A 5-day Black Forest itinerary that doesn’t involve a tour bus
The Black Forest is the part of Germany most people think they know and actually don’t. They drive the B500 once, take the same photo of the Schwarzwaldhaus, eat black forest cake, and leave. The actual region is bigger, slower, and stranger than the postcards suggest.
The route
Start in Freiburg, end in Strasbourg. Five days. About 350 km of driving total, but plan for half that — most days are under 100 km.
Day 1: Freiburg. Walk the Altstadt, eat Zwiebelkuchen at the market, hike up Schlossberg for the view. Stay in the old town.
Day 2: Drive south through the Höllental to Hinterzarten, then the B500 north to Triberg for the waterfalls. Stay in a Schwarzwaldhaus guesthouse.
Day 3: Drive the Schwarzwald-Hochstraße west. Stop at Mummelsee, then Lake Feldberg. Drive to St. Blasien for the cathedral, then to Todtmoos for dinner. Two nights here.
Day 4: Take the B317 to Schopfheim, then the B518 to Badenweiler. Roman baths, hot springs, a slow afternoon. Drive to Müllheim and the Markgräflerland wine country for an evening tasting.
Day 5: Drive the B3 north to Strasbourg. Drop the car. Spend the day in the Petite France. Stay overnight, fly out from SXB or cross back to FRA.
What to skip
The cuckoo clock shops in Triberg. The Titisee lake cruise. Both are fine but neither is what the Black Forest is actually about.