Spending the night on a gravel tour: Are you a bikepacker or "team credit card"?

Simply crank away from the front door: with a gravel bike, your holiday can begin immediately. However, finding a place to sleep can be more difficult. Wild camping is prohibited in Germany and a night in bed + bike accommodation can be surprisingly expensive during holiday periods.

Proper bikepacking with sleeping equipment and cooking utensils in your panniers sounds like absolute independence, adventure and maximum freedom. Until you, as an inexperienced beginner, realise just before nightfall: Oh, I still have to find a flat meadow that isn't right next to the road or close to a residential area. With a babbling brook or lake where I can wash myself and later the dishes. But this place must also be close to a supermarket, because there was no room for provisions in the panniers. At least that was the romantic idea when we were putting together the gravel bike route on the computer.

You have to be able to sleep properly in the forest first

Unfortunately, it's not quite so easy in reality, because: Wild camping is prohibited in Germany, only an "emergency overnight stay" under a tarp (tent tarpaulin) is permitted. Whereby "emergency" is difficult to explain near a town or village. That's why you do your shopping first and then set off again into the "wilderness", possibly with your shopping bag slimmed down on the handlebars, where an emergency bivouac is credible. But as soon as you've found a reasonably quiet and not sloping place to lie down, it soon gets really dark, the mosquitoes are buzzing in your ears, there's a rustling nearby - falling asleep in the great outdoors is not that easy.

Very early in the morning, you pack up your seven things again, your cooking utensils possibly sticky and unwashed, your tarp and sleeping bag still damp. It's probably almost midday before you're back on the road and heading for the first café. Sure, that's also an experience, but if you've planned a longer route, you'll have to cut back on the romance of the sleeping area at some point. But there are other options:

1. sleeping in the farmer's barn

Rolling out your sleeping bag in the straw, a safe roof over your head and maybe even a fresh glass of milk in the morning - sounds romantic. But experience shows that it fails because: "In my barn? Well, definitely not." Experienced European travellers report that the hospitality of the farmers increases noticeably as soon as you leave the German border behind you...

2. trekking camps and official bivouac sites

They now exist in the Black Forest, the Palatinate Forest, the Hunsrück-Hochwald, the Franconian Forest, the Steigerwald and the Spessart: "secret" sleeping places somewhere in the forest. With a fire pit, wooden plateaus on which you can pitch your tent and an outhouse. You can book these sites (from May to October) via an app and, for a small fee, receive the GPS data for these places in the middle of the forest. Problem: These pitches are being used more and more frequently and are quickly booked up in the high season. What's more, they won't always be on the planned route. And beware: there is no water for washing or cooking. Info: trekkingtrails.com

3. bed+bike accommodation

It feels like this label has been around since the invention of the bicycle: every second country inn has such a sign on the door. However, you only consciously notice them when you've had a very busy day in the saddle, the sun has already set and booking.com couldn't help you either. At least that's what happened to me on a Saturday in May 2025, somewhere in Bavaria near the Ammerradweg. "Yes, we still have a room!" They don't think twice or ask about the price. The main thing is to take a shower, get something to eat in the beer garden and then off to bed, which is already quite worn out.

It won't be that expensive - you think as you look into the yellowed Alibert mirror cabinet in the bathroom. But of course things turn out differently: in addition to the normal room price of 60 euros, there is a "one night only" surcharge of 10 euros, according to the website. Unfortunately, the surcharge has to be doubled during holiday periods and, of course, we happened to stay on the last Saturday of the Whitsun holidays. Okay, so 80 euros? No! 140 euros.

The Bett+Bike label was originally intended to signalise to cyclists: You are welcome here for one night and you will also get a secure parking space for your bike. But some landlords seem to have learnt this: The later and more ready the cyclist comes in, the more surcharges they will be prepared to pay.

Conclusion

Whether you set off as a fully-packed self-caterer or as a carefree "credit card" traveller: In Germany, you should start thinking about accommodation when planning your stage. It's better to book a room in advance (on the same day in the morning at the latest), then you won't be faced with full beds in the evening and can book at a transparent price.

But even for the tarp variant, you can find good meadow areas by small streams, campsites or 1Nitetent addresses (free camping in the garden of private individuals) on the topographical map in advance. 1nitetent.com) to find out more.