Black Forest and “rote Bollen”

Welcome to the beautiful Black Forest / customs, national parks and modern lifestyle / a holiday region with many faces

Sunny summits, quiet forests, wellness at its best, exciting family destinations and a cuisine second to none. The Black Forest is an oasis of peace and relaxation, and it is “Germany’s most beautiful culinary region”. Lively cities, parks, healing baths and many architectural monuments range across a region of 11,400 square kilometres. Almost half of the entire territory is covered by the Central German Mountain Range, which lends the region its name.

Whoever is looking for solitude and pristine nature, such as hikers, hobby athletes or travelling gourmets, is in the right place here. The fascinating landscape in the tri-border region with France and Switzerland simply has something for everyone. Be it in Murgtal, Markgräflerland, Hochschwarzwald, Kinzigtal or Ortenau: quality of life and the enjoyment of nature are on the itinerary.

The numerous holiday roads – starting with the Schwarzwaldhochstraße with its breathtaking panoramic views and the Badische Weinstraße, which has become a household word for gourmets as Baden’s “feasting road” are also inviting. Or how about the Tälerstraße (Valley Road), Spargelstraße (Asparagus Road), Uhrenstraße (Clock Road), Bäderstraße (Lake Road), the Klosterroute (Monastery Road) or one of the St. James Ways? You simply must not miss some of these classics when you explore the Black Forest on a tour through this beautiful holiday region.

Furtwangen is the cradle of the world-famous cuckoo clock: The “Bahnhäusle Clock” made by a professor of architecture, Friedrich Eisenlohr (1805-1855), has been considered the epitome of the Black Forest clock for more than 140 years. The world’s biggest model of its type can be admired in Triberg. How does the cuckoo get into the clock? There is only one way to find out: go to the German Clock Museum in Furtwangen and see for yourself.

The communities of Gutach, Wolfach-Kirnbach and Hornberg-Reichenbach have a traditional costume which is famous far beyond the borders of the Black Forest: the Bollenhut. The headdress is considered to be an emblem of the region and is frequently worn at special occasions. According to tradition, only unwed women are allowed to wear the vibrant red Bollen, while married women wear the black one.

Offenburg and Villingen are among the cultural centres of the region. They were founded by a dynasty of Swabian nobility known as the Zähringer,  who were related to the Staufer. Freiburg, Karlsruhe and Baden-Baden are probably the best known cities in the Black Forest. Founded by the Staufer in the 12th century, Rottweil is the oldest city in Baden-Württemberg. Incidentally, the name Black Forest goes back to the year 868, where “Swarzwald” is mentioned on a document for the first time.

The people of the Black Forest are gourmets. How else can one explain why there is such a unique concentration of “multi-star restaurants” in the valleys of the region? And, to borrow a line from a successful advertisement “Who invented it?” Well, the people of the Black Forest were the “inventors”, of course, when it comes to world-famous Schwarzwälder Schinken. This classic has also established itself in the multi-star restaurants of the region and continues to be one of the most popular “everyday hams”.