replied. I can understand some confusion with the title if that's all you read, but the post content was as intended and made perfect sense.
We knew the message you were trying to convey.
 
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The post was not changed. I don't believe you can change a post after people have replied. I can understand some confusion with the title if that's all you read, but the post content was as intended and made perfect sense.
I only read the title saying parking was safe in southern Germany. Which was good to know.
 


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