For my husband’s 29th birthday I planned a surprise get away weekend to Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany. It was the Ascension Day weekend, and I had a few days off from work. Additionally, we got to borrow my parent’s car for a few days, so we really wanted to take this opportunity to get away from home.

I didn’t know much about Freiburg, other than it being a small city in the southwest of Germany. So I asked a friend of mine with family in Freiburg to give me some recommendations. We were able to explore most of their recommendations as well as add a few new ones to the list!

We loved Freiburg! It is such a clean, green and friendly city with a very nice old town. There is a tiny creek running through the streets of the old town where they even have toy boat races! We loved the small boutiques in the side streets and how many people ride their bikes everywhere! We would go again in an instance!

Where we stayed:

We stayed in the Aparthotel Adagio Access in Freiburg. It is a bit outside the center but there is a tram that runs from the hotel straight to the center. The room was small, clean and had a tiny kitchen. The hotel would even be pet friendly if you are planning on bringing your furry friend. The building is in a very neat and clean area surrounded by lots of greenery.

Where we ate:

Erste Liebe (A delicious breakfast and dinner place. We went twice because we loved the food and the atmosphere so much! The food is nicely plated and super tasty!)
5 Senses Coffee (A breakfast place with their own coffee brewery. Very tasty coffee and food. There are also a lot of vegan options.)
Markthalle (If you love food from lots of different countries this is the place for you to go! There are lots of booths with different exotic food to explore!)
Münstermakt (The market has a handful of food stands where they sell the traditional Freiburger Sausage)
Café Confiserie Graf Anton (Located on the first floor of Colombi Hotel, the only thing fancier then this is hotel is it’s cakes. You usually take a slice of the cake of your liking and enjoy. The café is on the fancier side but worth going! You can also take a piece of cake to go)
Café Kornhaus (A café with tasty panini and cakes)

What to explore:

Münstermarkt (The market is around the Münster (a giant church) in the heart of the old town. It is open Monday – Friday from 7:30AM to 1:30 PM and on Saturday from 7:30AM – 2PM. There are lots of stands with local fruit and vegetables, spices and artisan goods.
Münster and the old town (The huge church is very impressive to see from the outside as it towers over the rest of the buildings around it. The cathedral was built between 1200 – 1500 and has a stunning architecture. You can see the inside for free however if you want to go to the top of the tower you will have to pay a fee. Make sure you plan some time to just walk around the streets in the old town as there are lots of treasures to be found.)
Schlossberg (The hill behind the city is easy to walk on and offers you a great view onto the town. It is nice to spend some time in nature and get away from the business of the town. At the top of the hill there is a tower called "Schlossbergturm” and is 35m tall. (115ft) From up there you can see all of the city and even far beyond it! You can either walk around the countless paths on the hill or take the Schlossbergbahn (tram) to the top)
Kaiser-Joseph-Strasse (The main shopping street of the city has lots of stores to offer and you will definitely not get bored exploring the street there)
Konviktstrasse (A very cute street with cultivated tree branches across and lots of small boutiques)
FreiSpiel Freiburg (A boardgame store and café with lots of game options from single player games, two player games, team games and even Warhammer 40k stuff. (Which my husband was very happy about) You can shop in there or reserve a table to try out one of the games and see if you like it!)
Seepark and Japanese Garden (Though we didn’t have time to go all the way out there we would have loved to see the area as it looked very picturesque on the photos)
Colombi Park (A beautiful park with a vine alley leading up to the archeological museum.)
Europapark (The theme park with lots of rides is only a few minutes away from Freiburg and a popular place to go)

How to get around:

Even though we drove to Freiburg by car we found it easier to leave it by the hotel and walk or take the tram to the city. If you don’t mind looking for parking spots, you can totally drive as well. We often bought the day pass for two people (Duo) for 9.50 Euros, which can be bought inside the tram. We also walked a good amount and if your hotel is in the center, you might not even need to take the tram at all.

Freiburg Travel Tips from a Local