Journey time.

The minimum travel time needed is five days; a week is ideal. 

Recommended travel time.

The journey is worthwhile in any season.

• Zürich Hbf–Augsburg: 3 hours 30 minutes, change trains once in Buchloe.
• Augsburg–Nürnberg Hbf: 1 to 2 hours, direct train.
• Nürnberg Hbf–Plzeň: 3 hours, change trains once in Schwandorf.
• Plzeň hl. n.–Praha hl. n.: 1 hour 20 minutes, direct train.
• Praha hl. n.–Ceské Budějovice: 2 hours, direct train.

The Interrail Global Pass for five or seven travel days within one month is ideal for this trip. You can travel the whole route without any reservations. However, if you want to, you can make reservations at eurail.eu.

From Zurich, travel through the beautiful Allgäu region to the world-famous “Fugger city”. Augsburg old town’s Mediterranean flair will have you feeling like you’re in Italy. Its narrow streets and corners are full of small shops, tanneries, jewellers and galleries. In the middle of the town centre: the Fuggerei, the world’s oldest social housing, was founded in 1516 by the weathly banker Jakob Fugger. For around EUR 0.88 a year (!) Augsburg residents in need continue to live in around 140 flats spread across several beautiful designed houses. In the town centre, you’ll find Tafeldecker beer garden, an oasis of calm where you can enjoy a freshly tapped Fugger beer. You’ll be reminded here that long before the city of Munich was founded, this stronghold of Swabian brewing in Bavarian Swabia already existed and still exists today.

Nuremberg, the big city in the region of Franconia, is a must for all food lovers. Here, you will not only find unbeatable Nuremberg bratwursts, delicious Lebkuchen and pretzels, but also good old Franconian beer. For anyone who loves beer history, the traditional Altstadthof brewery is a must. Climb up to 24 metres underground and explore the largest cellar labyrinth in southern Germany, dating back to 1380. The cellar alleys are still used today for maturing and storing beer, including red beers (a Nuremberg speciality) and beer schnapps. Nurembergers who survived the Allied bombing raids in the Second World War claim that “beer saved our lives”. They sought refuge in these 14th century beer cellars. Heavy air raids destroyed 90% of the old town, but less than 7,000 inhabitants lost their lives. That is a remarkably small number of casualties and much fewer than in other large German cities. The original imperial jewels and other important Nuremberg treasures also survived the Allied air raids in a secret bunker directly under the Imperial Castle. You can still visit this bomb shelter too.

From the Franconian metropolis of Nuremberg, the Gräfenberg Railway runs 28 kilometres up to the beginning of Franconian Switzerland. This is a picture-perfect train route with interesting history and cosy breweries to stop at along the way. The Fünf-Seidla-Steig route begins at Weissenohe station, featuring family-run breweries and inns.

From Nuremberg, travel through the Franconian and Upper Palatinate forests by regional train towards the Czech border. Here you will immediately notice that you have arrived in the country with the highest beer consumption in the world. On the local train to Plzeň, you can buy Czech beer directly from the on-board caterer and enjoy it during the journey.

Plzeň is the home of lager beer, which was invented here in 1842. It is also the birthplace of Pilsner Urquell (Plzeňský prazdroj), the world’s first pils. This Urquell beer inspired the beer that is sold today around the world under the name Pilsner or Pilsener. The beer is fermented at a low temperature (bottom fermentation) and then stored in underground tunnels – this is where you’ll find a huge system of beer tunnels and vaults that are still accessible and date back to the 14th century.

You can reach the Purkmistr microbrewery and beer garden by bus from the centre of Plzeň. You can literally immerse yourself in several litres of unfiltered and unpasteurised beer, mixed with water, crushed hops and brewer’s yeast to support circulation. A true spa beer bath. What more could a beer lover want? Well, maybe a personal beer tap in the bathtub? Check!

There are direct trains from Plzeň to České Budějovice, but you can also travel via Prague. The trip from Plzeň to the capital of the Czech Republic only takes 80 minutes. Continue your beer tour here with a visit to one of the many “hospody” (Czech for “pub”). Popular with the locals: Lokál, a pub chain that has taken the simplicity of beer gastronomy to the highest level. Also worth seeing is the Prague Beer Museum. This is the perfect place to learn more about the art of beer brewing and the Czech people’s love of beer.

Don’t be put off by your first impression. Outside of the town centre of the capital city of South Bohemia, you’ll find almost exclusively commercial buildings and apartment complexes that do not immediately create much of a wow factor. It’s only once you enter the city centre that you’ll be struck by the city’s beauty. Discover its stunning market square and learn how delicious Budweis beer, this city’s claim to fame, is made in its brewery. The German name for České Budějovice is Budweis and the beer is also named after it. It’s not to be confused with the same brand belonging to the American beer giant Anheuser-Bush. The Czech beer producer has been fighting for years over the rights to the name. In České Budějovice, you just order a Budweiser. It is usually served in a half-litre glass and you can get it in many restaurants and bars all over the city. A tour of the brewery is also worth seeing and takes about an hour.

Within three to four and a half hours, you can travel comfortably by train from Prague to Brno and Bratislava. You’ll travel through the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands, past rolling hills, elegant palaces and medieval castles where many Czech and foreign films are shot. It is also the most important wine-growing region in the Czech Republic, with wine cellars in the mountains. 

Today, Bavaria is one of the top areas where malting barley is grown. Bavaria also has the largest density of breweries in the world, with around 620 in total. Beer culture is, without a doubt, a central part of Bavarian culinary heritage.

The basis for Bavarian beer quality is the world-famous Bavarian Purity Law of 1516, which to this day stipulates that only water, malt, hops and yeast may be used for Bavarian beer. This makes the Purity Law the oldest food law in the world that is still valid today.

However, with a beer consumption of 185.1 litres per capita (2021), it is not the Bavarians but the Czechs who have been the largest consumers of beer in the world for years now.

Did you know that you can enjoy freshly tapped beer on German and Czech trains? In the Czech Republic, of course, it’s Pilsner Urquell and in Germany it’s Bittburger. Don’t forget to treat yourself a regional speciality in the dining car to accompany your beer.