Northern Germany: Cologne, Hamburg, Berlin

You will pass Mainz, an ancient Roman city with a magnificent medieval cathedral. The most famous stretch of the Rhine with terraced vineyards, castle ruins and picture-book villages begins at Bingen, where the Rhine enters a deep valley.

You will follow the Rhine Valley to Koblenz, where the Moselle River flows into the Rhine. Shortly before reaching Cologne you will pass Bonn, the former capital of the Federal Republic of Germany and the birthplace of Beethoven. Important sites include the 11th century cathedral and Beethoven-Haus, which contains the largest Beethoven collection in the world, including the last piano owned by the composer.

The route leads to the east around the edge of the Upper Rhine Valley. Near Wuppertal you will enter the Ruhr Valley. This heavily populated region was Germany's industrial centre during the 19th and 20th centuries. The landscape becomes more pastoral as you near Münster.

On this stretch you will penetrate deeper into the North German Plain, a flatland region formed by glaciers that is mostly used for farming. Just 300 feet above sea level, the plains are drained by broad rivers that flow into the North Sea or the Baltic Sea, including the Elbe, Ems, Oder, Rhine and Weser rivers. Major port cities like Bremen and Hamburg are located along these waterways.

Travellers who have time and are interested in the regional scenery and architecture should leave the motorway at Bockel and take the German Framework Road (Deutsche Fachwerkstraße) north to Stade. The stretch provides an interesting cross-section of timber-frame (Fachwerk) buildings in the 1,000-year-old villages of Lower Saxony.

of Hamburg you will enter the state of Mecklenburg. The state capital Schwerin, which lies halfway along the route, is worth a short detour. The medieval city's most famous landmarks are Schwerin Castle, dating back to 1160, and the Gothic cathedral. Schwerin is considered the gate to the Mecklenburg Lake District, a flat, sparsely populated area mainly covered by forests, lakes and moors that extends across the midsection the state.

You will begin with a scenic stretch of road that runs between Lake Müritz and Lake Kölpin before merging with the motorway at Petersdorf. Travellers who want more of the Lake District scenery can turn left onto the German Grove Road (Deutsche Alleenstraße) at Sietow. Just south of Lake Müritz you will enter Brandenburg, an ancient region but new German state created only after reunification in 1990.