Usage Note
Abstecher is a brief detour or side trip taken during a longer journey to visit a place of interest. Unlike Umweg (which is undesirable), an Abstecher is usually deliberate and enjoyable: einen Abstecher nach Wien machen (to make a side trip to Vienna).
Examples
"Auf dem Weg nach Prag machten wir einen Abstecher nach Dresden."
Natural Translation
On the way to Prague we made a side trip to Dresden.
Literal Translation
On the way to Prague we made a detour to Dresden.

Free starter pack
Building your German vocabulary?
Get the 100 most common German words as a free PDF — one email, no spam.
Related Words
Explore German by topic
GermanNow
6 min read