wanttogo

We will be travelling to Bavaria via Franfurt during the middle two weeks of May. This trip is a substitute for our original Bavarian trip planned for May 2009 that had to be cancelled due to an emergency operation on my husband's heart.

So far, we have planned:

Nuremburg -3 nights) with day trip to Regensberg or Rothenburg

Southern Bavaria (3 nights)- I need help here. Should we stay in Fussen, Garmisch,
or Oberammagau or some combination. Has anyone travelled by bus from Oberammagau to Fussen? The last trip was to be 2 nights in Fussen and 2 in Oberam.
Now I am wondering whether to change this part around. We are doing this trip without a car.

Munich- (4 nights) with a side trip to Chimensee or Augsburg

Bamberg- (2 nights)-Just planning to walk around and enjoy the town. From here,
go to a Frankfurt airport hotel and husband goes to Wurzburg for 3 days of geneological research. and then he flies home.

We really need help on the Bavarian part. If you have suggestions, I will be most grateful.
I do want to see a couple of Ludwig's castles but I can't dp all four. If we take a night from Munich and shift it to southern Bavaria. I will not have time for the day trip to Chimensee or Augsburg.

Thank you.

Pat

tomboy

Consider Mittenwald

iris1745

Pat; Fot the stays you have suggested, I think you could consider staying in Fussen first [closer to the castles]. Then Munich. On to Nuremburg and finally Bamberg. I think this would make a logical order for your visits. Richard

Aramis

If you want to see the castles, stay in Fussen for 2 days. The, rather than trying to travel between other Bavarian alpine destinations by bus, consider staying in Munich for an extra day and taking a day trip to Garmisch or Oberammergau, etc..

I also find it a little unusual that you would spend 3 nights in Nuremberg on the way south, and then and then 2 nights in Bamberg on the way back. They are 50 minutes apart by direct rail connection. I presume it is because you don't want to travel too far from Frankfurt after arriving?

It might make more sense to head straight to Munich, or Fussen, and then move consistently north, ending in Bamberg. But you may well have pressing reasons.

swandav2000

Hi wanttogo,

I live in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, and I think it would be a good spot to base in because it's centrally located. Oberammergau is about 40 minutes away, Mittenwald is about 20 minutes away, and Füssen is about two hours away. You could just stay here and do day-trips out to your various destinations -- and also see the Zugspitze.

You can see all the travel options easily at the German rail site

www.bahn.de

Let us know as your plans progress! BTW, congratulations on your husband's improved health!!

s

Mainhattengirl

Trying to understand why you would want to stay at an airport hotel? Stay in the city where there are things to see and do, plus it is a lot cheaper.

wanttogo

Thank you everyone. So far, your answers have been quite helpful. The reason that we are doing Nurenberg first is that I want to limit the train travel on our first day. to go all the way to Fussen or Garmisch is too much traveling.

I really welcome any further comments. I use this Board as one my main sources of information when planning our vacations and have gotten very good tips here. I try to give good tips, also.

Pat

Dukey1

OK, a few thoughts as we did a somewhat similar trip this past August but first a couple of questions:

are you absolutely DETERMINED not to have a rental car? the reason I ask is because I am one person who very STRONGLY enjoys rail travel in Europe, have done it a LOT, and can easily tell you ALL the advantages and disadvantages. For the most part the places you want to see are more or less easily accessible by rail...even Herrenchiemsee...but for what you want to do a car would provide vastly more flexibility.

All that said, as to Nurnberg...you might at least consider either the LeMeridien hotel or (and much better IMO) the hotel Victoria. Both are within sight and easy walking distance of the main rail station.

Lots to see and do in Nurnberg itself, especially in the so-called "old town" within the walls.

Bamberg. When you get there by rail you'll need to take a bus or a taxi to the older part of the city down along the river...lots of medieval-looking sights as well as the cathedral. The day we were there a beer festival was in progress so it was jammed with visitors but there's a reason people flock to certain places and I notice nobody here has the nerve to call that town a "tourist trap" and definitely worth a visit.

Ludwig castles: I am sure everyoner is going to rave on and on and on about Neuschwanstein especially because of its now iconic exterior but IMO the inside leaves a lot to be desired. Linderhof is filled with the Ludwig whimsy, sexually-related and otherwise and great fun. Herrenchiemsee, OTOH, is the largest of the four Ludwig builds and is IMO the most elaborately decorated. The Hall of Mirrors, for example, is even larger than its namesake at Versailles. The location is wonderful although the fountains and grounds are not nearly as impressive as those at Versailles itself.

It can easily be reached by rail from Munich if you take a train to Prien. For those other builds I would agree with the possibility of staying in Fuessen itself.

iris1745

Do you already have your plane tickets? United flys non-stop D.C. to Munich and Frankfurt to D.C.

wanttogo

Thank you all for taking the time to reply.

We have our plane tickets using frequent flier miles. The tickets were not available to Munich directly using the miles.

We do not rent cars in Europe. We do in the United States and maybe in Canada. I find train travel or bus travel to be far more relaxing and convenient in Europe.

Pat

robertino

Hi Pat -

This trip is really easy to do by car, and quite difficult to do by public transportation unless you really know what you're doing. How are you planning to get to Rothenburg? How are you going to get from Garmisch to Oberammergau to Fuessen?

If memory serves, Rothenburg requires at least one transfer, because it is on a spur line. Also, I think you have to route back through Munich to get from Garmisch / Oberammergau to Fuessen.

Using a car is also much easier than schlepping your luggage onto and off of trains, and you have at least 4 or 5 transfers scheduled.

swandav2000

Hi again,

I personally think that you have the right idea by using trains & busses! It's very relaxing, as you note, and of course it's a way to get to meet some local residents who are not involved in tourism/sales.

The only advantage that a car gives you is that you can see more things faster, and to me that's rather a disadvantage! I love to linger and wander and just soak up the atmosphere; I'm not one to hit three or four destinations in a day.

And it is very easy to do all you intend by train. I've been everywhere (except Füssen) by bus or train, and it is dead easy. Yes, you do carry your own luggage -- but consider it just a day at the gym!

And of course it's more green to travel by train! Yaaaay! In fact, you can see exactly how green you're being using the bahn.de site above. Once you have your connection, click on "Environmental Mobility Check." It will compare your journey using car, train, and airplane using electricity, carbon emissions, and particle matter. So -- you'll know exactly how much green you're giving back to the beautiful Bavarian Alps.

I don't have a car here and can tell you that public transport is a glorious way to travel.

s

Dukey1

For once, I disagree with Swanday as to the "only" advantage of having a car being that you can see things "faster" although when someone has LIMITED TIME, getting there "faster" can be one heck of an advantage.

I think you can use busses to get back and forth around Fuessen since there are no east-to-west rail services there and if you plan carefully that shouldn't be too much of a problem.

"We do not rent cars in Europe..." we usually don't either but sometimes this absolute rigidity can be disadvantageous as I recently learned but am sure you will enjoy your trip.

november_moon

A few years ago we did a Munich-Nuremberg-Fuessen-Munich itinerary, using those towns/cities as bases and then doing side trips. We rented a car upon leaving Nuremburg and then turned it back in when we returned to Munich - so I guess we had that car for about 4 days. That worked out really well. We liked having the car in the Alps because it allowed us to stop off in different places as the mood struck us. We also stopped off along the way from Nuremburg to Fuessen, which was fun. Normally we are all about public transportation in Europe, but there is just something about being in the Alps in your own car - you can stop and oogle any view you want for as long as you want or go poke around any lake or small town - so just something to consider. People do it both ways. And driving in Germany is really easy. Overall, Germans are excellent drivers and their signage and roads are top notch.

Robert asked how you were planning to get to Rothenburg - which I believe you plan as a day trip from Nuremburg. The routing we took required 2 train changes, which seemed complicated at first, but it was super easy. When we bought our tickets, the information about train changes was printed out clearly and at each station, we got off one train, walked across the platform and got on another. There were other people on the train doing the same thing. Once you get to Rothenburg, it is about a 10 minute walk to the old town. Very easy.

wanttogo

To all who took the time to answer my query:

We have decided on the following:

Nuremburg-3 nights with day trip to Regensburg

Fussen-2 nights to see the castles

Munich-4 nights with side trip to Chimensee or Augsburg

Rothenberg-1 night so we can go to the watchman's tour.

Bamberg-2 nights

Airport/Frankfurt hotel hotel-1 night

There are so many folks on this Board who take the time to
share their experiences and advice that our yearly trips have
been been better than if we planned them just using guidebooks. I know that I will be back for more advice on the Bavaria trip.

Pat

Aramis

Looks good, wanttogo.

Try and walk around Rothenburg - including outside the walls on the valley side - in the evening, probably before the Night Watchman tour, and/or early in the morning. Start with the view back toward the town from the from the Burggarten (west side, just outside the Burgtor). If you have time, the tiny Church of St. Peter and St. Paul, in tiny little Detwang, down in the valley is worth a stop, too, to see the altar piece by Reimenschneider.

Can't wait to see who tries to get you to change your plans.....

Have fun.

lyb

bookmarking for my trip next year