Fredericksburg

German immigrants under the Adelsverein settled here in 1846, and the following year John Meusebach negotiated a treaty with Penateka Comanche leaders that was, unusually for the period, kept by both sides. The town kept its language into the twentieth century and still shows it in the Sunday houses - small second homes built by farm families who came in for weekend church - and in the bakeries and butchers. The National Museum of the Pacific War is here because Chester Nimitz was born in the town, and it is far larger and more serious than the location suggests. Hill Country wineries have grown up along Highway 290 in numbers, and Enchanted Rock is a short drive north.

What's there

• A German settlement of 1846 - with a treaty that held.
• Sunday houses - small weekend town houses built by farm families.
• The Pacific War museum - substantial, and here because of Nimitz.
• Hill Country wineries - strung along the highway east.

When to go

March to May for wildflowers, September to November for harvest. A full day.

What to expect

Wildflower and wine weekends fill the town and the two-lane roads. Accommodation is expensive in season. Summer heat is severe. Tasting rooms need a designated driver.

Nearby

Enchanted Rock is north; Luckenbach is south-east.