There are playgrounds, and then there are Pirate playgrounds. When my husband suggested a jaunt to…read moreAmberg to visit the Piraten Spielplatz with our children, I was skeptical. An hour drive for a PLAYGROUND?? Then I remembered we were the parents of small children, and thus the selection of weekend activities are pretty much limited to playground/zoo/children's museum/bier gartens so what the hell, I thought, we'll give it a whirl. I'm so glad we did, because it was definitely worth the drive. We found a small park platz a few hundred meters from the playground itself (although since it was Sunday we did see people parking in adjacent businesses' parking lots). After a short walk, we entered what can only be described as heaven for children. The main play area features a pirate ship surrounded by water that is, at its deepest, maybe 2 and a half feet, or a little over half a meter deep, and is surrounded on two sides by a sandy shore, and on one side by a small hill with various hiding niches and small masonry walls, perfect for children to clamber all over and explore. There are two rafts on pulley lines that the kids can use to reach the pirate ship, or if they're smaller or nervous about falling in the water, a small bridge as well. The main water area is sizable, and although it was busy it didn't feel overly crowded or chaotic like, say, Playmobil Funpark on a Feiertag. Separate from the main play area is another water playground that is shallower, and more suitable for babies and smaller toddlers, even though it also had a system of water wheels and small ditches to build dams and what not, so also appealing for older children. The water here is from a natural flowing spring, so it really felt like the kids were playing in a wonder of nature. Between the two play areas was a kiosk with ice cream, beer, and snacks for sale, and comfortable tables with umbrellas for seating. Also, not to be overlooked - a toilet! Not a horrible portapotty, but an actual restroom that wasn't entirely unpleasant, given the number of people at the playground. We stayed at the playground for several hours, and when we buckled the kids back into their car seats for the drive home, my husband and I hi-fived each other for our awesome parenting, and made a note to bring up this up in the (hopefully) distant future when we are sitting across from a therapist and our adult children who are enumerating all of our massive shortcomings as parents. We can say, 'Sure, there were a lot of microwaved dinners, and also maybe too much ipad, but remember that time we took you to the Pirate playground in Amberg?' and then we will fold our arms and sit back in our seats, triumphant. Pros: Great playground for children of all ages, snack kiosk, toilets, precious family memories that make up for all of the awful stuff (kinda). Cons: maybe not quite so awesome if it's cold outside

This one is hard to rate since we ended up here after dark one evening. The kids needed some play…read moretime so we left our headlights on (which didn't do much, this goes way back) and we went to play. There is a large slide all the way in the back, a train, some bouncy things, a few swings, the climbing structure in the front. It was black outside, but they had fun. The directions took us all the way up the hill to some motel, that's not it, it's just as you start up the hill... probably easier to see if it's light outside.

If you're in the area it's definitely a place to go to. We did a day trip from Munich and it took…read moreabout 2 hrs from Munich HBF. Primarily German signage everywhere but if they see foreigners the staff do explain rides in English. We were unprepared so be sure to bring swimsuit and a change of clothes as there are water play areas. Not bad for €17- buy tickets in advance. Kids 3 and under are free

Unlike other amusement parks targeted at young children -- where it's often just about the…read moremerchandise -- we're now in the third hour of our first visit to the park and I've not yet seen an opportunity to buy playmobile. My daughters don't want to stop playing, even to eat, despite the high quality concessions, much better than you'd expect at an amusement park of this size. One of the more interactive and least commercial amusement parks I've seen. If you're visiting Munich, and only have time for one park, skip Legoland and come here.

I don't tend to like swimming with masses of people, but luckily Fürthermare is large and boasts…read moremany different things for people to do. First of all I visited this swimming pool during the summer holidays during 20°C weather with light rain, so my review will be of that experience. It is a great alternative to Palm Beach in Stein, as that place is usually packed to the max! The selection of pools is amazing here. There is an exterior pool, interior fun pool, a children's play area, 4 warm mineral baths, 1 cold mineral bath and 1 exterior mineral bath. The price of 12€ for 4 hours is more than satisfactory for the amount of things you can do. Luckily during my visit it wasn't very packed. 2 steam baths are also available. I added an extra 1.50€ to enter the "solegrotte" which is a high salt/mineral water located underneath the "Therme" area. That water made a lot of spots on my body feel weird, yet cleansing. Fürthermare features 3 slides each color coded on intensity, green, yellow and red. After riding on all of them clearly there is a slide for every type of person. Adrenaline speed lovers should ride the red one! The food selection at Fürthermare is very nice for the fact that it is a pool and the prices aren't astronomical. I paid approx. 7€ for a large portion of Spaghetti bolognese and it filled me up completely! Drinks are pretty expensive though so I suggest taking your own bottled water. The pool water quality is good, as far as pool water can go. No excessive waste in the water (bandages, skin flakes, etc.). Changing rooms are very well designed and a lot of locker space available! The locale also offers a sauna which I did not participate in. All the pools have special features, from water jets to bubble massages and waterfalls. All in all the experience was great! I had a lot of fun at Fürthermare and I will gladly return again for a refreshing swim!

The employees aren´t neet. The Food ist horrible and almost very expensive. But most it won´t miss…read moreare these terrible bad toilets which are sooooo ugly and dirty. The pain is there are only two for all the customers. Hopefully you won´t be infected ;-) Nevertheless .. that´s a tricky place .. cashin lots of money and supplying nothin. Thats a wonderful maschine to remove the peoples money.