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Located in the valley of the Regnitz, where the river divides into two arms, sits Bamberg. This old imperial city is the most important town in Upper Franconia, and is one of the best preserved of Germany's many charming old towns. It's also one of the best to explore on foot.

Germany's third biggest city, Munich (or München in German) has plenty to offer the adventurous traveller. The capital city of the state of Bavaria can trace its roots all the way back to the 12th century when a monastery was established here, and quickly grew into the region's most important place of trade and commerce.

Berlin's world-famous Museumsinsel, or Museum Island, lies between the River Spree and the Kupfergraben, a 400-meter-long canal off the river. This excellent attraction includes many of the city's oldest and most important museums.

The Rhine is not only Europe's most important waterway, it's also the most beautiful. With a total length of 1,320 kilometers, this magnificent river stretches from Switzerland through Germany all the way to The Netherlands.

In the heart of the historic Port of Hamburg, the magnificent Miniatur Wunderland, the world's largest model railway, is an attraction that appeals equally to young and old alike. Boasting more than 9.5 miles of model railway track, this massive scale model includes sections dedicated to the USA, England, Scandinavia, as well as Hamburg. It also incorporates around 1,300 trains, more than 50,000 microscopic lights, and in excess of 400,000 human figures.

The quaint old town of Füssen, situated between the Ammergau and Allgäu Alps and a popular alpine resort and winter sports center, is a good base from which to explore nearby Neuschwanstein Castle. This spectacular old fortress is widely recognized as one of Europe's most famous and picturesque royal castles.

The beautiful Black Forest with its dark, densely-wooded hills is one of the most visited upland regions in all of Europe. Situated in the southwestern corner of Germany and extending 160 kilometers from Pforzheim in the north to Waldshut on the High Rhine in the south, it's a hiker's heaven.

On the west side, the Black Forest descends steeply to the Rhine, crossed by lush valleys, while on the east, it slopes more gently down to the upper Neckar and Danube valleys. Popular spots include Germany's oldest ski area at Todtnau, the magnificent spa facilities of Baden-Baden, and the attractive resort of Bad Liebenzell.

The towering Cologne Cathedral (Kölner Dom), the Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Mary, is located on the banks of the Rhine and is undoubtedly Cologne's most impressive landmark. This masterpiece of High Gothic architecture is one of the largest cathedrals in Europe. Construction on this most ambitious building project of the Middle Ages started in 1248 and reportedly took over 600 years to complete.

Modeled on the Acropolis in Athens and built for King Frederick William II in 1791, the monumental sandstone Brandenburg Gate in Berlin's Mitte district was the city's first Neoclassical structure. It measures an impressive 26 meters in height, which includes the Quadriga, the spectacular four-horse chariot carrying the goddess of victory perched atop this spectacular building.

Near where I-495 and I-195 intersect and terminate in western Wareham there’s an open-air shopping center with close to 50 stores and restaurants.

Wareham Crossing opened in 2007, and combines a power center with a more pedestrian-friendly outdoor mall, featuring quaint storefronts, street furniture, trees and shrubs.

A few of the retailers in the latter part are LOFT, Torrid, L.L. Bean, GameStop, Bath & Body Works, Yankee Candle and Famous Footwear. For big box stores you’ve got Target, Petco, T.J. Maxx, JCPenney, Lowe’s and more.

Food and drink options run from Starbucks to Red Robin, QDOBA and LongHorn Steakhouse.

In business since 1819, the Tremont Nail Company, one of the first cut nail manufacturers in the United States, was based in Wareham until as recently as 2006 when the company was taken over and production moved to Mansfield.

The old mill complex, once powered by water, is preserved as a U.S. Historic District, with five buildings more than a century old, and portions that have changed little since the mid-19th century.

Tours of the site have been given in the past, and if you’re interested in industrial history you can take a look around from the outside. When we compiled this list, one of the buildings was occupied by EcHo, an artisan homewares shop.

In a lovely spot, just in from the east bank of the Wareham River there’s more than 200 acres of town-owned forest to explore.

This land was deeded to the town as long ago as the 1950s and has been carefully managed over the last 70+ years to foster biodiversity and provide a beautiful natural setting for walks. William Minot Forest has rolling topography, molded by glaciers more than 10,000 years ago.

There are several miles of restorative woodland trails, one of which takes you north, across Minot Avenue and over the railroad tracks to Bryant Farm, another town-owned property with sprawling marshes by the Wareham River.

Close to Great Neck Wildlife Sanctuary there’s an executive, 18-hole par 56 course. With a total yardage of just over 3,000 yards, Little Harbor Country Club is a great pick for beginners, and for people who want to work on their approach play and short game.

Still, there are a couple of par 4s on the way, so you’ll need to use every club in your bag. A real advantage of this course is that you can get around all 18 holes in as little as three hours, and for many people it’s easy to complete on foot, although carts are available.

The air-conditioned clubhouse has a fully stocked snack bar, as well as a pro shop with all of the top brands.

The amazing quantity of ponds and slow-flowing rivers around Wareham, makes this a wonderful place for a paddling experience.

The Nemasket Kayak Center has several locations in the area, but is headquartered in the complex as Makepeace Farms at 146 Tihonet Rd.

Here you can rent single or double kayaks, canoes, or stand-up paddleboards, for an hour, day, three days or a week.

The center arranges guided paddles at several beautiful locations, including Agawam Mill Pond, the Agawam River, Mario Harbor, Onset Bay, Wickets Island and along the Weweantic and Sippican Rivers.

Something that comes immediately to mind when people think of southeastern Massachusetts is cranberries. This goes for Wareham, as one of the world’s largest cranberry growers, the A.D. Makepeace Company is based here.

Dating back some 170 years, Makepeace is a founder of the Ocean Spray cooperative, and is also the largest private property owner in eastern Massachusetts.

There’s a storefront at Makepeace Farms (146 Tihonet Rd), with a gift shop for everything cranberry-related, as well as a cafe with menu items like cranberry walnut chicken salad, or a classic Thanksgiving roasted turkey sandwich.

Wareham has a collegiate summer baseball team, competing in the West Division of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL).

Organized baseball on Cape Cod goes back deep into the 19th century, and today the CCBL offers some of the best amateur ball you could hope to watch.

To date, more than 1,400 major league players have spent some formative time in the Cape League, many playing for Wareham’s local team.

The Wareham Gatemen first joined the league in 1927, claiming the first of a total nine league championships in 1930.

One of a string of visitor attractions, stores and chain restaurants along Route 28 in East Wareham is a family-owned water park, open for more than 40 years now.

Always improving, Water Wizz of Cape Cod is constantly adding to its array of rides and attractions, and there’s plenty for bigger kids and teenagers to get into.

Take Devil’s Peak, which drops almost vertically from a height of 75 feet, or the high-speed Pirate’s Plunge and the swooping tube ride, Squid Row.

Just past Wareham’s northern edge you can reach the largest publicly owned recreation area in southeastern Massachusetts.

Myles Standish State Forest is 12,000+ acres of pitch pine forest and scrub oak, ecologically important for its glacially formed kettle hole ponds.

Four of the forest’s five campgrounds are located next to ponds, and you can jump from one shoreline to the next on 13 miles of hiking trails, 15 miles of paved bicycle trails, and 35 miles of horse trails.

The flat topography and abundance of quiet, paved trails make this place ideal for a bicycle trip, and for thrills you can go offroad on the intersecting sand and gravel tracks.

This family seafood eatery in East Wareham has been locally owned and operated for more than 75 years. Lindsey’s Restaurant started out in 1948 as a fried clam take-out spot, opened by Paul and Frances Lindsey.

The building was remodeled in 1979 by their son Buzzy, and daughter-in-law, Cheri who continues to run the business.

Lindsey’s Restaurant buys all of its fish and shellfish from local wholesalers, working around Cape Cod waters.

So naturally, the essential menu items to try are New England signatures like lobster rolls, scallops, clam cakes, clam chowder, lobster bisque, and of course, fried clams.

Along the shore and merging with Onset Beach, Shell Point Beach is distinct, and merits its own entry in this list.

As the name tells you, the beach is on a sandy cape, with Sunset Cove on one side and Onset Bay on the other. Like its neighbor, Shell Point Beach shelves very gently, and because it’s so tucked away the water is pool-like.

The beach’s small parking lot runs down the spine of Shell Point, and there are panoramic views of the beautiful shoreline, adorned with waterfront houses and little docks. In the last few years a parking fee has been implemented here, May through September.

An important intracoastal waterway, easing navigation between Buzzards Bay and Cape Cod Bay, the seven-mile Cape Cod Canal was completed in 1914.

It’s a good idea to make the short trip next door to Bourne to see the canal, lined with 7 miles of paved bikeway on the north side, and 6.5 miles on the south side.

The sight that may stop you in your tracks is the Cape Cod Canal Railroad Bridge, opened in 1935. This vertical lift bridge is 544 feet across, 271 feet tall, and has a 135-foot clearance when raised.

From the bikeway you can watch it rising for water traffic, or lowering to allow trains to pass through. It had the longest vertical lift span in the world at the time of its completion, and is today the second-longest vertical lift bridge in the country.