Julie, <BR>The May 1998 Consumer Reports Travel Letter, a publication of Consumer Reports, has a great deal of information regarding weekly auto rentals in Europe. You should be able to find a copy in the library. All of the major rental companies have websites where you can get pertinent information. Check
www.europeandrive.com for Europcar and Alamo infor;
www.kemwel.com for Kemwel rentals;
www.autoeurope.com for Auto Europe. I've found that invariably Kemwel has offered the best rates. If you want to travel through Bavaria and possibly France or Austria, why fly into Berlin; why not Munich? <BR> Here are some ideas regarding Bavaria that may be of interest to you: <BR>Nine years ago, we stayed in a family owned inn in a small farming village called Hohenfurch. Our huge, 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. It was the most expensive room in the inn. The inn's dining room featured Bavarian specialties, 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. <BR> <BR>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, operated by the Haslach family. The address is Kapellenstrasse 22, D-8928 Hohenfurch; telephone: 08861/4108. <BR> <BR>The village is small but charming. You'll awaken to the sound of cowbells every morning. 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. One would think the gravesites were tended by a Japanese gardener. 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. <BR> <BR>The entire Pfaffenwinkel area is criss-crossed with hiking trails, all of which offer superb views. Hiking routes appear in the Pfaffenwinkel brochure. <BR> <BR>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. <BR> <BR>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. <BR> <BR>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. <BR> <BR>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! <BR> <BR>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. <BR> <BR>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 take the train to Munich to sightsee. <BR>If you'd like some ideas for driving through Austria or eastern France, (wine country), Email me directly.