The German Motorcycle Route - 2026

[Wapping]

Ever since I first read about the German Motorcycle Route and then mapped it out in GPX format, I have been fascinated by it.

Motorradstraße Deutschland - MSD

www.motorradstrassen.de

The idea of riding it is surfacing again. More worryingly, I am back on the idea of riding all 8,000 miles of it. It definitely won’t be cheap to do, as I’ll probably stay in hotels all the way around. But, if I average 200 miles a day, that is 40 days. Add say, 50% as I won’t ride every day and / or I’ll want to stop to see ‘stuff’ that gives 60 days or, near enough, two months away. Do it from the latter part of August, thro’ to the latter end of October should be OK weather’wise…. Or so I think!

If I assume a figure of £150 a day (just to allow for any problems and all excursions) that is £9,000 all in. A two month trip around bits of the globe by aeroplane or a two month cruise would cost more, I’m sure. It’s looking like ‘good value’….. and I only have to justify it to myself! Cut down on the kit taken, to just the bare essentials (I am happy enough to wash stuff as I go along, either in my room or a laundrette) and I won’t be meeting royalty along the way, though if I do, my bikermate appearance will only impress them more.

Not speaking a word of German, much beyond counting to 12, ordering a beer or one room, just adds to the fun!

A plan is forming in my head….. There’s plenty of room, as there’s not much else in there!

 

[KMD]

I see the central-northern section takes you past Celle. A stones throw from Bergen Belsen.

 

[Wapping]

That’s certainly true and thanks for the head-up.

I can amend the legs to take in:

Lots of the German UNESCO sites.
The pieces I missed from my visit to the Hurtgen Forest.
The bits I want to see, all relating to the fall of Berlin.
The ‘Limes’, dating back to the Roman occupation and its string of forts.
And lots more besides.

As the 8.000 miles covers most of Germany, outside of the major cities, I just need to avoid making a list of ‘Must does’ which grows exponentially.

 

[wessie]

The blue bit west of Wurzburg looks like it follows the River Main and therefore goes past the hotel I recommended to Doc. He seemed happy enough with it, especially the 24 hour honesty bar.

Welcome to Hotel Goldenes Fass in Freudenberg

Experience hospitality directly on the Main River – with cozy rooms, breakfast, parking, and a restaurant with riverside terrace.

hotel-goldenesfass.com

 

[John Armstrong]

Some extras, close to the southern section. The map above shows Heidenheim https://maps.app.goo.gl/HXQqtdipYM5aERre6

Blindheim = Blenheim to us in the UK: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blindheim
Nordlingen - if geology / space events rocks (pun intended) your boat: https://www.romantischestrasse.de/en/noerdlingen/

 

[wessie]

The route seems to cross the border into Austria, west of Garmisch P. Presumably to go around Plansee and then back into Bavaria and the lovely Ettaler Forest. This road passes Schloss Linderhof, another of the ornate palaces created by Ludwig, a mini version of Versailles.

 

[Wapping]

To show what rabbit holes you can go down….

Everyone is familiar with the large American and British / Commonwealth cemeteries. I didn’t know of the largest German cemetery in Western Europe at Lommel, Belgium.

Lommel German War Cemetery

Liberation Route Europe is a transnational memorial, a trail connecting WWII remembrance sites and stories across Europe.

www.liberationroute.com

I need to be careful, as the Liberation Route website also throws up other ‘stuff’ to see around it.

Nor, to be honest, the largest British / Commonwealth cemetery at the Reichswald Forest War Cemetery in northwest Germany.

Reichswald Forest War Cemetery | Cemetery Details | CWGC

Reichswald Forest War Cemetery | Cemetery Details | CWGC

www.cwgc.org

I cannot recall either of them cropping up on these pages before.

PS I take it that Kleve, is the modern spelling of the town (or area) of Cleves, the home of Anne of Cleves. Henry VIII’s fourth wife. She was of course the subject of the famous Holbein painting, made in Düren, not a million miles away. I missed visiting Düren on my recent visit to the Hürtgen Forest, something I mean to address next time.

Anne of Cleves - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

I can probably work all three into my journey to or from the hub of the German Motorcycle Route in Laubach.

 

[JonnyBravo]

I see the central-northern section takes you past Celle. A stones throw from Bergen Belsen.

Never mind that, he would ride past Walsrode too and the ‘Pink Haus’ knocking shop is still there and going strong !

 

[Wapping]

The route seems to cross the border into Austria, west of Garmisch P. Presumably to go around Plansee and then back into Bavaria and the lovely Ettaler Forest. This road passes Schloss Linderhof, another of the ornate palaces created by Ludwig, a mini version of Versailles.

Thank you, Wessie.

The Mad King Ludwig castles are certainly something to behold. I do want to see the palaces / large houses of the former ‘rulers’ of Germany, up and around Berlin. Some will probably cross over into the UNESCO sites, which would be good to see

AI’s take on it:




Germany boasts many diverse UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including historic cities like Bamberg and Regensburg, architectural marvels such as Cologne Cathedral and the Margravial Opera House, significant cultural areas like the Museum Island in Berlin, and unique landscapes such as the Upper Middle Rhine Valley and Muskauer Park. Recent additions include the Palaces of King Ludwig II, the ShUM Sites of Speyer, Worms and Mainz, and the Schwerin Residence Ensemble.


Here are some notable German UNESCO World Heritage Sites:
Architecture & History

• Aachen Cathedral: A landmark of the Carolingian Renaissance, featuring Charlemagne's Palatine Chapel.
  
  
• Cologne Cathedral: One of Germany's most visited landmarks and the largest Gothic church in Northern Europe.
  
  
• Speyer Cathedral: The largest surviving Romanesque church in the world.
  
  
• Speicherstadt and Kontorhaus District: A historic warehouse district in Hamburg, with the distinctive Chilehaus.
  
  
• Wartburg Castle: A historic castle significant for its connection to Martin Luther.
  
  
• Roman Monuments of Trier: A collection of Roman structures including the Porta Nigra.
  

Culture & Cities

• Town of Bamberg: A charming old town with its unique layout and buildings.
  
  
• Classical Weimar: The city where Goethe and Schiller lived, preserving their homes and the Duchess Anna Amalia Library.
  
  
• Museum Island, Berlin: A complex of world-renowned museums on an island in the Spree River.
  
  
• Historic Centres of Stralsund and Wismar: Two well-preserved medieval Hanseatic cities.
  
  
• Old town of Regensburg: A historic city center known for its well-preserved medieval architecture.
  

Landscapes & Nature

• Upper Middle Rhine Valley: A romantic landscape featuring castles and vineyards along the Rhine River.
  
  
• Muskauer Park: An expansive landscape park on the border between Germany and Poland.
  
  
• Wadden Sea: A unique coastal landscape on the North Sea.
  
  
• Messel Pit Fossil Site: A significant fossil site containing a rich array of prehistoric life.
  

Modern & Industrial

• Bauhaus and its Sites: Includes iconic sites from the Bauhaus school in Weimar and Dessau.
  
  
• Berlin Modernism Housing Estates: Examples of pioneering 20th-century social housing projects.
  
  
• Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex: A preserved industrial site that showcases the history of coal mining and production.
  
  
• Fagus Factory in Alfeld: An early example of modern industrial architecture designed by Walter Gropius.
  

Germany - UNESCO World Heritage Convention

Germany - UNESCO World Heritage Convention

whc.unesco.org

The two months will be longer if I’m not very careful!

 

[Wapping]

My idea of riding the German Motorcycle Route in its entirety, but using it to finish off my trip to the Hürtgen Forest and then add in my plan to see the sights / sites of the Fall of Berlin, seems to work.



I can take the black line which is the ‘scenic’ route I took to the Hürtgen Forest / Simmerath, but this time I might stop just down the road in the little village of Simonskall. If I time my arrival for the Saturday night in Simonskall, I can probably visit the hospital bunker on the Sunday and see the village of Roetgen (the first place of any size to fall in Germany) along with finishing off the Kall Trail to Schmidt.

The Monday will have to be a compromise of sort, as I need to cross the Rhine. I don’t really want to ride the roads I’ll be riding on the German Motorcycle Routes, but I need to clear the congestion around Cologne in order to get to Schotten, the spiritual heart or hub of the German Motorcycle Route.

Experience tells me that when faced with Cologne and / or the other cities along the Rhine, you might as well just bite the bullet and take the motorways. This is what I think I’ll do. Not least, the route up from Simonskall to Cologne will take me through Düren, the town that was absolutely flattened, as a part of Operation Queen and the final breakout of the Americans from the four months of hell in the Hürtgen Forest and their strike towards the Rihine and Cologne. I’ll be following near enough the line and axis of the American advance.

Liberation of Roetgen - the first free municipality in Germany

On the afternoon of 12 September 1944, the small municipality of Roetgen, located about 20 kilometres southeast of Aachen, became the first German municipality to be liberated by American soldiers. The American troops achieved this less than 100 days after their arrival on European soil.

www.liberationroute.com

Monument "Angel of Flames" - Düren - TracesOfWar.com

www.tracesofwar.com

I now need to add the route for the Fall of Berlin and the Russians, away over to the east.

 

[Wapping]

Another rabbit hole.

I think I should mix in the little village of Oberstdorf, the subject of Julia Boyd’s excellent book:

https://www.ukgser.com/community/threads/a-village-in-the-third-reich-julia-boyd.333645/

It is pretty close to the southern leg of the German Motorcycle Route:



I’ll try to pick a hotel there.



I have little doubt that they’ll be biker friendly and probably ‘secure’ enough to risk it.


Edit:

I found this interview with Boyd, the author:

 

[Wapping]

I now need to add the route for the Fall of Berlin and the Russians, away over to the east.

This works too, just as I thought it would.

The German Motorcycle Route passes north to south to the east of Berlin. The Russian advance and retreat of the German army group to the south of the capital, runs east to west, so the two must cross somewhere.

Here it is. The redline in the German Motorcycle Route, the black line from the Seelow Heights to the little town of Halbe, where the ferocious fighting occurred:



Likewise, it passes through Tangemunde, to the west of Berlin. Thus is the town on Elbe, where the American forces halted and thousands of Germans (soldiers and civilians alike) sought to cross the river and escape from the Russians:

 

[rjsmith26]

View attachment 438728

Ever since I first read about the German Motorcycle Route and then mapped it out in GPX format, I have been fascinated by it.

Motorradstraße Deutschland - MSD

www.motorradstrassen.de

The idea of riding it is surfacing again. More worryingly, I am back on the idea of riding all 8,000 miles of it. It definitely won’t be cheap to do, as I’ll probably stay in hotels all the way around. But, if I average 200 miles a day, that is 40 days. Add say, 50% as I won’t ride every day and / or I’ll want to stop to see ‘stuff’ that gives 60 days or, near enough, two months away. Do it from the latter part of August, thro’ to the latter end of October should be OK weather’wise…. Or so I think!

If I assume a figure of £150 a day (just to allow for any problems and all excursions) that is £9,000 all in. A two month trip around bits of the globe by aeroplane or a two month cruise would cost more, I’m sure. It’s looking like ‘good value’….. and I only have to justify it to myself! Cut down on the kit taken, to just the bare essentials (I am happy enough to wash stuff as I go along, either in my room or a laundrette) and I won’t be meeting royalty along the way, though if I do, my bikermate appearance will only impress them more.

Not speaking a word of German, much beyond counting to 12, ordering a beer or one room, just adds to the fun!

A plan is forming in my head….. There’s plenty of room, as there’s not much else in there!

Really interesting, any chance of a share of the gpx of the whole thing Richard - could be useful to use sections of it on future trips.

 

[Wapping]

Another rabbit hole.

The northern leg of the German Motorcycle Route (in blue) passes close by Lüneburg. I’d like to visit the spot where Montgomery took the surrender of the German armed forces, not far away:, the red pin in Google maps:

Memorial Stone Timeloberg - Wendisch Evern - TracesOfWar.com

www.tracesofwar.com

The surrender document, typed up in a field, amended by hand to include the naval ships and altering the time to 08:00 is a wonderfully simple and short document to entirely end the British involvement in the largest war the world had ever endured. Compare it with the screeds that come from a local council today or the instructions on a TV set. I love the way Montgomery made a mess of the 4th in the date.

 

[Wapping]

Really interesting, any chance of a share of the gpx of the whole thing Richard - could be useful to use sections of it on future trips.

Thank you.

I’ll post the the four (north, south, east and west) legs up in this thread. As the four legs cover a combined mileage of around 8,000 miles, there’s an awful lot to see and do. I have been talking with some German underwriters we deal with from Hannover, Cologne and Munich (chalk and cheese geographically) who tell me they have never been close to some of the places and areas the Motorcycle Route passes through. They were an]mazed enough that I’d ridden around tge entire border of their country.

 

[zoltan]

If I assume a figure of £150 a day (just to allow for any problems and all excursions) that is £9,000 all in.

This year over a period of 19 days I used AirBnB, averaged out at £36 a day -£684 in total. From a low of £20 to a high of £45. Bike security was the priority and a maximum of 10 miles from my route. Avoided major towns and I stayed with families. In Switzerland for example my host was a biker and he pointed out for me an alternative route do to the Black Forest. Stayed on 2 farms in Romania sampling for the first time a goat salami, fresh goat cheese and late night chit chat with my host around a bottle of home made peach brandy. Also for the first time I tried booking a night before, which worked on 3 occasions on my return trip. No one canceled on me.

Best deal was Château de Codignat https://www.chateaudecodignat.fr/ at £87.10 for two people. I see the price has gone up since last year.

New booking

app.mews.com

You would achieve a considerable saving.

 

[Wapping]

Thank you.

I deliberately over cooked the £150 figure, just to put a maximum cap on it and to ensure I’d have enough put aside for the jaunt. I won’t be aiming for five star accommodation, equally I’m not aiming to see five stars through the ceiling of my room either. Bike-wise, I’m going to use my 450 Himalayan, not least as I won’t be in a rush, whilst my 1600 would get through two sets of tyres alone.

 

[Wapping]

I’ll post the the four (north, south, east and west) legs up in this thread.

 

[John Armstrong]

For 3 years I was at what is now Weeze airport, flew over the Reichswald hundreds of times, but never visited the cemetery. Just added it to my route that I'll be doing in a weeks time from Ijmuiden.

 

[Wapping]

I have started to put the UNESCO sites in as ‘Points of interest’. MyRoute is not particularly good at POI’s but I’m getting there slowly.