Fly into Munich or Frankfurt?
Jul 26th, 2013, 09:34 AM
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Fly into Munich or Frankfurt?
My husband and I are planning a trip to Germany in September to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversay. We are interested in seeing beautiful Alpine scenery, cruising down the Rhine, touring a castle (Herrenchiemsee or Linderhof ), visiting churches, eating delicious cuisine, & biking (non-strenuous). We have 20 days (including travel days). I am on over-load and still haven't finalized anything. Should we fly into Frankfurt, do the Romantic Road by car, and then do Munich, Hallstatt, and end the trip flying out of Vienna.......or........fly round-trip into Munich, making side trips only in the south of Germany? Any ideas for flights or itinerary help would be greatly appreciated.
Jul 26th, 2013, 09:41 AM
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Fly into Frankfurt, take your Rhine cruise, then rent a car to the locations you want to visit outside Frankfurt and Munich, including the Austrian Tyrol, return your car in Munich, spend a few days in that city and take your return flight from there. No need to go to Vienna unless you want it to be a destination.
Jul 26th, 2013, 09:59 AM
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Thank you Michael. The Rhine cruise is a priority, so it makes sense to fly into Frankfurt. Is it a better idea to fly from Frankfurt to Munich (missing the Romantic Road but giving us more time in Tyrol, Munich, & Hallstatt)?
Jul 26th, 2013, 11:20 AM
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From Frankfurt (or wherever the cruise ends) I would drive and stop by Würzburg to visit the Residenz at a minimum, and then see Rothenburg and whatever other location that guidebooks mention on the way to the Bavarian Alps that attracts your interest.
Jul 26th, 2013, 02:30 PM
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And remember the Oktoberfest starts in Munich on Sep 20 so it will be expensive to get a hotel in Munich from 15 Sep on...
Another place to consider between Frankfurt and Munich is Bamberg.
Have a safe trip...
Another place to consider between Frankfurt and Munich is Bamberg.
Have a safe trip...
Jul 26th, 2013, 03:20 PM
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I was just going to mention Oktoberfest. We flew in and out of Frankfurt last Oktoberfest we attended because Munich flights were so expensive. We did the romantic road on our way to Garmisch and used that as our base. Coming back we stayed two nights in Rothenburg and last night in Frankfurt. We just did day trips to Munich. Train or bus is great after a day in the tents.
Jul 26th, 2013, 04:31 PM
#7
Why rent a car if you are flying into Frankfurt and then taking a Rhine cruise? You certainly won't need a car in Frankfurt.
As to that cruise, are you aware of where they start and stop? Are you thinking you are going to take something that has at least one overnight or more?
You can probably easily get from wherever to Munich by rail and AFTER leaving Munich is when you'll really need the car although you can even do Herrenchiemsee by rail if you have to.
As to that cruise, are you aware of where they start and stop? Are you thinking you are going to take something that has at least one overnight or more?
You can probably easily get from wherever to Munich by rail and AFTER leaving Munich is when you'll really need the car although you can even do Herrenchiemsee by rail if you have to.
Jul 28th, 2013, 12:07 PM
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I thought we’d do the scenic 1 hour St. Goar – Bacharch cruise on the Rhine and a short cruise on the Mosel with a trip to the Burg Eltz. I don’t know the logistics yet.
1. If we take the train to the Rhine from the airport in Frankfurt, which town would be a good base?
2.I hadn't thought about Wurzburg, but we should include that. If we go to Bamberg from Wurzburg (instead of Rothenburg) we would miss the Romantic Road portion. Would that be unadvisable?
1. If we take the train to the Rhine from the airport in Frankfurt, which town would be a good base?
2.I hadn't thought about Wurzburg, but we should include that. If we go to Bamberg from Wurzburg (instead of Rothenburg) we would miss the Romantic Road portion. Would that be unadvisable?
Jul 28th, 2013, 04:19 PM
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After working on our trip all day again, I am thinking of flying into Frankfurt, taking the train to the Mosel Valley (3-4 days stay), train to Wurzburg and Bamberg (stay 3 days), train to Augsburg, rent a car there and drive the last third of the Romantic Road from Augsburg to Fussen (stay 3-4 days), drive to Munich (stay 4 days), drive to Hallstatt (stay 2 days), return car in Germany, take the train to Vienna (3 days), and fly out of Vienna. It's taken me forever to get this basic skeletal trip down....Any helpful thoughts or ideas would be appreciated!
Jul 28th, 2013, 11:32 PM
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musictub, here are a few suggestions/options.
Bamberg is only 1 1/2 hours or so from Rothenburg so you could pick up the car when you leave Bamberg (instead of "training" to Augsburg to pick up the car) and drop by Rothenburg for a short visit before heading south on the Romantic Road to Fussen. You could even take one of the Fussen days and overnight in Rothenburg. To save backtracking when you leave Fussen, drive from Fussen to Hallstatt then to Munich. You won't need the car in Munich so ditch it as quick as you get unloaded at the hotel.
Then catch the train from Munich to Vienna. This route will save you on the order of 4-5 hours of driving and a few days of car rental costs.
Have a good trip!!!
Bamberg is only 1 1/2 hours or so from Rothenburg so you could pick up the car when you leave Bamberg (instead of "training" to Augsburg to pick up the car) and drop by Rothenburg for a short visit before heading south on the Romantic Road to Fussen. You could even take one of the Fussen days and overnight in Rothenburg. To save backtracking when you leave Fussen, drive from Fussen to Hallstatt then to Munich. You won't need the car in Munich so ditch it as quick as you get unloaded at the hotel.
Then catch the train from Munich to Vienna. This route will save you on the order of 4-5 hours of driving and a few days of car rental costs.
Have a good trip!!!
Jul 29th, 2013, 05:09 AM
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Wow. That's a great idea Travelforbeer! Will do, thanks. Today I'll work on airfares and exact dates (We have any 20 days to work with, including travel days). Then I'll look at hotel options. We only like staying at local, non-touristy places to really get a feel for the area and people.
Jul 29th, 2013, 05:34 AM
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http://www.spaetzle-schwob.de/index_eng.html my favorite place to stay and eat in Rothenburg. Not super fancy but inside the walls. She moved her car for us to park in front. The food was so good.
Jul 29th, 2013, 12:18 PM
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For some of the sweetest biking in Europe head to Cochem on the gorgeous Mosel River - a river many find more beautiful even than the Rhine Gorge (Koblenz-Bingen/Rudesheim - the nicest part by far of the busy Rhine - Germans call the Rhine the Father Rhine - mighty powerful - lots of heavy freighters, etc and they call the Mosel the Mother Mosel - a languide (damned up) river sinuously twisting snake-like thru deep deep gorges - slopes on each side of the river going up hundreds of feet with any southward facing part carpeted with vineyards - in one of the most far-north vinticulutre areas in Europe (the dark slate of the slopes helps keep the vines protected from harsh wintets - anyway nice bike paths hug the river - hotels may have bikes or you can easily rent them and say cycle from Cochem downstream to Moelkern - walk up a few miles thru lovely forests to Burg Eltz, one of Germany's most famous castles - biking the Mosel is certainly far nicer than doing the Rhine, which also have riverside bike paths.
Cochem and its area in photos:
q=cochem+germany+pictures&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=un iv&sa=X&ei=2s32UYH0HYWQyQHOloHgAw&ved=0CDcQsAQ&biw =1600&bih=1075
Cochem and its area in photos:
q=cochem+germany+pictures&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=un iv&sa=X&ei=2s32UYH0HYWQyQHOloHgAw&ved=0CDcQsAQ&biw =1600&bih=1075
Jul 29th, 2013, 12:19 PM
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Jul 30th, 2013, 12:18 PM
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This will be a wonderful trip. Our first trip to Europe in 1996 was very similar to this. We spent time in Cochem, the Mosel River Valley, Romantic Road, Munich, Salzburg, etc. We had a VCR tape of this region and followed it almost exactly. I will try to find the name of that program and see if it is still available. It was a perfect resource for this region of Germany and Austria.
This was our first trip and no trip afterwards has been as magical. We stayed in small guest houses or small hotels along the way. We did not have reservations except in Munich. I still have such fond memories of this trip.
This was our first trip and no trip afterwards has been as magical. We stayed in small guest houses or small hotels along the way. We did not have reservations except in Munich. I still have such fond memories of this trip.
Jul 31st, 2013, 12:43 PM
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Lynda, I am pleased that you enjoyed your trip to Germany so much. I am only looking for small guest houses to really get a feel for the area, but am too nervous not to make reservations in advance. Your way sounds more flexible.
We've decided to avoid Oktoberfest and do the Mosel Valley at the end of the trip. I saw that Castle Liebenstein has a romantic dinner option. That might be a good idea for our anniversary celebration dinner! Anyone ever stay there?
We've decided to avoid Oktoberfest and do the Mosel Valley at the end of the trip. I saw that Castle Liebenstein has a romantic dinner option. That might be a good idea for our anniversary celebration dinner! Anyone ever stay there?
