Hello all! My wife and I will be visiting Bamberg in September and would like to hear some recommendations. We enjoy locals and “dive” bars. Places a little less touristy. We are older and we don’t care for loud bars. Old timey music would be a plus as would dancing. We will be there about a week.
If your knees can still handle steep stairs (only one level), I would recommend trying to stay at the Brauerei Spezial. They only have a few rooms, but I always enjoy being there when I can get in. It also makes it easy to climb up after enjoying a few in their restaurant downstairs, which is primarily filled with locals.
I'm most familiar with the breweries and Biergartens. On the last stay we went to Catwheezels Castle and liked it. Zapfhahn is not too divey, but has a good local beer selection. Friends like Rotenschild, but I haven't been. Oh, Galerie am Stephansberg has a barrel of Brauerei Sauer Kellerbier and is divey.
These are more restaurants than bars, but here are 2 more. Der Pelikan has a bar area and a good beer selection, the food is very good Asian-Bayern fusion (it works). The second is Stöhrenkeller, decent beer and food.
The Best Western Hotel is very nice & reasonable. Also, very close to Spezail & Fasel, (one block away). Mahr's is great, so many fantastic bars & Breweries in Bamberg I would suggest this site & even a tour with Rich. He is great and a Bamberg beer encyclopedia! Enjoy your trip, great city & surrounding area! https://www.beerwanderers.com/
We have a place to stay in Bamberg. We will be coming from the Spalt hop festival. Eventually heading to Poperinge, Belgium for their hop festival. We plan on a pilgrimage to Struise while there.
Already a lot of good recommendations have been posted. Bamberg breweries (Wirtshaeuser) in order of my preference: Schlenkerla, Spezial, Keesmann, Greifenklau, Faessla, Klosterbraeu, Mahr's. Bars (most open late evening, check opening hours): Weinstube Pizzini, Rotenschild, Catwheezle's Castle, Stoehrenkeller, Galerie am Stephansberg. Beer gardens (Bierkeller): Wilde Rose Keller, Spezial Keller, Faessla Keller, Das Bootshaus (more of a restaurant than Bierkeller but pleasantly situated on the water). Since you are staying a week, I recommend to visit some of the breweries and beer gardens in the neighboring countryside. Most are easily reachable via public transportation from Bamberg. Some recommendations: 1) Merkerndorf: bus 907 or 917 from Bamberg to Drosendorf; you will be dropped off across from Brauerei Goeller (opening time 10:30am, closed Mo, Tu), walk 35 minutes to the next village Merkendorf, visit Brauerei Wagner and Brauerei Hummel in the village. Both have excellent beers and serve traditional Franconian fare at very reasonable prices. Both have nice beer gardens. Return via same route to Drosendorf to visit Goeller or continue on to the next village Memmelsdorf to call in at Brauerei Gasthof Hoehn. Busses run regularly from Memmelsdorf back to Bamberg. 2) Doerfleins: bus 957 or 904 to Hallstadt Mitte, walk 20 minutes to Brauerei Eichhorn Doerfleins. Early opening time (9:30am), exceptional beers (Kellerbier, Pils, Weissbier, etc.), very rustic and traditional with a beer garden area adjacent to the Wirtshaus. There is also direct bus service to Doerfleins from Bamberg. 3) Forchheim: take S1 line from Bamberg Hbhf to Forchheim. Walk 15 minutes from the Forchheim Hbhf to call in at Brauerei Neder and Brauerei Hebendanz. I really enjoy the local ambience at Neder. They serve their Export lager from gravity cask. Near the breweries, take Bus 265 to Roppelts Bierkeller in Stiebarlimbach, very good Kellerbier with excellent kitchen in idyllic surroundings. Return to Forchheim with the same bus line or proceed to the Kreuzberg where Kreuzbergkeller Lieberth is located along with two other Bierkeller. You can also hike to Dorfkeller Lieberth in the village of Hallerndorf from Roppelts (35 minutes). Return via bus to Forchheim Hbhf and then S1 line back to Backberg. 4) Forchheimer Kellerwald: take S1 line from Bamberg Hbhf to Forchheim Ost stop. Walk to the Kellerwald (cellar forest) where 23 Bierkeller are located on a forested hill. This is where some of the breweries used to store or "cellar" their beer. During the weekend, half of them should be open. Makes for an unique drinking experience and provides an opportunity to sample some of the local beers in the region. 5) Rossdorf am Forst > Geisfeld: take bus 970 to Tiefenellern, stop off at Rossdorf am Forst near Brauerei Sauer. They serve their Urbraeu and Braunbier from tap. Very good kitchen. From there, hike 30 minutes to Griess Keller in Geisfeld. Griess makes a top-notch Kellerbier and the Bierkeller is located in the forest near the village. A prime location and setting for outside beer drinking. The brewery is a five-minute walk from the Keller. You can take bus 970 from Geisfeld back to Bamberg. 6) Moenchsambach: take Bus 991 from Bamberg to Moenchsambach to visit Brauerei Zehendner (Open Tu-Sa from 3pm, closed Su, Mo). Lagerbier served from gravity cask, family-run operation, high-quality beer full of character and regarded as some of the best in the region. Recommend getting there at opening to find a seat inside; otherwise, there is seating outside adjacent to the brewery. I suggest to check opening times on social media or via website, or, better yet, call ahead to make sure the places are open prior to your arrival. Download the Deutsche Bahn app to check transportation time tables and purchase tickets. I find the DB app very user-friendly.
Check their hours, very limited, (I think only Saturday afternoon). Great place to visit! Enjoy your trip!
Yes, I know Struise is only open on Saturdays thanks though. I love their beers. My Regards to everyone in SoDak. I’m from MN. Does Luplin still have a tap room in Souix Falls? I’ve been impresssed with many of their beers.
Thank you for all the detailed information. We will be purchasing the DB Deutchland ticket. It’s too bad we will only have one week in Bamberg. I like the idea of going to the countryside. The weather should be good for outdoor biergartens too.
Unfortunately Lupulin closed their Sioux Falls taproom over a year ago. I'm not really sure the reason, but I'm guessing it may have been due to location. All of the downtown breweries, taverns & restaurants do quite well. The Lupulin location may have been a bit out of the way for people to visit. I still make it a point to visit their Big Lake brewery when I'm in the area. I really enjoy their stouts & porters! Cheers
Opening a taproom in Souix Falls sounded overly ambitious to me. The quality of the beers is high. I’ve been to the Big Lake location. I particularly like their Dortmunder and Hooey. Years ago I was gifted an unlabled bomber of a barrel aged stout (?). It was outstanding.
We enjoyed the Bootshaus restaurant and beer garden south of the city. We also rented e bikes and hit a few breweries outside the city. They have really nice cycling infrastructure.
