Photos by Robin Robinson

An old German saying holds that "for a Bavarian, the best vegetable is a pork roast," says Munich Tourism's Vicky Vella as she escorts our group through the narrow cobblestone streets.

My colleagues and I have just arrived from Canada for a brief tour of Munich's altstadt, or old town centre, before going on to explore the Bavarian portion of the Castle Road.

But the first official activity on our agenda seems to be food. We follow Vicky through the outdoor Viktualienmarkt -- crammed with stalls selling sausages, cold cuts, fresh fruit, vegetables and sauerkraut -- past a busy beer garden to a sidewalk cafe on the Marienplatz. Here we bask in the sunshine and enjoy the passing scene as we fuel up on strong coffee and apple strudel before continuing our tour.

It is a routine that will recur over the next seven days: Eat a hearty breakfast, see a fabulous palace, break for coffee, take a brewery tour, down a tankard of cool ale and a warm pretzel, see some postcard-worthy scenery, find a cozy schnitzel house to have lunch. After lunch, repeat morning schedule until dinner. And don't forget to sample the local wine.

We soon learn visitors to Bavaria -- Germany's largest and southern-most state -- are unlikely to ever feel hunger pangs, as restaurant portions can't be describes as skimpy. We also learn every area has its own special beers and sausage, all different and delicious.

But this land of beer and bratwurst, is also a land of beautiful vistas and charming medieval "bergs" such as Nuremberg, Bamberg and Coburg.

The 964-km Castle Road stretches from Mannheim to Prague in the Czech Republic but our agenda only allows time to travel from Nuremburg to Coburg.

Tourists can easily spend a week or two exploring part of the road, as we did, taking in the castles and well preserved medieval towns and staying overnight at romantic hotels. You can tour independently -- by car or bicycle -- or join a coach trip.

NUREMBURG

This year's Oktoberfest -- Munich's world famous beer extravaganza -- will be held Sept. 17 to Oct. 3. The 17-day event is expected to attract some 6 million visitors who will consume more than 5 million litres of beer and 200,000 pairs of sausage. See muenchen-tourist.de.

First-time visitors may be surprised by Nuremberg. In recent years, the city of 500,000 has not attracted the kind of international attention enjoyed by avant garde Berlin or beer-mad Munich.

Many people have heard of Nuremburg's Christkindlmarkt -- the oldest and largest Christmas fair in Germany -- or associate the city with World War II, when it was the convention site for the Nazi Party and later the venue for the Nuremberg Trials.

But fewer people know about its restored medieval town centre, its Gothic and Renaissance churches and the imposing Kaiserburg, which was the imperial residence of German kings and emperors from 1050-1571. All are remnants of Nuremberg's glory days as the capital of the Holy Roman Empire.

Strolling through Nuremberg's altstadt is like taking a step back through 950 years of history. The old city centre is almost entirely closed to traffic and at every turn there is another fine church, half-timbered building, elaborate fountain or sculpture to behold.

Weinstadel, one of the finest half-timbered buildings in Nuremburg, was erected in the mid-1400s to house lepers who were allowed into the city for treatment for three dats at Easter.

It's hard to believe much of what stands today was levelled during World War II. But rebuilding is nothing new to Nurembergers, according to guide Karen Christenson. During the Middle Ages, Nuremberg had a population of 40,000. A combination of The 30 Years War and the plague devastated the city and killed two-thirds of its residents, Christenson says. Fears of the plague prompted wealthy merchants and craftsmen to build graceful homes and pleasure gardens outside the city walls.

Today the baroque Gardens of the Hesperides have been restored, too, and make a lovely respite from the busy altstadt. Next door, St. John's cemetery is the final resting place of many prominent Nurembergers including artist Albrecht Durer.

Nuremberg will be in the limelight next year when -- along with 11 other German cities, including Munich -- it hosts five FIFA World Cup soccer events.

Visit tourismus.nuernberg.de.

COBURG

A view of Little Venice in Bamberg

Serious royal watchers know about Coburg's connections to the British Royal Family.

Queen Victoria's mother was a Princess of the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. While visiting relatives in Coburg, the young Queen fell in love with her first cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. The two were wed and their marriage became the love story of the 19th century, says guide Gerhard Hartan.

The royal House of Coburg, which still exists today and is headed by Prince Andreas, also has connections to almost every royal family in Europe.

There are 10 former royal residences within city limits and 30 more in the immediate area. These include Ehrenburg Palace, Callenberg Castle, Schloss Tambach and Rosenau Castle, where Prince Albert was born.

The city's landmark -- Veste Coburg -- dates back to the 11-century and is the "strongest and best preserved fortress in Germany," says Hartan. "It was never conquered."

A view of Nuremberg from the Kaiserburg

In 1530, church reformation leader Martin Luther took asylum here for six months, after he fell out of favour with the Roman Catholic church.

Visitors can tour the rooms Queen Victoria occupied and visit the fortress museum, which has an extensive collection of art from the Coburg duchy -- paintings, glassware, carriages, sledges and weapons.

BAMBERG

It's not surprising that this picturesque town spread over seven hills and dissected by the River Regnitz likes to think of itself as the "beer capital of the world," says guide Dieter Morcinek. After all, there are 10 breweries in the town centre and 90 more in the surrounding area. Historical records show that brewing started here in 1122.

Veste museum in Coburg has one of the finest collections of armour and weapons in the world.

Beer connoisseurs may have heard of Bamberg's distinctive "smoke beer," or Mahrs Brau, one of the town's oldest microbreweries and producer of Bock beer. Visitors can sign up for a Brewery Trail tour or get a map from the Bamberg tourist office to guide them from brew pub to brew pub. What is surprising about Bamberg is its many medieval buildings. The old town -- a Unesco World Heritage site since 1993 -- is generally regarded as an architectural "work of art," Morcinek says.

"It is nothing short of a miracle that all these wooden buildings have survived 500 years or more," Morcinek says as he leads our group on a walking tour past Cathedral Square, the Old Town Hall, the Imperial Old Court, the Monastery of St. Michael, the New Residence of medieval bishops, and the Bishop's Rose Garden.

Bamberg's medieval layout is almost intact, Morcinek says.

"You can still go around Bamberg and find your way with a map from the late Middle Ages," Morcinek says.

The river provides another view of Bamberg. We wrap up our tour aboard a canal boat that takes us past "Little Venice," a former fishermen's quarter of colourful timber-framed homes.

Despite its architectural heritage, Bamberg is no museum. The city of 70,000 hosts a wealth of festivals including an old time beer festival, a traditional parish fair called Sandkerwa (Aug. 23-27) and an annual Christmas market. See bamberg.info.

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BOTTOM LINE

- GETTING THERE: We flew with LTU from Toronto to Dusseldorf. The holiday airline's current roundtrip fare is $828 plus taxes. See ltu.de for details. From Dusseldorf, you can take a DBA flight to Munich.

- ACCOMMODATIONS: In Munich, we stayed at Hotel Torbrau, which opened in 1490. The original building was razed during World War II and a new 92-room property was rebuilt on the site near the old town gate. Rooms go for 135-270 euros per night (about $200-$400 Cdn.). See torbrau.de.

In Nuremberg, the Ringhotel Loew's Merkur is centrally located and within walking distance of the altstadt. Rooms range from 87 -200 euros per night ($129-$297 Cdn.). See loews-hotel-merkur.de.

In Bamberg, the Weinhaus Messerschmitt Bamberg has 18 rooms ranging from 55-160 euros per night ($82- $252). A planned expansion will add 68 new rooms. Visit hotel-messerschmitt.de.

The Goldene Traube Coburg is an elegant yet cozy family run hotel with 72 rooms, a small spa and an extensive wine list. Nightly rates, which include breakfast and VAT, range from 79-102 euros (about $118-$152). See goldenetraube.com.

- DINING: Restaurants across Bavaria serve hearty fare. Three of our most memorable meals were enjoyed at hotels that were part of Romantik Hotels and Restaurants, an association of independently owned establishments -- Gasthaus Rottner just outside Nuremberg, Weinhaus Messerschmidt Bamberg and the Goldene Traube Coburg. Our six-course meal at the Goldene Traube included filet of pike-perch with bacon sauce and lentils, sausage ravioli with ciderjus, and braised calve's cheek with Bavarian cabbage and potato-noodles. See romantikhotels.com.

- MORE INFORMATION: Visit the Bavarian Tourism website at bayern.by or the German National Tourist Board website at cometogermany.com, or call 416-968-1685.