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Classic Trips: Driving Germany's Romantic Road
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Fly into: Frankfurt
Fly out of: Munich
Total Duration: 7 days
This trip follows the Romantic Road, one of Germany's oldest tourist routes. Created after World War II to lure visitors, it includes sweeping vistas, fairy-tale castles, and ancient cathedrals—the most romantic sights of Germany on one car trip.
- Great Drive
- Food and Wine
- History
- Architecture
This Trip's Top Experiences:
Day 1
Petronilo G. Dangoy Jr./shutterstock
1 Frankfurt
Germany's Business Capital
- Check out the city's South Bank, chock full of restaurants and bars
- Goethe's house has been carefully restored to its original specifications here
- Kids will dig the dinos at Frankfurt's Natural History Museum
Day 2
Wurzburg Tourism Congress/German National Tourism Board
2 Würzburg
Pearl of the Romantic Road
- Visit the Residence, home to Würzburg's prince-bishops
- The Main-Franconian Museum traces the city's history with varied items like toys and wine presses
- The Baroque Juliusspital was once a home for the sick but is now a winery
Day 3
Rothenburg Tourismus Service/German National Tourism Board
3 Rothenburg ob der Tauber
Picturesque beyond belief
- Explore the town's medieval streets, and patrol the city walls with the night watchmen
- The Doll and Toy Museum's collection features more than 1,000 specimens
- Rothenburg's Town Hall dates back to 1240
Day 4
Andreas Praefcke/wikipedia.org
4 Nördlingen
"All Clear" on the Romantic Road
- "So G'sell so" resounds from the St. Georg church every half-hour from 10 p.m. to midnight.
- Cycle the Reis, a basin-like depression formed by a meteor strike
Day 5
manfredxy/shutterstock
5 Augsburg
Bavaria's Third-Largest City
- Augsburg's Cathedral, the Dom St. Maria, dates to the 9th century
- The Fuggerei is the world's oldest social housing project, dating to 1516; the rent is still "one Rhenish guilder"
- Die Ecke is one of the region's best restaurants, particularly renowned for its wine list
Day 6
Yuri Yavnik/Shutterstock
6 Hohenschwangau
A Fairy-Tale Castle
- Visit the iconic Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany's most famous
- Across the valley, see Hohenschwangau, an inspiration for Wagner's Ring Cycle
- Stop for the view on the Marienbrücke
Day 7
Elena Kouptsova -Vasic /shutterstock
7 Munich
Bavaria's Traditional Capital
- It's not just about Oktoberfest. This town loves its suds year round, from sipping in a beer garden to the craziness of the Hofbrauhaus
- The walk up may be long—86 steps—but the view from the top of the 14th-century Frauenkirche can't be beat
- Work off all the beer and sausages with a bike ride or a stroll among the Englischer Garden's lakes and parks
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