Car tourism in Germany

The Volkswagen factory at Dresden

Volkswagen vehicles have been around for ever, so it seems. From the buggy to the Passat and the Golf and the Polo, the Germans make good cars in Dresden. However, this does not justify going all the way to Dresden. When you enter the factory it takes time to realize that you are not in a futuristic display of technology or at an art exhibition. Factory grounds are covered with intelligent floors, embedded with sensors that guide machinary and man alike. Workers wear white from top to bottom, including gloves, a symbol of progress. Even factory supplies arrive via special tram, so not to disturb local population. And all this is situated in a glass building…

The factory opened its gates to visitors in January 2010, and since has been receiving 250 daily tourists between 8:00 and 20:00. If you purchase a car you are allowed on the production floor and can even participate in assembly of your own vehicle. It is recommended to reserve a tour in advance (by phone). At their site you can fill in a contact form.

Dresden is located 200 km south of Berlin. Driving takes about 2 hours. You can get there by car (take the Dresden-Hellerau or Dresden-Altstadt exit from the highway). Directions can be found in this link. Look for signs saying “VW-Manufaktur”.

Race tracks in Germany

How can one visit Germany, see all the cars and not want a piece of the action? Germany has many courses (called Motorsport race tracks) that offer various racing and driving possibilities up to driving a real formula 1 race car.

Race track, Germany

At Nürburgring in the Eifel district you can find one of the longest race tracks in the world, winding 5148 meters in beautiful countryside. Also to be found here are the Mercedes track and the northern track – a 20.8 km course that offers a challenging drive in your own car (!). Prices begin at 22 Euro for one round and go up to 1075 Euro for an unlimited season pass. You can learn more at the track’s site or at the track museum site.

Other destinations for car racing in Germany include the Hockenheimring track and the Eurospeedway. The Eurospeedway is a modern track offering a 579 Euro (…) adventure of driving a formula 1. You can always just watch the pro’s…

Go-cart racing, Germany

Carting is no child’s play. There are people who take carting very seriously and compete in leagues all over the world. Germany is known as a carting center and in it the famous Michael Schumacher carting center in Cologn takes place.

The autobahn – Driving in Germany for the rest of us

If you are a tourist in Germany, but cars are not necessarily your thing, you can still enjoy some quality driving on the German autobahns (e.g. expressways).

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