Most Bavarians can speak a form of the Bavarian dialect (Bairisch). The dialect, however, is extremely difficult for most other Germans to understand?a person from Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony) would have a hard time understanding a Bavarian. Ironically, an Austrian however would not! Despite the dialect difference from the rest of Germany, most Bavarians can lose the dialect at any moment.
About 60% of Bavarians are Catholic and are usually more conservative than the rest of Germany (or Europe for that matter). Munich, however, is a pretty liberal city with a huge number of people from other parts of Germany, Europe, and the world, and it has a large English-speaking community. It can be quite hard to find someone with truly Bavarian origins in the city, as most people come to work there and only stay for some time.
If coming from the Czech Republic, it's often cheaper to buy a Czech ticket to the border and then continue with Bayern-Ticket (see Get Around).
If coming from Austria, it's often cheaper to use the Einfach-Raus Ticket, introduced August 2007, much like the Bayern-Ticket (see Get Around) is used within Bavaria.
Trains are the main mode of transportation for visitors, since they easily connect towns with larger cities.
If you're travelling within Bavaria, you can purchase the '''Bavaria Ticket''' (''Bayern-Ticket'')[http://www.bayern-takt.de/public_main_modul.php?ses=&page_id=299&document_id=380&unit=482731bfed755] , which will give you all-day travel within Bavaria and even to the border towns of Salzburg or Reutte. The Bayern Ticket for one person costs 21?. If there are two or more people travelling together, it would be cheaper to buy an up-to-5-person Bayern-Ticket, which costs only 29?. Some locals look for other people to share a journey with to reduce costs. Some even sold their Bayern ticket for a discount after arriving at their destination to recoup some of their funds. In response, the German railway corporation, ''Deutsche Bahn'', now offers mainly Bayern-Tickets that require you to write your name on the ticket in order to validate it, thus making it harder to sell the ticket to someone else once your journey is over.
'''Note:''' Since April 2007 in German regional trains, it is no longer possible to buy tickets from the train conductor.
Sometimes, this may be the only way to get around, especially deep in the German countryside. In the countryside, roads are winding, tricky, and sometimes cut dramatic swaths through farmland, but are otherwise EU-standardised and generally well-paved.
Travelling around the smaller cities in the countryside by foot can be a rewarding experience, and is easily manageable. As for hitchhiking, give it a go and write about it here!
Also, ''many'' towns have some historical features in their limits. There are castle ruins, full castles still being used as residences, local museums, caves, and old mines that most tourists will never see. Some of these are better than the 20 Euro fee to see a boring guided tour at one of the more famous cities in Germany. Why pay a fee for only seeing a smal part of the castle when you can find an old castle in the countryside that you can explore and maybe discover something new that is not even documented?
It's sad to see tourists who pay too much money to see "tourist castles" when for the price of a rental car and a will to explore can yield many free or cheap sites sometimes better than the overpriced attractions that limit what you can see or do.
Bavarian cuisine is famous for _gSchweinsbraten_h roast from pig, _gBratwürstl_h sausages, _gNürnberger Bratwurst_h, probably the smallest sausage in Germany, _gWeisswurst_h sausage made from veal, _gLeberkäse_h meatloaf, _gSchweinshaxe_h grilled pork leg as well as a variety of different _gKnödel_h dumplings and _gKartoffelsalat_h potato salad. Also in the Oberallgäu, the southwesternmost part of bavaria, the traditional food is _gKässpatzen_h, made with much Bavarian cheese. Also, some Gasthaus's have various season specials based on what is available locally at that time. There can be specials like Truffle dishes in the southern mountain areas, specialty mushrooms in the Oberpfalz area, seasonal Salmon dishes on the Donau / Altmuhl river area, local trout specials in all small villages, and during hunting season there are occasional fresh wild boar and venison dishes - Bavaria is a gastronomic wonderland!
Bavarians love their beer. One of the most beloved is the "Weissbier". It is a cloudy, unfiltered beer brewed with wheat (it has a slightly sour taste) commonly consumed earlier in the day with a Weisswurst and sweet mustard. It's good to know that there exists a special ritual with this beer: Normally it will be served in a special glass, called "weissbierglas". But if you get the empty glass and the bottle of beer, you have to fill it by yourself - in one step without dropping the bottle. Weissbier is more carbonated than most other beers and produces a lot of foam so it is not easy to fill without spilling something.
Bavaria could opt for the title of "holy grail of brewing". Not only is it home to Oktoberfest, but the highest brewery density (in the world) is in the north of the state, in the Franconian region. There, you can find a brewery in almost every village (it is sometimes very small and maintained among a few families). You can find a lot of local beer specialities, as for instance the "Bamberger Schlenkerla" (a beer with a taste of smoked bacon), so try to stick with the local beers always?-especially tasty (and supposedly healthy) are the unfiltered beers (only served in pubs).
In summer, you can generally find '''beer festivals''' everywhere - not only in the bigger cities, but also in the smaller villages; be warned though that the beer there is often served in one-liter ceramic or glas glasses called "Mass". The biggest certainly is the Munich [http://www.oktoberfest.de Oktoberfest], followed twice a year by the Nuremberg [http://www.volksfest-nuernberg.de Volksfest]. Also very nice is the Erlangen [http://www.der-berg-ruft.de Bergkirchweih].
Statistically, Bavaria is one of the safest regions (if not the safest) in Germany and probably Europe. The biggest threat to your wallet are the (perfectly legal) high prices.
Be aware that there is a big difference between the Bavarian police and the police from maybe Hamburg or Berlin. In Berlin it might not be a problem if they find 2 or 3 joints in your pocket (because you may carry it for your own needs), in Bavaria it definitely is a big problem for you. Opposed to this you won't have any problems if you drink alcohol in public as in all of Germany and Central Europe. (Beer or wine is permitted if you above 16 years of age, spirits if you are above 18 years old). The law is loosely enforced.