Bavaria
 

If you had only 3 days in the Oberammergeau- Garmish area, what would you recommend we do/see? Any B&B suggestions? Can't find any on the internet.

Thanks,
Ben & Sharon

Schoss Linderhof (my favorite of Ludwig's castles and the church in Ettal. If you have the time, you could drive down to Halstatt, Austria - another favorite spot. I stayed in a B&B recommended by Rick Steves but unfortunately didn't write down the name (before my Fodor's days). Oberammergau was one of my favorite Bavarian towns. Doesn't take long to walk around it and shop.

I am assuming you have a car.

Stay in Garmisch,not Oberammergau. We enjoy the Hotel HILLEPRANDT. It is located in a quiet neighborhood of Garmisch, not far from the town area. Rooms 1 or 2 are great as they are on first level and have patios outside.

One day you can drive from Garmisch to Oberammergau and visit Linderhof, Ettal Abbey and then the town of Oberammergau. Allow time for the wood working shops, strudel at Wolf's Hotel and walking around town. This can all be done in an easy day as the two towns are close to each other.

Second day you can drive from Garmisch to Neuschanstein Castle/Hohenschwangau Castle by way of Reutte, Austria. Visit the castles and then drive back the opposite way to visit Wies Church. This will again take you through Oberammergau so you can stop there again, time permitting.

The third day could be spent in the Garmisch area. Cable car to top of Zugspitz, walk on the Partnach Gorge and visit the countryside. Great area to just explore the towns and the shops.

We love this area and visit frequently. Have a great time.

Sharon&Ben - do not miss the Wieskirche!I can remember many years ago when I first drove up - my initial response at seeing this small non-descript church in the meadow was - what am I doing here! Once inside my jaw dropped - it is absolutely glorious. In my mind it is still the most awe inspiring church, in its own small way, I have ever seen.

Wieskirche is certainly worth a stop. We were very lucky and got there just as some sort of church service was starting--had a wonderful organ concert in that beautiful setting.

If you like painted buildings or violins, visit Mittenwald. I was there many years ago, but it was very pretty. J.

p.s. Mittenwald has a site at mittenwald.de. You might try the same for other recommended towns. I notice that after clicking on tourism and then guesthouses, Mittenwald comes up w/a list of b&b's w/photographs. J.

Ben & Sharon, you have received some great suggestions here. I can only add that I would certainly try the Hotel Alte Post in Oberammergau. It's a small, authenic, family-owned place right in the center of town. Check it out at this site: http://www.altepost.ogau.de/.

We stayed there and would go back every time.

Now, the sites: Linderhof is definitely worth the stop, as is the basilica at nearby Ettal. The Weiskirche at Steingaden is beautiful as is the drive to it. Stop in Garmish in the afternoon to watch the cows walk right down the main street returning from pasture and take the cable car up to the top of the Zugspitze, it is an amazing trip. Forego the cog wheel train back down as it is mainly in a tunnel with no view to speak of.

Everything is located very close together and getting from one to the other is fast as well as easy. It will be a wonderful trip, I'm sure.

Now I'm thinking about our trip, and I can't help but want to go back again.

Just returned from Bavaria. Stayed for the 4th time at Gutshof zum Schluxen in small Austrian village of Unterpinswang (just off the main road between Reutte, Austria and Fussen, Germany. This is the hotel that Rick Steves highly recommends and it is truly a jewel. His website has a direct link where you can make reservations. It is a 200 year old farmhouse surrounded by Alps, but fully modernized. We paid 75 Euros for a twin room with bath and buffet breakfast. There are laundry facilities and a great restaurant. In the evening we watched the local people lead their cows from the alpine meadows back to their barns.

Must sees include: Neuschwanstein, Hohenschwangau, Linderhof, Weiskirke, and the Monastery at Ettal.

Thanks, everyone. We are renting an apartment for a full week in Garmisch in just two weeks and have been a little worried (not much, of course) about enough to do for a week. You are putting my mind at ease.

A few years ago we visited the area and decided to stay in Mittenwald rather than Garmisch. We were glad that we did. Mittenwald is a postcard-perfect little village that looks like it's right out of the Sound of Music. Hotel Rieger was very nice and reasonably priced - Post Hotel looked good too. Plenty of good restaurants. We drove through Garmisch and it looked nice but definitely larger and more commercialized. The gondola ride in Mittenwald has unbelievable views of the Alps. I agree with other posters - Linderhof is not to be missed - better than Neuschwanstein in my opinion.

Linderhof is excellent, but Neuschwanstein, in that setting--it is quite spectacular.

Just a note - Linderhof is covered in scaffolding until next year sometime. The interior is still open and of course the rest of the grounds.

A big thanks to everyone! What great information...better than anything you can read in a guide-book. Ben is in Germany now on business. He called and said look up Oberstdorf for great health-spas. Again, not much on the internet.
Thanks, Sharon

If you can make it to the Wieskirche it is definitely jaw-dropping. Nothing to look at on the outside but the interior is gorgeous. One of my great "church" memories of Europe.

By the way, (depending on your energy levels) you can easily visit the 3 castles, Linderhof, Neuschwanstein, and Hohenschwangau, in one day from either Oberammagau or Garmisch. Even from Garmisch, it's only about 1 hour driving time to Hohenschwangau village.

You have to take the guided tours at Neuschwanstein/Hohenschwangau anyway, so your time in those two castles is set for you. It would just depend on how much time you spent at Linderhof and on the road.

We left Munich in the morning (by car), visited Linderhof, stopped in a couple of towns (including Oberammagau, as I had been to the 1960 Passion Play and wanted to refresh my memories of the town) to look at antique stores and such, had a late lunch along the Plansee in Austria, and had plenty of time to see Hohenschwangau castle that afternoon late. We saw Neuschwanstein the next morning.

You can even make your reservations for Neuschwanstein/Hohenschwangau on the internet so you could plan your day trip accordingly.

So leaving from Oberammagau, you'd be in Linderhof in under a half an hour. Again, depending on how much time you spent at Linderhof (say 9-11AM), you could easily be in Hohenschwangau village by noon or so and see the castles there in the afternoon and evening--at 1 PM and 4 PM, or 2 PM and 5 PM, or 2:30 and 5:30. for example.

But if you feel you'll spend a lot more time at Linderhof or make a lot of stops for scenic vistas along the way, then this might be a bit rushed--but, even then, doable.

Ooooo, I love Oberstdorf!! That and Mittenwald are my 2 favorite Bavarian villages. Can't help you with the spas there. Are there any?? It's a great town to poke around and if you're into hiking, it's perfect!

In Garmisch, there are 2 really cool gorges you can walk through. One is right by the ski jump and the other is a bit farther out, along the Zugspitzebahn. An alternative to going up Zugspitze is Alpspitz nearby. You can buy a pass that includes both if you want.

Hi Sharon Ben:

Although Bavaria questions have been posted before, I still love to read the reply's. You have been given great information! 3 days will fly by.
Garmisch is one of the larger village/Towns in the area, but makes a great spot to base.

Here is my fall back list:
Neuschwanstein: The Must see outside!
Linderhof: Must see inside!
Weiskirch: Outside does not do it justice!
Mittenwald: Postcard Alpine Village
Seefeld: Check out this town here for the Spas!
Oberammergau: Postcard town #2
Fraundorfer: Have to eat at least one meal here for a Bavarian Evening!
Partnachklamm: Hike the Gorge!

Also: The drives will also be awsome!

I always say this: I am Jealous!! My favorite town in all Germany is Garmisch!
John
Get in the mood and go to this website:
www.bensbaurenhof.com
JOHN

Sorry to say Bavariaben.com is having a server problem, Ben isn't sure he'll be able to retrieve all the info there (see other thread here about this).
Marge

Hi, I think John's right, three days cannot be enough. If you'll pardon me, maybe I could ask John to elaborate on his impressions of Mittenwald and Seefeld. It was maybe 15 years ago that friends and I spent almost a week in Seefeld, daytripping from there. Thought it was a beautiful little town with that magical tiny church in the birchtrees. And I loved wandering the little streets of Mittenwald. I guess what I'm asking is if those two towns have been spoiled by popularity; would I still recognize them? Thanks, J.