suze1

My original itinerary was to fly into Frankfurt, take the train to Bacharach for 3 nights, then from there take the train to Rothenburg for 1 or 2 nights, take a train to Munich for 2 nights, rent a car in Munich and drive to Fussen for 3 nights, and drive to Salzburg for 4 nights.

I just now got on the bahn.de sight and checked out the timing and fares. Just to make sure I’m not missing something, does it really take 4 hours to get from Bacharach to Rothenburg at 48 Euros each and 3 hours from Rothenburg to Munich at 80 Euros each. I thought the trains in Europe were suppose to be fast and a cheap way to travel. I’m looking for opinions now, my husband says he doesn’t mind driving so should we rent a car for this whole trip? That might be a better option, I’m not sure. Maybe with a car it would be faster and we could see more little towns??

Also, we planned 4 nights in Salzburg with visiting Hallstatt for one day, will that be long enough or should we spend a night in Hallstatt

Russ

I didn't check Bacharach to Rothenburg, but from Rothenburg to Munich, yes, it's around 3 hours, but those tickets go for around 58/couple if you book in advance from www.bahn.de; you can also stipulate only local traffic and ride the regional trains with a Bayern ticket for around 25 Euros for both of you, which will add a little bit more time but is quite a good deal. The Bayern ticket is good anywhere within Bavaria (which covers everything from just east of Frankfurt to the south and east. You could use it for Salzburg and back too.

Another option: get germanrail passes, about $150 each in the twinpass version, to cover 4 days of unlimited travel. Purchase additional days in advance as needed or get Bayern tickets while there.

Bob_KY

I would recommend driving the whole time, if you are going to rent a car for part of the time anyway. As long as you feel comfortable reading a map on the fly, it should be pretty easy for you. There are so many pretty small towns in the areas you are going, it will be much easier with the car.

Grcxx3

Our family (2 adults, 2 young teens) took trains from Heidelberg to Rothenburg and then Rothenburg to Munich.

Yes - they took 3-4 hours, and we had to change trains 2-3 times....but it was really quite easy - once we knew what to do. There are no direct trains to these places - you have to change - and that's why it takes longer.

We paid for 1st class cabins and reserved seats where possible. This was so nice. We just got on the train, found our seats (usually in a little private car) and relaxed. Some of our rides were short (20 or so minutes), but some were rather long (1-1/2 or more hours). We rested, read, grabbed a bite to eat from the dining car, and watched the scenery.

Once at our destination - we just grabbed a cab to our hotel. No reading maps, no dealing with traffice, no difficulty in finding parking.

suze1

Your answer on the train being relaxing sounds great and that's why I had originally picked that. I'm wondering though, if we drove, wouldn't we be cutting the traveling time way down, that's another concern, I don't want to spend hours getting from one place to another. Do most people drive when they visit Germany?

Russ

I've done both trains and cars in Germany, and pretty extensively. The train is generally faster on long legs between major destinations - no traffic, no potty stops - and normally very predictable; you know exactly when you'll arrive. The car is generally faster for shorter distances, but driving times you'll find online are only rough estimates; I find that I'm often slowed by traffic, road construction, accidents(was in a doozy wait one time), looking for parking, and occasionally getting lost or having to stop and ask for directions.

So for me it has been almost a wash in terms of time spent underway. The value in train travel is that you aren't having to work all the time - you can sip coffee, look out the window, chat, nap, play cards, read, plan what to do when you arrive, or whatever. And the scenery tends to be better without all the cars and asphalt. But other people really enjoy driving and hence enjoy driving in Germany. Some drive just to fly down the autobahn at crazy speeds where that is possible, and that's their fun.

Price comparison is fairly easy, except it's hard to figure in parking fees (and fines for misparking, or the occasional radar violation - lots of radar/photo stuff hiding all over the country, so watch the speed limit if yo do drive.)