Hello,

I am in initial phase of planning to visit Germany/Austria and some part of Italy in first week of September. With so many beatiful places and so little time, I am lost, how should I plan my days. To start with, I am trying to map my route first. Excluding flying days, we have 12 days. Flying in and out from Munich and we would rent car. We are interested in photography. That's the reason, we are renting car, to visit countryside as well.
From past threads, I tried to make this route, later would add stops, night stays.
Munich, Fussen, Garmisch, Mittenwald, Zirl, Innsbruck, Tyrol, Brenner, Bolzano and take Grand Dolomite Highway (SS241/SS48) to reach Cortina, Toblach (SS48/SS51 ), Lienz, pick Grosssglockner Hochstrasse to Bruck, Hallstatt, Salzburg, Munich.
Do you suggest, any more scenic places/routes instead or any recommendation will be very helpful.

Thanks

The itinerary looks perfectly doable, though in Tirol it is near impossible to not have spectacular scenery wherever you drive. If you base in the Innsbruck area, you might consider Seefeld in Tirol and Hall in Tirol. If your budget permits, an overnight at The Grand Hotel Lienz would be indulgent; the town itself warrants an afternoon and overnight with its Italian flair. Also warranting an overnight is Hallstatt; sitting on the balcony of a hotel watching the sunset over the lake makes for magical photographs.

The Brenner Pass is pretty, but remember that it is a major north-south highway and not exactly a scenic alpine road. Remember, also, that you will need a vignette in Austria; and there will be a separate vehicle fee for the Großglockner.

Happy Planning!

The toll for the Grossglocknerstrasse was about 30 euro when we drove it, that was about 10 years ago. Fabulous day, the scenery is amazing, as is the winding road. Lots of places to pull over and stop for photos etc. Loads of cyclists and motorbikes so you have to be quite careful on bends etc. Well worth the toll. Also a tunnel I remember at the end of that day which was 10 euro. We could have gone the long way round but were tired and wanted to get back.

Another trip we drove north from Cortina towards Castelrotto, again beautiful mountain scenery and winding roads. We had to detour quite a way because of a roadblock (due to potential avalanche) at one point. It's a beautiful part of the world.

Kay

Thanks. I am still working (struggling) with making it day by day, while covering must-stop places on the day.
It is for first week of September. Do I need to make advance lodging or I can drive and as when needed, I will search any hotel on internet and do check-in ?
Probably Salzburg may be busy, and may need advance hotel booking ?

I can't speak to the need for advance lodging (because we always reserve in advance), but by the first week of September Austrian school children will be back in session, and their parents will be back in the office, so you might have success with last-minute bookings.