AFRC - Armed Forces Recreation Center


For more than 50 years, the Armed Forces Recreation Center (AFRC) resorts have provided American servicemembers, retirees and U.S. Forces civilian employees and their families the opportunity for pleasant, year-round vacations at prices well below those on the European economy.

The resorts of Garmisch, in the Bavarian Alps, and Chiemsee, on the picturesque shores of an alpine lake, offer a wide range of sport and recreation activities year-round for guests of all ages. The hotels are American style with an English-speaking staff and typical dining and entertainment.

Guests can learn to ski downhill or cross country, snowboard, paraglide, do some white water rafting, ride a mountain bike, tour a foreign land or visit a castle. Parents can engage in these activities, and many more, while their children are hiking, biking, skiing and swimming with the Just For Kids programs.

While both resorts offer these activities, each has its own unique charms and programs. Chiemsee is a mecca for the water sports enthusiast. Its programs range from swimming, sailing, windsurfing, paddle boating and scuba diving to mini-golfing, biking and in-line skating. There is also a campground at Chiemsee, with a bathhouse, laundry facilities and a shoppette.

The Chiemsee Lake and Park Hotels have a state-of-the-art fitness center, an old-Bavarian style dining room, Reggie's Express Cafeteria and the Windjammer Bar. When winter falls upon the lake, guests can bask in the warmth of the fireside lounge while reflecting on a day of downhill or cross-country skiing, snowboarding or touring Herrenchiemsee castle, Salzburg, Berchtesgaden or Munich.

Garmisch combines the idyllic old-world charm of an alpine village with all of the modern creature comforts. In summer, guests may take guided mountain hikes, raft the twists and turns on the Inn River in Austria, visit the storybook Neuschwantstein Castle, drink an espresso in Vipiteno, Italy, scale the local rock faces with the AFRC Europe climbing instructors, or enjoy the scenery from the seat of a mountain bike or the floating harness of the paragliding program. Garmisch, too, has a campground, where the facilities include deluxe and rustic Bavarian-style cabins.

Garmisch, site of the 1936 Winter Olympics, is a wonderful winter resort. Guests can try downhill skiing at any of a number of slopes, including the Zugspitze, Germany's highest mountain. AFRC Europe ski instructors teach the basics to the newest of beginners or fine-tune the skills of more advanced skiers.

Guests can also try their hand at ice skating at the Garmisch Eisstadion. Other possibilities are a ride to the top of the Zugspitze on a cog train, or a horse-drawn carriage ride through the picturesque town. Garmisch also has an indoor swimming hall with a variety of pools.

Many tours are offered from AFRC, including ones to Munich, Venice and Innsbruck. Others go to the fairytale Neuschwanstein Castle and the fantastic, rococo Wies Church; to Salzburg, the city of Mozart's birth, with stops at Berchtesgaden and the Koenigsee Lake, and to the baroque Linderhof Castle and the wood-carving and Passion Play town of Oberammergau. There is also a Three-Country Tour of Austria, Switzerland and Liechtenstein, and a Tirolean Shopping Tour.

AFRC also specializes in group activities and conferencing services for any type of event, large or small. The Group Sales and Conference Center can organize accommodations, meeting space, food and beverage, transportation and special programs as a complete package. An advantage to holding a conference at AFRC is the plentiful group recreation opportunities available while participating in the conference. Groups can plan customized team building events such as skiing, hiking, tours and more.

To contact the Conference Planning Center, call 08821-729176 or email [email protected].