At the end of our vacation in South France, we will be heading to Munich for our flight back home. We
will have five nights. Need advice on the best places. Switzerland sounds great and so does Fussen,
Germany area where all the castles are. Where should we spend these last few precious days? Thanks!

Some alternatives to Switzerland, which is very expensive, are to stay in Munich and daytrip to:

1. Salzburg, Austria. This awesome little royal city is worth the trip. home of Mozart, and current home of wonderful food and ancient city streets. The city was founded befor Christs birth. It is a 1 and 1/2 hour train ride or couple of hour car ride. The views of the mountains are outstanding and remember this is where they filmed The Sound of Music.

2. Rothenberg ob der Tauber. On the romantic strasse. This walled medievel (sp) city is also a real joy. A couple fo hours drive...and well worth the trip.

3. Neushcwanstein Castle ....Mad King Ludwigs attempt at fairy tale land. this was the inspiration for Cinderellas castle at Disney. A short 1 to 1 and 1/2 hour drive near Fussen.

4. Munich... a great city to spend a couple of days. Wonderful food, museums, beer halls and the Marienplatz, a great old town square.

A nice, medium priced hotel in Munich is the Hotel Uhland on Uhlandstrasse. It is only about a 1/2 mile walk to the Marienplatz or a 2 block walk to the ubahn

Hope you enjoy your trip, Bavaria is a wonderful place to spend five days.

Tom is absolutely correct -- Bavaria gets my vote, hands down. Ludwig II (otherwise known as Crazy Ludwig) had a thing for castles; he built several, including Neuschwanstein, Herrenchiemsee, and Linderhof. Almost next door to Neuschwanstein is Hohenschwangau, built by Maximilian II, an earlier ruler. Each differs from the others. My favorite is Linderhof, a little jewel box of a castle -- Ludwig thought he would one-up Louis XIV with this little masterpiece. I've always been impressed by the hospitality of the Bavarians and the lack of hospitality of the take-your-money-and-never-say-thanks of the Swiss.
Even the Germans find Switzerland too expensive for their vacations!

Tom is absolutely correct -- Bavaria gets my vote, hands down. Ludwig II (otherwise known as Crazy Ludwig) had a thing for castles; he built several, including Neuschwanstein, Herrenchiemsee, and Linderhof. Almost next door to Neuschwanstein is Hohenschwangau, built by Maximilian II, an earlier ruler. Each differs from the others. My favorite is Linderhof, a little jewel box of a castle -- Ludwig thought he would one-up Louis XIV with this little masterpiece. I've always been impressed by the hospitality of the Bavarians and the lack of hospitality of the take-your-money-and-never-say-thanks of the Swiss.
Even the Germans find Switzerland too expensive for their vacations!

We just returned from 9 days in Germany and stayed at one of the most beautiful hotels in the Alps. Burghotel Falkenstein located on the same mountain as the ruins of Falkenstein castle where Ludwig was going to build his most fanciful castle yet. Located near Fussen and Pfronten. Toni and Hertha Schlacter and their 3 young children are delightful hosts, the food is wonderful and the view from this hotel is awesome. If you'd like the phone number, address,etc.,email me and I will give you this particulars. I can't say enough about this gorgeous hotel.

Please send me some info on the Burghof Hotel in Bavaria Thank you

Since you are coming from the southern part of France, won't you be going through Switzerland anyway? Yes, it is expensive, but it is such a beautiful country. And I hate to disagree with the earlier post, but I found the Swiss to be extremely nice and helpful. One shop owner in Lucerne worked on my husband's camcorder for more than 5 hours and wouldn't charge us anything because he said he couldn't fix it. We wanted to pay for his time, but he refused. Speaking of Lucerne, that would be a great place for you spend a day and night. It is lovely. You could stay longer, but the town is not that large and you could see the sights in a day - be sure to visit the Lion Monument, the covered bridge and if time, go to the top of Mt. Pilatus. You could get a taste of Switzerland and still have time to go the Fussen area and the castles. Neuschwanstein looks like a dream, but I must warn you that getting to the top is not an easy walk. I have not been to Linderhof but plan to do that this summer. I think is is more accessible. Are you going to have a car? If so, maybe drive to Oberramergau on your way to Munich. There is so much to see and do in this area that you'll want more than 5 days, but I think you can see a lot in that time. And you can't go wrong with Switzerland or the Bavarian Alps. They are great. I also loved Salzburg as someone earlier mentioned. However, since it is east of Munich, I would spend my five days between southern France and Munich. Good luck and have fun!

Thanks everyone! This has been great info *and please keep it coming, folks*! Rudy, I had already
emailed Lori to get specifics on Burghotel in
Phronten, near Fussen, so I'll pass it along:
The address is 87459 Pfronten-Obermeilingen, Germany
Tel: 49/(08363) 309; Fax: 49/(8363) 73390
It's in Karen Brown's Itiniraries for Germany and
cost between 190-220 DM (about $120). You can see
read a little from her web site at
http://www.karenbrown.com Also, use a search
engine and put in Pfronten+Falkenstein+Allgau
to see the castle ruins and where Lugwig had planned
to build his new castle, but died before it was
able to be built. This is the new location of
Burghotel, way on top of this mountain next to the
ruins of Falkenstein. I'm definitely going to try
and include it in my schedule.
Oh, when we arrive, I will be going to Salzburg,
before going down to Venice; then Lyon. After Lyon,
Mary, we will be driving through Switzerland and I
will at least spend the night, if not a weekend trip
before we leave that area. Thanks so much for these
great tips, travelers.

Both are wonderful places. Take your pick!

Our vote goes to Appenzell Switzerland and the hotel Kaubad. The hiking was great and the family run hotel was superb

Message: You'll be enchanted by Pfaffenwinkel! Say, where? Pfaffenwinkel, German for "Pope's Corner" is truly one of the most delightful areas of Europe and one I think you would thoroughly enjoy. It's located in upper Bavaria to the south and west of Munich and just north of magnificent alpine mountain ranges and pristine lakes, all of which are in view. It gets its name from the vast number of beautiful baroque and rococo churches in even the tiniest of its villages. To fully enjoy the area does entail
renting a car, an expense you certainly won't regret since all of the major sites of interest are within an hour's drive or two. .
What does the area offer? Magnificent views of the Alps and Alpine lakes. Three of mad King Ludwig's castles including Neuschwanstein (the original Disneyland castle). Munich, with its magnificent museums, palaces, town hall and shopping
promenades. Extraordinary churches with austere exteriors and unbelievably ornate, baroque interiors most of which were designed and created by two sets of brothers, the Zimmermans and the Asamses. Awakening to the sound of cowbells in the
morning. Seven hundred-year-old towns with well preserved perimeter walls and ramparts. Superb and inexpensive dining on native dishes that may include trout from alpine streams or chamois, an alpine antelope. Church graveyards that look as if they
are maintained by skilled Japanese gardeners. Immaculate villages. Verdant rolling pasturelands. Nine years ago, we stayed in a family owned inn in a small farming village called Hohenfurch. Our immaculate room, with bath, refrigerator, sink, two burner
stove, king sized bed, dining table and chairs and furnished private balcony cost $36.00 a night and included a generous breakfast of meats, cheeses, breads and superb coffee. The inn's dining room featured Bavarian specialties, (including that
antelope) as well as trout taken from a lovely but frigid alpine stream that flows through the center of the village to the river Lechs about a quarter of a mile away. On the weekend, the restaurant featured live Bavarian music provided by locals in a
wonderfully relaxed and informal atmosphere. No one in the place spoke English! We spoke no German, but we had no difficulty in communicating our needs. When we arrived, for example, the place was locked up tight. The only evidence of life was a pair of cats drinking milk from a pail near the kitchen. I finally got someone's attention through a kitchen window, was directed to the front entrance by hand signals, presented a copy of my letter requesting a reservation and was led to our delightful room. We discovered later that Hohenfurch caters to German skiers in winter but rarely sees American tourists, if ever. The hotel is the Landgasthof Schonach-Hof. The village is small but charming. A trout laden alpine stream and lush lawns and most attractive homes with lovely gardens and windowboxes laden with geraniums or petunias border its one main street.
The village church is typical of the region; austere from the outside with red roof, stuccoed walls that set off a mural of a religious figure and no stained glass windows. The interior is breath taking, as is the small graveyard beyond the church. St. Ursula's, a small chapel built in 1492, sits on a knoll amidst cow pastures just to the south of the inn. The village has a small grocery store and bakery and despite the name Bahnhofstrasse (Railroad Station Street), no train station. The entire
Pfaffenwinkel area is criss-crossed with hiking trails, all of which offer superb views. Hiking routes appear in the Pfaffenwinkel brochure. Hohenfurch is situated on Route B17, the German Romantic Road, so named because it courses through a number of charming, delightful, historic towns and villages from Wurzburg in the north, through Rothenburg o.d. Tauber, Augsberg, Landsberg (where Hitler wrote "Mein Kampf" while imprisoned there), Hohenfurch, Schongau and Fussen. Drive to the
Wieskirche near Steingaden, about 12 miles from Hohenfurch to see the epitome of rococo artistry. Drive 10 miles to Rottenbuch and visit another rococo masterpiece, the parish church; (you'll see its bell tower from the road). Drive to Peiting
about 8 miles from Hohenfurch ascend Hohe Peissenberg and get a stunning view of the Alps and eleven alpine lakes. Drive to Schongau, only 3 miles from Hohenfurch, have a meal at the Alte Post Inn, then walk the 700-year-old ramparts that encircle
part of the town. Drive 25 miles south to Schwangau and visit mad King Ludwig's fairy tale castle, Neuschwanstein. Visit his more sedate castle Hohenschwangau in the same village. Take the Tegelberg cable railway to view the German and Austrian Alps. Drive a bit further to Oberammergau. Many of the residents will remind you of New Testament figures. A Passion Play is staged in Oberammergau every ten years (next in 2000) and the citizenry make up the play's cast. Oberammergau, while famous for its Passion Play, is equally famous for its huge population of wood carvers and for the murals on the exterior walls of most of its homes and shops. Great place for souvenir hunting! Don't even think of driving to Munich! While it's only about 40 to 45 miles from Hohenfurch, there's no place to park once you get there. Drive to Herrsching on the Ammersee (it's about 35 miles northeast of Hohenfurch). . Make a detour just before Herrsching. Stop in Andechs and sample the beer! It is one of the world's premiere beers, brewed in the monastery in Andechs and available in Andechs and no where else! Sidetrack to the
Starnberger See, the lake where Ludwig, the mad king drowned. Accident, suicide, assassination? No one knows. Back track to Herrsching. Park the car at the train station and ride the train to Munich. Munich's train station is ideally located. Get a city
map and list of events from the tourist office at the station. It's located opposite Track 11. Exit the station and walk the long and
wide pedestrian promenade (Neuhauserstrasse) to the Marienplatz and the impressive Gothic style town hall built at the turn of the century. Pass sidewalk cafes, formal restaurants, beer halls, fashionable boutiques and department stores on the way. Stop
at "Augustiner" at 16 Neuhauserstrasse for lunch and the best beer in Munich. Eat and drink in the beer garden to the rear or at the sidewalk café in the front. Look for signs between the "new" Gothic town hall and the "old" 14th Century town hall that
point the way to the "Viktualienmarkt" an open air market laden with fresh flowers, vegetables and meats. At the new town hall at 11 AM, noon, 5 and 9 PM, a glockenspiel, with dancers and jousting knights on a merry-go-round perform for delighted
tourists and children. Come back another day and visit two superb art museums or the fascinating science and technology museum (Deutsches Museum). Visit the Residenz, an impressive palace not far from the new town hall. Visit Dachau, about 10
miles north of Munich and approachable by train from Munich's station. Visit the town of Dachau, as well as the concentration camp. Dachau was once the Bavarian center for the arts, subsequently surpassed by Munich. Do check out the 16th Century
castle in the old part of the town.

Please e-mail me the information on the Burghotel Falkenstein, my husband and I will be in the area and would love a recommendation on a great place to stay.

Both are beautiful. To me, there are more tourist "sights" to see in Germany with the castles. The Bavarians are very friendly and the area is affordable. I don't think I've seen anything more beautiful than the two days we spent hiking above Interlaken, Switzerland, though. We took the train up to Wengen, then cable car and hiking below the Eiger. Next day cable car above Grindelwald and walked down through June fields of wildflowers that I couldn't believe were real. The Swiss were very friendly. The food and lodging was expensive. Grindelwald was full of Japanese tourists. But then we got back to our balcony view of the mountains with the cow bells tinkling in the hills and we forgot any negatives in the beauty.

i also have stayed at the burghotel falkenstein, in pfronten, germany which is about 20 minutes or so from the famous castles in fussen. i was there in aprill 1999 and absolutely fell in love with the hotel. the ride up to the hotel is a bit hairy, but it is well worth the adventure....it was snowing on our drive up the mountain (we woke up to a foot of fresh snow) and it was spectacular. toni was a wonderful host!

Lynn, I will try to answer your question <BR>as you asked it. Given 5 days, I would <BR>drive from Nice up to Lake Orta for a <BR>nite, then over thru Lugano to Lake Como <BR>and stay at Mennagio. From there, take <BR>the road up thru San Moritz and the <BR>beautiful Engadine valley and up to Landeck Austria. Now you have an option. <BR>You can enjoy the castle country from <BR>either Reutte, Austria or from the fairy tale village of Oberammagau. You <BR>are now 2.5 hours from the Munich airport---you may want to stay in Erding only :10 from the airport your last nite. So you see, the best choice <BR>and most enjoyable route will let you <BR>enjoy the Alps, the castles of Bavaria, <BR>and will throw in the best of the Italy <BR>Lakes as a bonus. Let me know if you need help on hotels in these areas.

One very strong vote for the Swiss mountains. <BR> <BR>You'll find http://twenj.com/swissvisit.htm helpful. <BR> <BR>If you decide on Germany see http://twenj.com/bavaria.htm <BR> <BR>Ed