We will be staying in Bamberg for one night in early May. I checked out TripAdvisor and have narrowed our choice to two (although I can still be persuaded to consider others!).

I am torn between the Palais-Schrottenberg and the Hotel Weierich. Has anyone stayed at or checked out either of these hotels? Which would you recommend? Money is not necessarily an object, although value for price is always a consideration. And we would like to stay in the center of the Altstadt.

I am pretty excited about the fact that there are nine breweries within the town limits. ^ What are your recommendations for one (or more, as many as one can fit into a day ) places to get a good beer and maybe also some good German / Bavarian food?

I visited Bamberg for a few hours a few years ago and it is a lovely pretty city. I'm unable to recommend any hotels there but I would like to mention that a small city called Bayreuth is very close to Bamberg and would be worth a visit for a day if you have spare time. From what I remember I think it's just a half an hour away and you probably know this already but the Richard Wagner opera house is there and you can do a tour of the Wagner family house. There is alot of history in the city and it has lovely buildings and gardens to visit.

We never stayed in a hotel there, but we did drink their famous Roush (smoke) beer. We liked it. We ate at a street restaurant by the church on the cobblestones in the middle of the town if I recall. May is a great time to go.

I live in Bamberg, so perhaps I should answer this

Concerning the hotels, both are very nice and close to the center. While Bamberg has the largest remaining old town center in Germany, it is not that large and from both hotels you can reach all attractions (i.e., the cathedral, old city hall, tons of other beautiful churches, and the beer gardens) by foot. I personally like the food at the Schrottenberg better than at the Weierich and the visitors we've put up there always liked it a lot.

Concerning beer and beer gardens: Rauchbier (smoked beer) is the local speciality. I'm one of the few Germans who do not drink beer, so I cannot comment directly on its taste, but generally people either like it or hate it. But I am told one should definitively try it at least once. In terms of beer gardens, if the weather is good I would strongly recommend you check out the beergarden Spezial in the Sternwartstr. It has Rauchbier, different kinds of normal beers, good, rustic local food, and the best view onto Bamberg that one can get. Well worth a visit, but it is closed on Mondays. Plus, it is next to the old observatory where I work . The other brewery making Rauchbier is Schlenkerla, but they are more touristy, overall.

In terms of other restaurants, a good selection can be found in the Sandstrasse, close to both hotels you mention. The Sandstrasse used to be the place where all breweries were located in the medieval ages, although they've now mainly moved away from the Altstadt but the restaurants are still there. I can recommend most of the restaurants there, although most are a little bit touristy. A brewery restaurant that serves very good food and beer and has more of a local feel is the Klosterbraeu in the Concordiastr. 5, which is located in a nice and not too crowded part of the old city, close to the beautiful Boettingerhaus. I also like the restaurant of the brewery Faessla, see http://www.faessla.de/index.phtml.

Checkout www.FranconiaBeerGuide.com
for info on the 10 breweries in Bamberg and the hundreds in the surrounding area.

I have friends who've stayed at the Weierich and like it. I don't know anybody who has stayed at the Palais-Schrottenberg but from being in the lobby it looks like it may be a fancier place.

I've had good food at all of the breweries. My favorite is Spezial on Obere K�nigstrasse.

Thank you, everyone, for all your very helpful comments. We leave in two weeks and I am getting very excited about visiting Bamberg and Bavaria.

Wow, MadBrewer, that is a cool website!^