♦♦ Zur Höll. For dinner, we walked over to Zur Höll, a medieval tavern serving traditional German food. The oldest structure in Rothenburg, Zur Höll’s history dates back to the 10th century. A tip for eating dinner in Rothenburg – don’t wait too late to do it as we felt many of the restaurants closed earlier than we were accustomed to in New York (although admittedly we eat late in New York).

♦♦♦ Night Watchman’s Tour. As soon as the day-trip tourists leave in the evening, Rothenburg quiets down substantially. Shops close and there aren’t many options in the way of bars and nightlife. Don’t worry though, because the Night Watchman’s Tour is a fun and entertaining to spend an hour in the evening exploring the city of Rothenburg. Led by a humorous night watchman guide, the English-speaking tour starts at 8 P.M. in the Market Square, costs 7 euros, and lasts about an hour. Generally I avoid walking tours, but I highly recommend this one – I was learning and laughing the entire time.

Tips: Book dinner with your hotel room – with the quaint, isolated location comes with only a few dining options nearby, and the restaurant at the hotel was quite good. Also, the website is really tricky to use to book your stay – every time we reached the final confirmation page the dates would change! I would recommend either contacting the hotel directly (but there might be a language barrier) or book through a larger site, such as Priceline.

♦♦♦ Biking around Lake Forggensee. Can I give this 100 stars? Biking around Schwangau and Lake Forggensee was my favorite thing to do in all of the Romantic Road. The lake was unexpectedly stunning, turquoise blue with magnificent views of the Alps. I loved how removed I felt from the outside world as we biked through quiet streets and between farmhouses. At one point on the ride, a herd of cows walked up right next to us, one even started licking J’s bike. Truly unforgettable, biking around Schwangau is a must.