We have free frequent flyer seats that land in Munich June 11 and leave Paris July 3rd. We plan to spend several days in Munich area, then our next planned stop is SW France on June 21st. We're driving with teens who are good travelers who prefer meeting people to museums. What suggestions do you have for the week and half in between? Stay in one spot or move around. One other factor is that we might meet friends in Florence about June 15th for several days. We won't known the answer to that for several months.

First, if you'll be driving, let me recommend the Michelin Road Atlas - Europe,(ISBN 0 600 58919 6). It's an excellent atlas, extensively detailed. <BR><BR>The Bavarian area southwest of Munich is known both as the Allgau and more familiarly as &quot;Pfaffenwinkel&quot; which roughly translates as &quot;Priests Corner&quot; due to the number of magnificent Baroque monasteries and parish churches.<BR>If you'd like to see what type of scenery you'll encounter, take a look at:<BR>www.romanticroad.com/pfafsigh.htm<BR><BR>If you go to the following website, www.romanticroad.com/pfafroom.htm<BR>scroll down to the first hotel shown, the Landgasthof u. Cafe Schonach-Hof. I recommend it highly. <BR> <BR>Take a look at the following, as well. Scroll down to &quot;Panoramabild&quot;, click and then scroll about the photo.<BR>www.allgaeu-schwaben.com/sneuschwanstein.html<BR>Go also to: www.allgaeu-schwaben.com/view.html You see these wherever you travel in Upper Bavaria. They dominate the southern horizon. You'll also drive across or through them if you choose to visit Austria on the way to Florence. <BR><BR>Before dwelling on itineraries, let's talk a little about Bavarian accommodations. Almost every Bavarian village has one or more gasthausen. These are small inns, usually with 20 to 30 rooms at most and almost always family owned and operated. Any I've stayed in have been immaculately clean with good-sized rooms and private bath and an in house restaurant invariably featuring excellent regional cuisine at moderate prices. A number also have beer gardens, as well. All will include breakfast in their room costs. Breakfasts usually consist of cereals, yogurt, meats, cheeses, eggs, breads, fruit and coffee. Rates for these inns range between $50.00US and $65.00 per room, approximately 56 to 70 Euro. Since many of them cater to German skiers in winter months, you'll find rooms that can accommodate three or four people. Many also have kitchenettes as well. The little inn in Hohenfurch to which I refer in the Bavarian itineraries has such rooms. (Ask for the Pfaffenwinkel room.) You may find it ideal travelling with your children. The room had a refrigerator, two burner stove, sink, table and chairs and was indeed spacious<BR>To get an idea of the amenities of a typical gasthaus, check the following websites:<BR> <BR>www.steingaden.de/gasthof_ilgen.htm<BR><BR>www.steingaden.de/gasthof_lindenhof.htm<BR><BR>If you're interested in what to see and do in the area and three or four driving itineraries that pick out the highlights, ranging from 13 Alpine lakes, three castles, two magnificent Baroque churches, some charming small Alpine villages and Germany's tallest mountain, drop me an Email.

If you're planning to drive west from Bavaria to southern France via Lake Constance and Switzerland, you might consider a stay in the charming lakeside village of Meersburg from which you can take an interesting day trip. Here's a couple of websites for accommodations in Meersburg. Go first, to www.meersburg.de/baeren/index.htm The site's in German, but you can see photos of this ancient inn and its charming rooms. Prices range from $62.00 to $85.00 a night for a double. For information in English go to: www.karenbrown.com/germany/gasthofzumbarenFrom Meersburg, drive west along the shore of the Bodensee to Unteruhldingen. The town has a fascinating museum devoted to the prehistoric dwellers along the shore of the lake. In addition, there’s a recreation of a typical prehistoric village with its houses on stilts. From Unteruhldingen, turn north on a highly scenic road for about 4 miles to the village of Salem which is the home of an early 12th century Cistercian abbey, updated in the Baroque style in the 18th century. Part of the abbey has been rebuilt as a castle and has a truly imposing Kaisersaal (Emperor’s Hall) worth a visit. Continue on another 4 miles to Heiligenberg with its Renaissance castle that features the woodcarver’s skills in its ceiling and chapel interior. There’s also a stunning display of stained glass. Now, drive north about 2 ½ miles and turn right towards Wilhelmdorf continuing for about 15 miles just prior to Ravensburg. Follow signs to Weingarten, about 3 miles to the north of Ravensburg and visit the largest of Germany’s Baroque basilicas with its superb ceiling frescoes by Cosmar Asam, one of Germany’s foremost Baroque artisans. Take Rte B30 south to Ravensburg and the center of the town, the Marienplatz. The town square is surrounded by elegant and beautifully preserved medieval houses and commercial buildings such as the Leatherworkers Guildhouse (Lederhaus), Corn Exchange (Kornhaus) and the Weighing Office (Waaghaus). Look for the Mehlsack, a tower with 240 steps that affords a spectacular view over the Bodensee to the Alpine range beyond. Don’t make the effort of climbing the steps unless it’s a spectacularly clear day! From Ravensburg drive southwest on Rte B30 about 12 miles to Friedrichshaven. The city has little of historic interest since it was severely damaged in World War II however it has a shoreside promenade that offers some attractive views. From Friedrichshaven, drive east along the lakeshore for about 20 miles to Lindau, a charming small city situated on an island (accessible by causeway). Maximilianstrasse, the main street, is in the middle of the island and is highly picturesque with its old houses and inns. Drive along the southern shore of the island to the harbor (Hafen) and stop at the Romerschanze, a view point where you can see a good part of the German and Swiss Alpine range including Switzerland’s Santis and Altmann mountains and Germany’s Kanisfluh, the Hoher Freschen and the Drie Schwestern. You can then return to Meersburg along the northern shore of the Bodensee. <BR><BR>Bavarian itineraries have been Emailed to you. If you've any questions, feel free to Email me.

Gerry,<BR>Just want to reinforce one of my comments in the Email forwarded to you. You miss some of the delights of Europe when you restrict yourself to visiting and staying in cities. Since you're traveling with teenagers, give serious consideration to spending a night or two in one of the Bavarian villages. There is something unique about waking to the sound of cowbells and the lowing of cattle as they're being led to pasture; beats the sound of urban traffic hands down!

Thanks so much for your ideas. I don't think we'll go thw Swiss route because we might need to go to Florence. But, the other itineries seem really interesting. Even if we spend a few days in Innsbruck because of free hotel, we might have time to spend in a Bavaria guesthouse. I'm going to research the places you suggested and talk to my family. Thanks so much.

Hey, Wes! So glad you're feeling up to posting. <BR><BR>GB, Wes really knows his stuff. You can trust his recommendations fully.

You'll have a tough time &quot;going wrong&quot; if you explore the area between Munich and Lake Constance - it's an especially beautiful area of Bavaria. <BR><BR>Regarding accommodations... You say you're travelling with &quot;teens&quot; - who knows how many or how old, exactly - but with four or more, you'll be needing two rooms in most &quot;Gasth&auml;user&quot; or bed and breakfasts. A second option we have used is private vacation rentals, or &quot;Ferienwohnungen&quot;; there are many, many of these in southern Germany, usually administered through a local tourist office, that would provide you with plenty of room to spread out and relax and would permit you to all stay together. We rented a two bedroom place for our family of three a couple of years back in the town of Moos on the west end of Lake Constance, and that worked out very nicely. Most places are well furnished and can usually be rented for three days minimum; you'll find them in pretty much any town where Germans themselves vacation, as this is a popular option with families there. Most places are very reasonably priced - we paid less than $50/night for our two-bedroom place in Moos. I would suggest finding a village or two that would be central to your intended area of exploration and daytripping out from there. If interested, you can ontact the local tourist offices for a list of Ferienwohnungen (they usually have nice, glossy catalogs they'll send you for free) or check out the town's website; or, you can go to a commercial site like www.accommodation.de and see what's available by region (this site lists thousands.) There are some rentals located on farms as well - this is a quite popular way for farmers to supplement their incomes, especially in the area just north of Lake Konstanz, and might provide your teens an opportunity to interact with others a bit if the farmers, like most do, have families themselves.<BR><BR>If you're interested in any of this, you can e-mail me and I'll try to point you toward some web resources.<BR><BR>Russ

Yes, Russ, I am interested in web resources. We are family of 4 with two girls, ages, 14 and 18 years. Thanks

<BR>gb: This site has farm vacations in Bavaria: http://www.uadby.de/indexe.php<BR><BR>www.accommodation.de : search by region (select Bavaria within Germany, then hit &quot;go&quot;; then, look under &quot;Allg&auml;u&quot; and &quot;Upper Bavaria&quot; for the bulk of the region between Munich and Lake Constance (Don't click the map itself.)<BR><BR>www.bavariaben.com has all kinds of options.<BR><BR>All of these are in English. <BR><BR>You can also try a websearch with the terms &quot;Ferienwohnung&quot; and the name of the region or town you are looking into. Many towns have their own websites; you can try www.(name of town).de too, then look under &quot;Tourismus&quot; or &quot;Unterkunft&quot; (accommodations) to see what's available.<BR><BR>I have previously bookmarked some sites in German for Bavaria, but you'll probably want to look through the above options first; let me know (e-mail - I don't check this board all the time) if you need these or have other questions.<BR><BR>Russ