Starting my research on Prague to Berlin trip

There are so many options ... how many days will you spend in Berlin, meaning, how many days are left for exploring the countryside between Prague and Berlin?

Dresden is a *must* IMO. It fits all your criteria listed above. Okay, not exactly a small town, but to Americans it might appear like that. And there are neighbourhoods where you even feel like in a village.

I assume you'll have max. 4 nights left for other small towns/countryside. Let's start with the Czech side of the border - Litomerice and Terezin come to my mind (concentration camp in the latter). Then there is Teplice, a spa town. Or Liberec, at the foot of the Jizerske mountains, a lively town (college) with some interesting 19th century architecture but by far not as 'polished' as Prague, more 'real' life feeling.

To both sides of the German/Czech border you'll find the National Park Swiss/Bohemian Switzerland. A treasure - rocky sandstone patches, canyons, flat-top mountains, great for hiking, castles, small and picturesque towns and villages (too many to list here). And there are also the Erzgebirge/Krusne hory mountains, home of old mining towns like Freiberg, Annaberg-Buchholz etc. with amazing medieval architecture (especially churches, but also townhouses). Freiberg, btw, has a spectacular collection of minerals from all over the world.

Around Dresden you could visit so many small towns: Meissen, Pirna, Bautzen, Görlitz (for Architecture fans a must), Torgau (where American and Russian troops met for the first time in WWII).

An interesting place for WWII interested people is castle Colditz - it was the place where especially British prisoners of war were imprisoned. Their attempts to escape are legendary (movies).

I better stop here, LOL.

Ingo

Ingo - Thank you so much for all your helpful advise. We'll have 6 days between the 2 cities to do as we please. We'll have a car so all the places you mentioned we have the ability to see.

Anymore "must sees" is appreceiated.

Carol

Here are some websites for you to start with your research:

http://www.schloesserland-sachsen.de/cms/en/home/

http://www.saechsische-dampfschiffahrt.de/en/

http://www.goerlitz.de/tourismusportal-stadt-goerlitz.html?L=1

http://www.stadt-meissen.de/content/2519.htm

http://www.nationalpark-saechsische-schweiz.de/red1/?set_lang_id=2

http://www.teplice.cz/en/tourist-information/introduction/

And here is a link to my pages on Virtualtourist.com; you'll find info on Liberec, Teplice, Prague and all the towns in Saxony:
http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/m/4166c/

I.

Hi; One additional web site for Prague. You can download the information by clicking on the city and then 'instant'. www.inyourpocket.com/ Dick

Thank you both for the info. and the great websites!

My husband and I returned Saturday from a Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig, Prague and back to Berlin 13 day trip (including travel days). It was our first trip to Europe. It was booked out about 6 weeks so we had to plan fast. We used the Fodor's guides for Germany and Prague and friend who'd been to Berlin a few times.

:: Berlin - we were taken by the Memorial for Murdered Jews of Europe http://www.sacred-destinations.com/germany/berlin-holocaust-memorial an outdoor memorial and a indoor exhibit - both very moving. The Kaiser Wilhelm Church http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaiser_Wilhelm_Memorial_Church (I don't rely on this site for facts, but has reasonable pics of it). The Topography of Terror, an outdoor memorial on the former site of the Gestapo and the SS - loads of info on outdoor reader boards, no shade so be prepared for sun. Note the board exhibit numbers so you begin at the correct end. We stayed at the Intercontinetal Berlin, very nice hotel, recommend the modern wing - we stayed in both sides. We stayed here because a conference we were attending was here and we could leave a bag and pick it on on our return to Berlin.

:: Dresden - we like a lot. I think worth a stop. If you don't go elsewhere like we did, two days will get you alot of sights in Dresden, the historcal center is compact and an easy walk one end to the other. We stayed right on the main square - http://www.steigenberger.com/aw/Steigenberger_Hotel_de_Saxe/~spb/ - very pleased with hotel and staff. We were on the 4th floor looking right over the main square towards the Elbe river.

We were there two nights with one of our days a day trip to Leipzig for a BMW plant tour (I'm in the autobody repair business) and a visit to the Stasi Museum. No English on the exhibits, but you can rent an English audio. http://museumzeitraum.blogspot.com/2006/09/stasi-museum-leipzig_12.html. We drove to Leipzig and followed our navigation system directions to a small street along side the museum and were able to park right there with a pay station within the block. We had a great lunch at a cafe just up the street, I think it was called Telegraph, right on a corner.

:: Prague - my grandfather was born here, so I had special interest in visiting. We were here three nights. Our trip was greatly enhanced I believe by hiring a private guide we found recommended in the Fodor's book. We got lucky and got Jaroslav "Jay" Pesta, the owner as our guide, but he has other guides and I've seen great reviews on them too. Jay was personable, knowledgeable, flexible - reminding us it was OUR tour - and obviously passionate about Prague and the Czech Republic. His website has alot of tours listed, or you can build one of your own or just email and tell them what you want. I highly recommend them. www.private-prague-guide.com. Tour guides in Prague do not have to be licensed, but Jay and his guides are, and Jay is working towards improving the guide industry there. I'd never used a private guide, but I was really pleased I did. There are just too many sites to list to visit and depending on your tastes.

Hope this is helpful and enjoy your trip!

We stayed at the Golden Well Hotel http://www.goldenwell.cz/ and were VERY happy with it. It's is at the end of a small alley - off the beaten path and just below Prague Castle - but walking distance to the historical sights and very quiet. It's upper floor terrace restaurant has one of the best views in the city - book a dinner right away, even if you don't stay there as they book fast. We did not do this and were just lucky to get in one night - the others were prebooked before we got there.

Carol, I am also headed to Berlin and Prague soon. We're going to the IAAF track meet in Berlin 15 - 23 August, then 4 nights in Prague, then back to USA (California). I visited both cities for a few days each in 2003. I think you will be very excited about Berlin. I was there in 1970 with the Wall, then 33 years later in the exact same spots (Checkpoint Charlie et al) after the Wall and truly it brought me to tears. When you walk beneath the Brandenburg Gate, tour the Reichstag, and (as Camille said) go through not only the Topography of Terror but the Jewish Museum, I think you will be awestruck. I am not Jewish but any sentient human being must be moved by these exhibits and what they represent.

In Prague, I think architecture is the main gig. The Charles Bridge, the castle, the city center with its amazing astro clock, the Jewish quarter w cemetery, a river tour (see buildings from a very different perspective)...I am sure you have all this covered. I am also going to Cesky Krumlov for a day trip, as ordered by my step-daughter. I expect to get a nice glimpse into a smaller but similarly beautiful (architecturally speaking) place. See posts under Cesky Krumlov.

In Berlin we are renting a flat since we're going to be there for almost 2 weeks. In Prague we're staying at U Zlate Studny (the 'other' golden well hotel, not the one Camille stayed at) which is in the Old Town near Charles Bridge. This one actually has a golden well in its cellar and it has gotten really good reviews, but obviously I cannot recommend it. Last time I was in Prague I stayed near Wenceslas Square and wound up walking walking walking to Old Town and elsewhere, so I would recommend you stay nearer to Old Town since that's where more of the sights are. Just an idea...

Kathleen

I just want to highly recommend that people check out apartments when traveling in Europe. Every time I'm in a hotel, I miss my coffee, or if I have it, it seems to be such a "business" affair hotel, and very expensive. Czech Republic has a new industry, though it is not so new. The industry is "self catering apartments" These range from one room studios to full blown pent house affairs. Czech it out...

BTW.... in Prague we paid 69 euro a night, right on a street off of Old Town Square. We had a bed room, living room, full bathroom area, w/d, a foyer walk way (great for luggage).... and an elevator to this 3rd floor (2nd floor) nicely decorated flat. In Tabor, our HOTEL room was 120 euro (bfast included); in Vienna, I don't even want to tell you what it was.... bfast alone was 28 euro a person.

What I am suggesting... is if you haven't tried apartments in Europe, now might be the time. Here in Santa Fe, private accommodations are now charging what hotels charge a night. In Europe, that just isn't true. Yet.