In addition to its wealth of cultural sights, the European Alps offer a wider range of outdoor recreation than any other similarly sized region in the world. Adventurers of all ages hike hut-to-hut on multi-day treks, skiers slide year-round on glacial slopes, and Sunday walkers stroll forested trails. Bikers loop icy blue lakes, and mountaineers scale up waterfalls and down canyon cliffs. Europeans cherish their wilderness areas, and none more so than the pristine forests of the Alps. Modern adventurers run the gamut from rich to poor, young to old, and native to transient foreigner.

So take a look around. That bus driver.... This tour guide.... Your hotel concierge.... They may just be showing you the Europe they think you want to see. Take a moment to ask how they spend their own free time - odds are that each will spend a day outdoors this weekend. Want to know where they go? Here is a guide to the best sights and adventures in the mountainous regions of Alpine Germany. Based on experience gained through more than a decade of living in, traveling around, and writing about the Alps, we spotlight the best gateway cities, the best sightseeing bases, and the best outdoor adventures.

Here, we cover the places where you're likely to end up when crossing the European Alps and the places that you shouldn't miss in-between, even if you have only a few days or a week to spend. For each region, we've selected a handful of bases - villages, towns, national parks, and resorts - and highlighted the sights and adventures convenient to each. Land of fairy tales, fanciful castles, and fabulous Alpine terrain, Bavaria squeezes a wealth of attractions into a compact section of the Alps. The region centers on the bustling metropolis of Munich, a historical city famed for both its grand architecture and its great beer. To the southwest, plains stretch into Alpine foothills fronting Füssen and its famous castles.