Bavaria, in southeastern Germany, is acclaimed for great castles, fantastic beer and fairytale countryside.

It’s also the location for some wonderful Macs Adventure holidays.

Here we reveal 21 great things you might not know about Bavaria!

1. Writer and Nobel laureate Thomas Mann called his chosen home of Bavaria "notoriously wonderful".

2. Bavaria is not only the oldest, but also the largest state in the Federal Republic of Germany.

3. Bavaria is home to Germany’s highest point at 2962m on the mountain, Zugspitze, near the town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen. It’s possible to walk to this peak.

4. Bavaria is among the oldest states in Europe, with a history dating back to the 6th Century BC.

5. The best-known Bavarian is the Fairytale King, Ludwig II (1845 – 1886). As well as many other architectural monuments, he built the world-famous Neuschwanstein Castle.

6. Other famous Bavarians include Pope Benedict XVI, Richard Wagner, Richard Straus, Thomas Mann, Levi Strauss, and Rudolf Diesel.

7. Sport brand Adidas was founded by the Bavarian, Adolf “Adi” Dassler. His brother, Rudolf Dassler founded Puma.

8. The first Nobel laureate for physics, lived in Bavaria. In 1895, Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen (1845 - 1923), who chose Munich to be his home, discovered X-rays.

9. The Deutsche Burgenstrasse – the German Castle Route – offer a superb bike ride past many great castles.

10. Beer is officially considered a food in Bavaria.

11. There are some 40 types of beer and over 4,000 brands of Bavarian beer.

12. The world-famous beer festival While Oktoberfest, actually starts in September.

13. The first Oktoberfest was a wedding celebration for Prince Ludwig of Bavaria.

14. Smoke beer of Bamberg is a speciality beer that gets its taste due to the roasted malt used in production. The malt is kiln-dried over an open fire.

15. Bavarian Wheat beers are often called "Weissbier". These traditionally top-fermented beers and very popular in Bavaria.

16. Around two-thirds of beer production in Bavaria is Pils, amounting to 3.5 million hectolitres of Pils each year.

17. You should try Radler when in Bavaria. The light and refreshing drink is a mix of 50% pils mixed with 50% lemonade. The "Radler" was first created by one of Munich’s renowned gastronomes Franz Xaver Kugler.

18. Russ is also a shandy and made with 50% Bavarian wheat beer and 50% clear lemonade.

19. Bavaria is the name of the beer brand that has created the second largest brewery – based in the Netherlands.

20. A must-try is the famous crispy fried fish of Hochstadt.

21. Barfüßer Haus in the city of Nuremburg is much-loved as a must-visit restaurant.