Hi all

I am planning a trip to Berlin + Munich for 5 days (I have 5 full days free: 22nd Dec - 26th Dec). Planning to land in Berlin in early morning of 22nd Dec. Head out of Munich in the evening of 26th Dec.
What all should I include in my trip? There are just too many things to see in Berlin, hence confused.
Would definitely be going to Dachau camp. But it is closed on 25th. And doing Dachau on 26th (on the day when I have to leave), will be too hectic.

As I have 5 days with me, I would think 2 days in Munich and 3 days in Berlin should be fine.

1. Should I do my trip in reverse? Head first to Munich and then head out of Berlin? That way I can see Dachau on, say 23rd, and leave for Berlin on 24th morning.
2. Any other specific places in Munich / Berlin?
3. What to do on Christmas day 25th in Berlin? I think everything will be closed.

Are you sure you can see and do what you want to do in these cities in the time you have? It is not unusual for people to give Berlin 5 or 6 days for a first visit.

I urge you to consult a good guidebook or two and decide what you most want to see and experience.

Yes, 5 days is all I have got and I don't want to sit at home
Any suggestions are more than welcome.

Suggestion: Spend the entire time in Berlin. Or in Munich.

Yes travel between the two takes most of a day. Xmas Day nothing open except some restaurants I would think. Berlin has lots to do for 5 days - Sachenhausen Concentration Camp/Memorial just outside Berlin is more intact and as everything as Dachau. Plus Xmas Day good for stroll or church services but not for museums, etc. If taking trains between the two book them early yourself at www.bahn.de/en - German railways web site - book early to get limited number of discounted tickets - much cheaper than waiting until there usually. www.seat61.com has adroit info on doing that yourselves online - general info trains www.ricksteves.com and BETS-European Rail Experts.

I too would stay 5 days in one or other - Berlin to me is more to see though either has enough to occupy 4 days.

Pick one. Not nearly enough time otherwise, especially over Christmas.

Piling on (politely) with others above. Choose one or the other. With both you will have shorter daylight hours in which to enjoy the Christmas markets as well as the sights; with only 5 days you will spend a disproportionate time traveling between the two to make such a short visit worthwhile. Entirely a personal choice, but I would choose Berlin because there is more to do within the city (museums in Berlin will be open on 25 December, though you may want to check individual schedules to confirm) and the food scene is way better than in Munich. Your reasons may be different, of course.

Hi nikhilsharma,

I'm adding my comments, too, in line with everything posted above.

I don't agree that you have "5 full days free." You arrive the morning of the 22, and by the time you get off the plane, get through immigration, claim luggage, get into town, and check into your hotel, you will have lost about 2h. So on 22 Dec, you have more like 3/4 of a day.

On the day you leave, you will be losing about half the day -- you'll need to be at the airport 2h (if a flight within Europe) or 3h early, and you need to factor in the time to get to the airport (from Munich, it takes 45 minutes). If your flight leaves at 5 pm, you'll need to head to the airport at 2 pm (from Munich for a European flight) or 1 pm.

So really you have full days on 23, 24, & 25 Dec, but 22 and 26 Dec are partial days. If you move from one city to the other, you lose most of another day -- the direct train takes 5h. That would leave you with one full day and one partial day in each of Berlin & Munich:

22 Dec arrive city 1, see it for 3/4 day
23 Dec full day in city 1
24 Dec partial day in city 1, transport, partial day in city 2
25 Dec full day in city 2
26 Dec partial day in city 2, depart

So really, staying in one city would make much more sense...

Have fun as you plan!

s

You have less than 5 days because of christmas.

The state-owned museums in Berlin (among which are the usual suspects like the Pergamon) are open on Dec 25 and 26 from 10-6, but closed on Dec 24.
https://www.smb.museum/en/museums-in...-a-glance.html

In general, you may find more open and more to do over the three days of Christmas (Dec 24-26) in Berlin than in Munich.
In addition, Dec 23 will be on a Sunday, which means stores closed in Munich but most major stores open in Berlin (as on all four sundays before Christmas).
But if we will have white Christmas (which is quite rare), the overall ambiance of Munich's old town will look nicer than Berlin.

If seeing those two places in one trip is a must, travelling in between in either direction on Dec 24 will not be a bad idea as this will be the day with most closures of museums and sights anyway.
Going between Berlin and Munich takes appr. four to five hours by plane (city center to city center with public transport on both ends) and bit more than five hours by train. Since most people will make their "going home for the holidays" travels on Friday or Saturday before Christmas, I doubt that airports and trains will be exceptionally crowded on Dec 24 this year.

Trains can be as cheap as 29 euros city center to city center and are about as fast as planes and dependably more on time. Train makes dollars and sense on this route. Check first class too as it also is heavily discounted if demand is slack.