Four Ways to a Great German Gap YearCategory: Travel & Holidays
Article added by: Paul Collins
In all honesty, Germany has never been particularly high on the list of gap year travel destinations. Australia, Southeast Asia and even Southern Europe all capture the imagination more for their perfect climates and promise of endless nights of partying.
But a gap year shouldn’t just be about endless hedonism: at some point when you get back you’re going to have to explain to a potential employer exactly what you got up to… and justify it to them! Not so easy if all you’ve done is lie on a beach in Thailand.
This is where Germany comes in as a gap year travel destination: it’s got pretty much everything you could possibly want for a great gap year. There are lively cosmopolitan cities, gorgeous landscapes, outdoors activities idyllic villages to explore and even (much to many travelers’ surprise) some very nice beaches indeed!
Here, then, are four ways to a great German gap year:
1. Do a German course in Berlin
Returning to that pesky question of what a future employer might think about what you got up to on your gap year: there are few more impressively responsible things to say than that you studied a language. In Germany, this essentially boils down to do one thing: doing a German course in Berlin.
Berlin is such an exciting place to be at the moment that there’s really nowhere else that can come close to it as a place to study the language. Finding a flat in bohemian Kreuzberg or Friedrichshain; exploring the fantastic art galleries; going out at night, and experiencing the, frankly, unbelievably good Berlin nightlife…
Doing a German course in Berlin isn’t just about learning a new language, it’s about the gateway to an absolutely amazing gap year in one of the world’s hottest cities.
2. Explore the Black Forest
But Germany’s by no means just about study… or cities for that matter. It’s a country of breathtaking landscapes – one of Western Europe’s largest and wildest landmasses. Down to the southwest, the Black Forest is one of the most inspiring of its many varied types of terrain.
With its impenetrable forest, rolling hills and smattering of picture-postcard village there’s a real fairytale (Hansel and Gretel, obviously…) quality about it that’s totally bewitching. The quiet woods are laced with thousands of miles of paths and tracks that make for some of the best mountain-biking and hiking in Germany.
3. Do the Festival Season
Whether it’s wild, drink-fuelled affairs or sedate traditional events, for some of the very best festivals in Europe, Germany is undoubtedly the place to head for. From the point of view of a traveler on their gap year, the main draw is probably the legendary Oktoberfest, surely the world’s biggest celebration of inebriation.
But German festivals don’t start and finish with getting drunk: the Christmas markets of Munich, Cologne and Heidleberg are all fabulously festive occasions; then there’s carnival season – known as Fasnight – which is a combination of traditional carnival processions and more wild partying.
4. Kick Back on a Beach
Beaches? In Germany? Well, yes, actually, Germany has some fantastic beaches. Right the way along the country’s northern shores, there are sensational strips of sands to kick back on such as those at Helgoland, Rugen, the Frisian Island and the beaches of Western Pomerania.
And because so few other travelers visit them, you might get the odd surprised look from the locals. But then, that’s a gap year in Germany all over: full of surprises.
Posted By: Paul Collins
Contact: e-mail
| About the Author: |
| Travel writer Paul Collins has always loved traveling in Germany. And whether it’s doing a German course in Berlin or relaxing on a beach, he’s always felt that it’s packed with things to fill a great gap year with. |
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