21st K-UE Meeting Bavarian Forest - Passau

It's a region that we haven't travelled to with our Beetles yet, and as far as I know, hardly any of you know this mountainous landscape. I am therefore delighted to have chosen an area that is 'new territory' for us all. Our Beetles will feel right at home on the winding roads.

The Bavarian Forest is part of the largest forest area in Europe, with trees stretching as far as the eye can see. Stretching from the Upper Palatinate in the north to the Austrian Mühlviertel in the south, from the Danube valley in the west to the Bohemian Forest (which we will also drive through) in the east, it encompasses the Czech Sumava region. We will visit the treetop path, the 'Großer Arber', the town of Zwiesel with its glass factory, and last but not least, Passau, where the Danube, Inn and Ilz rivers converge.

We know that our large Beetle family is looking forward to this meeting with great excitement and joy.

We have chosen the ACHAT Hotel (now known as the Roomingtons City Hotel) in Waldkirchen (Hauzenberger Str. 48, 94065) for our meeting. The hotel meets our specific requirements, offering well-equipped rooms, ample parking and delicious food. All participants will be accommodated at the hotel, including those travelling by motorhome with Beetle trailers.

Part of the hotel car park is reserved for our Beetles and is marked with start numbers. On arrival, please drive your Beetle to the numbered parking space corresponding to your start number. You will be informed of your start number shortly before the meeting begins. Please park in reverse so that we can drive off immediately in the direction of travel the next morning. Those arriving with trailers and/or camper vans are requested to park in the car park in the immediate vicinity.

Breakfast and dinner will be served in a separate room on the upper floor.

Participants will travel individually unless they have arranged to travel together or part of the way. Shortly before you arrive at the hotel, there will be an AVIA petrol station on the left. If there is not enough petrol left in the tank, please fill up the Beetles for approx. 150 km. As we will be driving through the Czech Republic, where petrol is around €0.20 cheaper per litre, we can fill up there on both Friday and Sunday.

To make the most of the journey and enjoy the meeting in a relaxed manner, we recommend arriving on Wednesday. In the evening, we will have dinner in the restaurant on the ground floor.

On the return journey, which starts at around 2 pm, the Preminger Höheneben on the B 85, south of Tittling, offers a panoramic view of the Bavarian Forest mountain range, stretching from the Dreisessel in the south to the Großer Arber in the north.

We will arrive back at the Roomingtons Hotel Waldkirchen at around 16:00.

At 18:00, the club board will welcome the participants with a complimentary drink in the upstairs area of the restaurant, which has been reserved exclusively for the K-UE Beetle Club.

The K-UE members' meeting will take place at 18:30 in the upstairs rooms, which will also be available for breakfast and dinner for our Beetle group.

Dinner:

Welcome dinner: schnitzel, fish or vegetarian

will be served in the restaurant from 7.30 pm. We hope you enjoy your meal.

Drinks ordered in the evening will be added to the hotel room bill and can be paid for in cash or by card. Only motorhome participants will pay directly in the evening.

At around 9:00 pm, the club committee will provide information about the programme for the first Bavarian Forest Tour and its highlights, which will take place the following day. Please pay particular attention to the route information to avoid driving the wrong way!

We will end the day of arrival with interesting conversations among like-minded people and anticipation for the days ahead.

07:00: Breakfast together at the Roomingtons Hotel restaurant.

08:45: Drive from Waldkirchen to Neuschönau for the treetop walk.

The treetop walk is not far from the Hans-Eisenmann-Haus. Measuring 1,300 metres in length, it leads 8 to 25 metres above the ground through the forest, just below the treetops of giant beech, fir and spruce trees. The highlight of the trail is the 44-metre-high viewing tower, which has a snow-shaped ramp with a maximum gradient of 6%. This ramp can be accessed with a pushchair or wheelchair. From the top, you can see far into the foothills of the Bavarian Forest.

Arrival at 09:30 in car park no. 1

We take car park no. 1. As there is a barrier at this car park, car 1 will contact the relevant administration shortly before arrival to ensure the barrier remains open for us to pass through. As the entry system is being rebuilt, it is possible that this barrier will be removed over the Whitsun holiday. The car park fee is included in the entry fee.

After passing through, take the car park on the right. We can use the toilets in the Waldschänke.

There is a lift and stairs at the entrance to the treetop walkway. The entrance is after that. The entrance will be opened for us as a group and we have a group ticket! We plan to spend 1.5 hours there.

As it is a national park, driving is not permitted. As it is not possible to take pictures of the beetles or the treetop walk from the car park, may we please drive a beetle through the grounds of the national park to take some photos?

09:30–10:45: Treetop walk tour with views of the Bavarian Forest.

11:00–12:00: Onward journey to Zwiesel (approx. 35 km) via the national park road (allow approx. one hour due to roadworks and diversions).

Park the Beetles in front of the Zwiesel Glass Manufactory shop. Our contact person, Mr Straub, will show us how the glassblowers work!

Afterwards, you will have time to look around the glass exhibition and the factory shop.

13:00: Take a snack break in the glass factory canteen.

13:30: Take pictures with the glass pyramid.

14:00: Continue the journey through the Bohemian Forest – a unique experience awaits!

15:30: Coffee break in the Czech Republic: Hotel Srní, Srní 117, 341 92 Kašperské Hory. A selection of different types of fruit will be available, and high-quality coffee and tea machines will be provided so that everyone can make their own drink.

16:45: Continue through the Bohemian Forest and simply enjoy the journey.

Shortly before crossing the border, the Beetles are happy to be refuelled cheaply.

18:15: Return to the Hotel Waldkirchen.

19:30: Dinner is served in the room reserved for us on the OG. Bavarian buffet

07:00: Breakfast at the Roomingtons Hotel Waldkirchen's OG Restaurant.

09:00–10:00: Drive carefully to Passau via the 'Prinz Luitpold Brücke' suspension bridge.

Park the Beetles on Residenzplatz (special permit only) and pay attention to the instructions! This permit also allows access to the city centre, which is closed to car traffic. Each Beetle will receive a copy of the permit before travelling to Passau, and this must be carried visibly.

10:30–12:00: Guided tour of Passau in three groups with guides.

The tour starts and ends at the ‘Altes Bräuhaus’ restaurant, with the guides meeting at Residenzplatz.

12:00–13:30: Lunch at the Altes Bräuhaus (food choices will be requested in advance).

13:30: Walk to the A11 landing stage on the Fritz-Schäffler-Promenade in Passau.

From 13:45: Boarding the ship for the three-river city tour.

14:00: Start of the three-river city tour – Passau, the city of three rivers. The talk is: Come to the Bavarian Venice, where the Danube, the Inn and the Ilz meet.

14:45: The three-river city tour ends.

15:00: Two convertible buses will be available immediately after disembarking from the ship to take us to the Veste Oberhaus.

We have a reservation at the restaurant 'Das Oberhaus', high above Passau, for coffee from 15:30 to 16:30. From the observation tower and the Batterie Linde viewpoint, you can enjoy fabulous panoramic views of the picturesque old town and the Dreiflüsse-Eck.

Here, one of Europe's largest preserved castle complexes invites you to travel back through the centuries. Within the historic castle walls, the Oberhausmuseum presents fascinating exhibitions on medieval castle life and the town's history.

At 17:00, the open-top buses will take us back to our Beetles in the old town centre.

17:15–18:00: Return journey from Passau to the Roomingtons Hotel in Waldkirchen.

19:00: We will enjoy dinner together in the area of the OG reserved for us – bon appétit!

Breakfast is served from 07:00 in the restaurant on the ground floor of the Roomingtons Hotel in Waldkirchen.

09:00: Drive from Waldkirchen to the Großer Arber.

After approximately one hour, we will take a short break at a car park in a forest area.

11:00 am: Arrive at the Arbersee restaurant, 935 metres above sea level (www.arberseehaus.de).

A section of the large car park will be cordoned off for our use; then we will walk around the large Arbersee lake.

12:00 noon: Reservations have been made at the Arberseehaus for lunch. Everyone can choose from the extensive menu (not included in the entry fee).

13:30: We continue with the Beetles to the gondola lift (4 km), where the car park is cordoned off once again for the Beetles (www.arber.de).

At 14:00, we will board the gondola lift and ride to the Eisensteiner Hütte, situated at an altitude of 1,340 metres.

From here, you can enjoy magnificent views of Zwiesel, Bayerisch Eisenstein and the Lamer Winkel in the Bavarian Forest. The Eisensteiner Hütte was built in 1962 and completely renovated in 2006. The Eisensteiner Hütte has a registry office, a wedding room, a fireplace room, a modern kitchen, and a natural history exhibition which provides free information about the extraordinarily beautiful Arber nature reserve. Let's enjoy a cosy break with a unique panoramic view.

At 14:15, those who wish can hike to the Arber chapel or up to the Arber summit (1,456 m). The inviting atmosphere and wonderful terrace of the Eisensteiner Hütte attract visitors, as does the fascinating view of the surrounding mountains from the terrace.

14:30: We wait for the beetle friends at the Eisensteiner Hütte for coffee.

15:30: Take the gondola lift back down to the 'Käfer car park'.

16:00: Return via Bayrisch Eisenstein, where we will cross the border into the Czech Republic to refuel the Beetles at favourable prices. Then we will return to the Roomingtons Hotel via Zwiesel, Spiegelau, Neuschönau and Waldkirchen.

19:00: The chef will spoil the Beetle fans with a

Barbecue buffet

in the restaurant area. We hope you enjoy your meal. Annette will entertain us with music.

At 21:00, our club president will look back on the 21st K-UE Beetle Meeting and provide an overview of the upcoming meetings. It will be an entertaining evening, during which the club president and vice-president will present the participation certificates. A very special surprise awaits the participants of the 'VW Beetle Club Última Edición e.V.', which will provide them with a lasting memory of the Bavarian Forest.

The club board would like to thank you for participating and wish you a safe journey home. But there's one more thing to look forward to: The next K-UE Beetle meeting is coming!

Breakfast together in the restaurant from 07:00, followed by farewells.

We wish all participants a safe journey home without any traffic jams. We look forward to the 22nd K-UE Beetle Meeting in 2026 with Peter Maffay, and we hope it will be a success filled with good humour!

Subject to change. Status: 24 April 2025. w.k.