Best time of year for Germany?

[ginnyinWI]

My husband's second cousins would love for us to visit them. We are thinking early December might be nice--pre-Christmas. Wondering how cold the weather would be--we are in Wisconsin so it would be cold here, too. Just wouldn't want it to be too cold to go out and see some sights. I would ask the cousins, but don't want to build up their expectations prematurely.

[elleng]

1. Googled:

Germany in Winter - Weather:

Bundle up! German winters are cold, with temperatures often dropping below zero, which in turn results in some great winter sport and skiing areas in Germany, especially in higher German regions such as the Bavarian Alps. Other parts of Germany are often blessed with a white Christmas as well, but there is no guarantee for snow: German winters can be unpredictable, and you should always be prepared for rain.

Average Temperatures…
•in December: Average low 27° F, average high 41° F
•in January: Average low 23° F, average high 40° F
•in February: Average low 25° F, average high 41° F

http://gogermany.about.com/od/planyourtrip/p/germany_in_winter.htm

[Kali]

2. early summer or fall

early summer - lots of "spring" energy, festivals etc
early fall - wineries early production - fedderweisser and good foods (beer drinkers - Octoberfest in the south)

winter - meh, cold dark and depressing, but if you are into Christmas Market/tourist stuff not bad

[ginnyinWI]

3. thanks

we were warned to avoid Oktoberfest: high prices everywhere. Maybe spring would be better. I'd like to see castles and countryside.

[Kali]

4. not sure where you are going

but there are castles all up and down the Rhien (well, all over Europe) - there are cool day cruises you can do and get off to visit a few.

bicycle routes through the wine regions too. summer concerts outdoors.

[greatauntoftriplets]

5. I'll second Kali's suggestion that you go in October.

Oktoberfest is in Munich and ends in early October so it's easy to avoid that. The weather is pretty comparable to Wisconsin and should be nice when you're there. Spring weather is iffy unless you go in May. October is also wine grape harvest season, which is interesting to see. You can visit wineries along the Rhine and the Moselle.

[ginnyinWI]

6. wine more interesting than beer to me!

That sounds really nice--wineries on the Rhine.

[jberryhill]

7. Oktoberfest in Munich is, of course, a madhouse

But it is confined to that area. There are much smaller places that have their local version, which is much more fun.

I second October, but would avoid Munich. Any other time of the year, you can get your fill of beer, sausage, potato salad and oompah at any of the beer halls. Berlin on German Unity Day, however, is a manageable street party.

The advantage to spring and early summer is that the days are much, much longer due to the latitude.

If you are considering Bavaria, you might consider Burghausen, Altötting. It is an unscathed gem of a medieval Bavarian town.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burghausen,_Alt%C3%B6tting

If you are in the southwest, then Strasbourg - while not exactly German at the present time - is also a real gem.

[ginnyinWI]

8. Thanks--we have decided on Spring

It seems to be the best.

[Samanta]

9. may-june

I think the end of the spring and beginning of the summer asre the best time. I was in March, it was too cold