Germany Itinerary - advice/help

[cheme]

**********Updated Itinerary in Post 6****************


We are planning a trip to Germany this summer and I am having trouble deciding on an itinerary, especially where to stay and for how long.

We will be there for 6 full days and will have a car. Our plan is to start in Cologne and end in Munich, but we could change where we start (no flexibility on end).
Here is what I have so far, let me know what you think.

Arrival - Cologne in late evening, go to hotel
Day 1 - look around Cologne a little, pick up car and drive to St Goar, seeing Burg Eltz and or Rheinfels castles on way. Stay in St Goar.
Day 2 - see castles above if no time on day 2, and/or maybe a Rhine boat ride, then drive along Romantic Road to Rothenberg. Stay night there or drive further?
Day 3 - drive to Reutte, Austria - any stops along the way? - go to Ehrenberg castle ruins and Highline. Stay in Reutte or Fussen.
Day 4 - go early to Neuschwanstein castle, afternoon go to Oberammergau to do the alpine coaster. Stay there or closer to Munich
Day 5 - Munich
Day 6 - Munich, leave late evening

I am also really interested in the Berchtesganden area - the lakes, salt mines, Eagles Nest - but we can't fit that in with all of above. I've thought about cutting out some of the first days by starting somewhere other than Cologne, but can't decide! I don't really think all 4 castles are necessary, and am thinking of just picking 2, either the ones by St Goar or Reutte (both areas have one ruins, one kept up). The kids don't want to do too many museums, but would be fine with one or two, they'd just prefer hikes or other activities. We plan to go to Dachau in Munich, but aren't sure what else we will do there.

I don't really like that we are moving hotels so much. But with covering so much area, it doesn't make sense to do a 2 hr day trip, drive back to the hotel, and then drive the same path again later to go to Munich, right? Kids are 10-15 and are good travelers.

[Liziz]

Whatever you decide, you're going to have a wonderful trip!!!! We live in Germany right now and we love it here. I have been to about half of what you're planning to see. I don't have the best advice on the way to fit it all in because we do travel a bit different since this is our home base. But, hopefully a few comments that could help....

~Ehrenberg Castle is fun but nothing impressive. Of the castles you listed, it's at the bottom of my list (not that it's not great, but when you have to make choices!). Of course, the Highline is really cool and that elevates it. But, if you want a suspension bridge maybe you could add Geirlay to the trip instead? It's less than an hour from Burg Eltz. Though it's all great, if I had to skip one thing from your list though, it would be this. Fussen is a much "cuter" town than Reutte in my opinion, if that matters to you in where you stay.
~Rothenburg (you're talking Rothenburg ob der Tauber right?) - we haven't been there yet but have a bunch of friends who have and they all say that doing the Night Watchman Tour is a lot of fun, so might be a great play to stay and spend the night so you can do that.
~Neuschwanstein - make sure you buy tickets online in advance!!! Otherwise you're going to get stuck with whatever time is available, or they'll be sold out completely. The castle is mostly unfinished inside and that disappoints some people, but I still found it a lot of fun to see and enjoyed the tour and the information they gave us. There's a castle just across from Neuschwanstein, Hohenschwangau, that's also really cool -- smaller, but completely finished inside (people actually lived in that one!) and again, very interesting tour/history.

Honestly though, you're trying to pack a ton of distance into a short window of time. I think you may end up frustrated by how much time you spend in the car instead of out exploring. Part of the charm of some of these small little towns is in the ability to linger, enjoy the biergarten, wander the streets, etc. Have you considered just doing the southern stuff/Bavarian region and spending more time there? There's tons to do (I wanted to suggest several other things for your time there but know you won't have the time for it all), and that would give you time to do the Berchtesganden stuff as well. It would probably also allow you to not switch hotels quite as much. It's all wonderful and hard to skip any, but I wonder if you'd be happier doing one region well, rather than seeing a lot, but very quickly.

[cheme]

Thank you so much! We are so excited and its hard not to try to fit too much in! But yes, just this morning I was trying to figure out an alternative itinerary where we just concentrate on the southern area. I was thinking my first itinerary seems like too much driving and rushing through things. Would you stay in one spot (near Munich?) and just do day trips? Maybe also stay in Berchtesganden and Salzburg area for 2-3 days? We would definitely buy advance tickets for Neuschwanstein....if I can just make a decision on what to do! Feel free to make some other suggestions - even knowing we will have to leave some out - I'd love to hear them. We definitely don't have to do Ehrenberg/suspension bridge if there are better things! Maybe the Zugspitze? Would that be better than Ehrenberg in your opinion? Thanks again!

[Liziz]

I know, it's always hard to pick what to do! Probably my favorite thing from the area is the Partnach Gorge. Especially because you said your kids like hiking -- it's amazing!!! You can do a shorter version or spend a lot of time hiking around. Lake Eibsee is also incredibly beautiful, and yes, the Zugspitze is great for that view from up high! Again, it's hard to say "don't do Ehrenberg" because it was really cool and fun, but I would probably pick any of the three above (Partnach Gorge, Eibsee, and Zugspitze) over it, personally. The thing about Ehrenberg that you don't have elsewhere in your southern itinerary though, is that it's ruins, so you can really just climb around in it and wander as you please (unlike the preserved castles where you're stuck to very specific routes) -- for some that makes it more appealing and for others, less!

If you're doing Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau, there's also a third castle connected to Ludwig II in the area -- Linderhof. I haven't made it there yet but again, friends have gone and said that one's a lot of fun, too. If you see that you'll be right be the village of Ettal, which has a beautiful monastery -- they brew their own beer and spirits and you can take a tour of that if you want. Potentially where you'd want to eat lunch or something if you ended up going to Linderhof?

Also, a general tip....almost everywhere in Germany, even casual restaurants, require/recommend reservations, even for lunch. It's often the difference between being able to eat somewhere or not. People definitely get turned away. I try to make a reservation for almost every single lunch and dinner we eat out, and it makes it a way more pleasant experience. (If you need restaurant recommendations in Garmisch, Partenkirchen, Ettal, or Munich message me, I have a few favorites I could share if you get to that level of planning and find you want to eat in one of those places!)

I'm torn on the "where to stay" thing too! Maybe try for 2 different spots, so you don't have to move around too much, but you also aren't wasting too much time driving?

[american_mama]

We lived about 45 minutes east of Cologne in 2013, but I actually don't know much of the itinerary you are describing. How old are your kids? If it matters, we flew in and out of Dusseldorf due to better fares, so that might potentially be a cheaper airport.

Cologne is a big city, but it didn't seem like a tourist destination. The cathedral is huge and the most famous attraction in town, and super convenient to the train station. Driving and parking in the city center for you might be a little more irritating. We liked walking over the bridge from the train station/Cathedral to see the thousands of locks and love messages locked to it - we added one that I will love to check out again someday. There is a chocolate museum that we were going to explore, but never did. We went on a cable car ride from the Zoo over the Rhine which was fun, but not a priority given your limited time.

We went to Rothenburg ob der Tauber about 12 years ago when we were living in Belgium and traveling in Germany. DD1 was a toddler. We loved it - walking the city wall, Night Watchman Tour, climbing the small city hall to the VERY windy and somewhat dangerous upper "balcony" circling the top. We went in the off season and it was not overrun with tourists. I might not like the city if it was overrun.

I have been in and around Munich and Neuschwanstein as a teen. I loved Neuschwanstein and, even all these decades later, when I see images of it I am happy remembering that I visited there. I think it's a Must Do. I went to Linderhof as well - I remember a grotto and think the castle is modeled on Versailles, but the memories are pretty faded. I went to Nymphenburg Palace in Munich, which I remember as being dull, massive, and ugly. Not sure about Hohenschwangau.

There are long day trips with tour companies to the Eagle's Nest from Munich, so you wouldn't have to disrupt your home base, but it is much more cost effective for a family to rent a car and go. Not sure if a train would work since you would have arrange transport from station to castle/Eagle's Nest. But for city-to-city travel, Deutsche Bahn is fun, convenient and affordable. Our three kids were aged 11 and under and we paid nothing or heavily discounted fares for them.

You mentioned an alpine slide (Rodelbahn). We went on two in Germany, neither in big tourist destinations, and just loved them. Highly recommend, and you might not have to go out of your way to find one, especially if you are not picky about how big or special the slide is. This is the first one we went to in the tiny town of Monschau and we thoroughly enjoyed it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHIUUW-2igk
It is very modest compared to the youtube of the one you are considering, but if you don't start with that expectation, I think you'll be happy at many of them.
Here is a list of them by bundesland/province of Germany: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liste_...en#Deutschland
Note that Bavaria is divided into its seven subregions described and mapped here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bavari...tive_divisions

Lastly, we loved the town of Bamberg and Playmobil Fun Park, which are 1.5 and 1 hour, respectively, from Rothernburg ob der Tauber. I wouldn't put Bamberg over Rotherburg, although it does feel much more like a real, living small city rather than a tourist town. But if your kids are the right age, Playmobil Fun Park would be an awesome addition to your trip. It is not expensive, highly interactive and imaginative. Stuff like climbing a life-size pirate ship, poling across a simulated lake Hucklberry Finn style, life size Playmobil sets with identical mini playmobil sets inside that kids could play with it, some outdoor zoo area and Wild West area that we had to forego due to rain. Everyone from the 11 year old down loved it - it helped that they were all really loving Playmobil at the time.

As for restaurants, I have to say that we have never made a reservation at a German restaurant and never had a problem. My impression is the same as the US - you might need or want a reservation at a fancier or more popular place, but you could still try your luck without one. And most ordinary restaurants don't need a reservation. That has been my experience in Germany.

In re-reading, it does seem like southern Germany is where you most want to be, and it's just castle ruins that are leading you to look elsewhere. Your itinerary is very castle heavy, both ruined or historical, and you may want to eliminate some to add something else in.... a hike, the Olympic Center in Munich, etc. I have been to Germany many times and have never been interested in Rhine castles, so to me at least, it's not a must do despite the heavy marketing of it.

Have a wonderful trip!

[cheme]

Thank you so much for all the wonderful advice! I did change the itinerary around so that we stay in southern Germany. But due to a variety of reasons, we now will arrive a few days earlier than planned and I'm trying to decide what to add on to the beginning of the trip and/or where to spend more time. We will have a car the whole time.

Day 1 - arrive late to Munich airport, stay at hotel nearby
Day 2- open
Day 3 - open
Day 4 - 6 drive to Berchtesgaden early
During time here we hope to do hikes, salt mine, a day trip (probably day 5) to Salzburg, maybe ice cave
Day 6 - 8 drive to Garmisch
During time here we plan to do Partnach Gorge, Obermaggau (alpine slide), Karwendelbahn or Zugspitze, still deciding if we want a day trip to Fussen (maybe on day 8 before driving to Munich)
Day 8 - 10 stay in Munich, maybe a day trip

I am leaning towards going to the Bamberg area for days 2 and 3. Thoughts?

Another idea was to go to Berchtesgaden early and stay there on Day 3. That would give us some more space in the Berchtesgaden/Garmisch days and make a trip to Fussen easier (since our new itinerary cuts out almost all castles, though we may stop at Linderhoff and we will see Hohensalzburg). Any thoughts on Karwendelbahn vs Zugspitze?

Would it be too crazy to go to Bamberg area for just one night? Maybe drive to Bamberg early on Day 2 and then leave for Berchtesgaden late on Day 3?

Thanks!

[ged]

Off the top of my head, I would not do Bamberg since it's the opposite direction geographically. As much as I enjoyed Bamberg...unless there is a specific reason you want to go there? I did have excellent beer ice cream there, though! Some other small towns closer include Regensburg, Passau, or perhaps Cesky Krumlov or Hallstatt (the latter two much being much further away)?

One of my most amazing hotel stays in the general area was at Best Western Rehlegg (@Berchtesgarden). It was so beautiful.

I can't think of them now, but there are so many wonderful smaller lakes/peak/slides/parks that dot the area. Not just the main ones that the foreigners have heard of. If I were you, I would try to give myself more time to slow down and visit where the locals go. I think Schliersee has a great park above it, with a alpine slide, restaurant, etc. More locals go, than foreigners. But...my kids were younger than yours are now, so maybe not.

http://www.schliersbergalm.de/de/fer...rodelbahn.html


I did like Schloss Linderhof, so I think it's an option esp. if you decide to forego Neuschwanstein.

Kloster Andechs might be an option if you want to hike, outside of Munich.