Swabian Jura

The Swabian Jura is no alpine backdrop – and that is exactly its appeal. A broad karst plateau that drops away to the northwest along the sharp Albtrauf escarpment: here you earn your vertical not on a gondola but on short, vicious climbs and equally punchy descents. For years the Alb has been a stronghold of cross-country and marathon racing in Germany – and its flagship carries that reputation around the world: Albstadt.

Around Albstadt, the Bike Zone Albstadt is the beating heart of the region. The town was a fixture on the UCI Cross-Country World Cup calendar for years, and its bike park offers several gravity tracks from a beginner course to the well-known Magura Castle Trail. Prefer flow? Stuttgart's Woodpecker flow trail is Germany's first municipally run downhill/flow track.

Beyond the big names, the Alb thrives on a dense web of small, club-run facilities – dirt parks, pump tracks and four-cross tracks where the next generation grows up. The TSV Berkheim Bikepark near Esslingen with its four-cross track belongs here just as much as the Bikepark Pfullingen near the Albtrauf. The scenery to match: juniper heath, beech forest and the view from the escarpment edge out over the lowlands. Who is it for? Strong-pedalling cross-country and marathon riders, families at the small practice grounds – and increasingly gravity fans finding a young scene in the making.