Hello ,

I am just in the early phase of planning a trip to Germany/France for October 2019. It will be for hubby and me . We have been to Europe before but not to any of the places I have selected here - please critique.

We are interested in scenery, we love to walk/hike and are foodies . I am not sure at what point we need to rent a car ....

Day 1 Arrive in Munich - night in Munich
Day 2 Munich daytrip to Dachau - night in Munich
Day 3 train to Garmisch - night in Garmisch
day 4 day trip to Zugspitze - night in Garmisch
Day 5 day trip to Oberammergau - night in Garmisch
Day 6 day trip to Linderhof Palace, Ettal - night in Garmisch
Day 7 visit Neuschwanstein - night in Garmisch
Day 8 from Garmisch to Konstanz - night in Konstanz
Day 9 Konstanz
Day 10 Move from Konstanz to Colmar - stay in Colmar

Day 11 daytrip to Obernai - stay in Colmar
Day 12 daytrip to Riquewihr and Ribeauville stay in Colmar
Day 13 to Strasbourg - night in Strasbourg
Day 14 Strasbourg
Day 15 - to Frankfurt - night in Frankfurt
Day 16 Fly home from Frankfurt




O

Can't help much with the German part, but I'd stay in Obernai instead of Colmar for the Alsace part.

You won't need to rent a car for any of those but you may want to to set your own pace and stop by other places but trains and buses will get you all those places -if trains and buses in Bavaria use the bargain Bavarian Pass good for both of you for unlimited rides on regional trains and buses for the whole day throughout Bavaria - buy that at any train station like in Garmisch - Konstanz is just a little out of coverage so buy a supplemental ticket.

Konstanz-Colmar go to www.bahn.de/en - German Railways site and book early to snatch nice discounted fares. Ditto for Strasbourg to Frankfurt - www.seat61.com has tons of great advice on booking own trains online (Bavarian Pass - no booking just hop any regional train or bus) - general info trains and what to expect like first v 2nd class - BETS-European Rail Experts and www.ricksteves.com. A car would be especially nice in Colmar area for those day trips as poorly served by buses or trains.

Thank you . We were thinking about renting a car but I am not sure how driving would be in Germany. I would be the navigator and DH would have to drive. We did drive in Tuscany last year and it was much easier than I imagined it to be.

Any suggestions for locations I may be missing in the area?

Driving in Germany is easy. Much easier than Tuscany. A car would be nice for your stay in Garmisch,Lake Constance and Colmar.
You might do this:
Day 1 Arrive in Munich - night in Munich
Day 2 Munich daytrip to Dachau - night in Munich
Day 3 Munich. Much more to see in Munich or a day trip to Salzburg via train.- night in Munich
Day 4 Rent a car. Drive to Garmisch. En route you could see all or most of Oberammergau, Ettal, and Linderhof- night in Garmisch
Day 5 Zugspitze- night in Garmisch
Day 6 Day trip to kings castles Neuschwanstein and perhaps Hohenschwangau. En route back to Garmisch stop to see Wieskirche. - night in Garmisch
Day 7 Visit Mittenwald and Garmisch, a hike?- night in Garmisch
Day 8 from Garmisch to Konstanz - night in Konstanz (consider Meersburg or Lindau)
Day 9 Konstanz(consider Meersburg or Lindau)
Day 10 Drive Konstanz to Colmar - stay in Colmar
Day 11 Day trip to Obernai and Haut Koenigsbourg - stay in Colmar
Day 12 Day trip to Riquewihr and Ribeauville(Eguisheim and/or Kaysersberg if time permits) stay in Colmar
Day 13 Drive to Offenburg (en routevpossibly meandering through the Black Forest area, might stop in Gengenbach). Turn in car. Take 30 min train to Strasbourg - night in Strasbourg
Day 14 Strasbourg
Day 15 - Train to Frankfurt - night in Frankfurt
Day 16 Fly home from Frankfurt

dugi_otok thank you for your suggestions - much more thoughtful than my original itinerary. Looking at making changes now.

Yes dugi's looks great and car makes it all the nicer. return car in Germany to avoid potentially steep drop-off charges for returning in France.

I'm with dugi - there is no place easier to drive than Germany and it will is the best way to travel your mountainous routing and through Alsace.

I also agree with Meersburg over Konstanz.

You can drop the car in Offenburg and its a hop skip and jump back to Strasbourg.

Thank you all for your great suggestions- reworking my itinerary and doing a little more research.

Hi NE,

Oh dear. I have to disagree (strongly) with dugi_otok and Adam is. Ok, I agree that driving in Germany is not a problem, as far as skills go, but it is far FAR better (imo) to use public transport. I lived in Garmisch for 9 1/2 years without a car, and came to really love using trains and busses.

For one thing, it is lots more fun. No one has to be watching road signs and traffic and traffic lights and speed limits, and no one has to have a nose glued to the maps. Everyone gets to enjoy the scenery out the window ...or for longer trips, everyone gets to read, play puzzles or games, nap, or enjoy a snack or a glass of wine from the bistro car. Also, it is prime people-watching time, as you'll have a very nice view into the society and culture (how folks interact with the bus driver, how teens on the train treat elderly couples, how families travel together, etc). You may even be able to have a nice conversation with a traveller who wants to practise his/her English. There are all kinds of wonders available if you are not shut up inside your private bubble.

Your hosts will give you a visitor's card, which will make the town busses as well as the RVO busses free. That means you will travel for free to Füssen and Hohenschwangau, to Oberammergau, and to Linderhof.

Finally, of course, it's better for the environment if you use public transport. In many parts of the world, that's not a viable choice, but it certainly is here in Bavaria. The trains and busses run often, connections work well, and of course it's cheaper for you. It just seems like a no-brainer that if someone can easily reduce his/her carbon footprint for even a few days, it's the thing to do.

Have fun as you plan!

s

We are at the last few days of a month-long trip through France and Germany, including the Mosel River Valley and the Alsace wine route.

We had a rental car for the first three weeks, and while we have made many other past trips in Europe using public transportation (and I agree with the observations regarding the many good reasons to do so), we were glad we had a car for this adventure. Having the car allowed us so much flexibility - to follow a back road on a whim to a place we might never have seen, to fit in many more sights than would have been possible if we had had to follow a bus or train schedule, and to stay in rented cottages and gites in smaller villages..

Driving was easy - like you, my husband was driver and I the navigator. We found driving in Germany much easier than past experiences in the UK and in Spain. We had a car with a GPS, and it was a life-saver many times. We got off the route we planned more than once - that’s for sure - and our GPS steered us back every time.

We we are in Paris now - the final five days of this wonderful sojourn, and we dropped the car off yesterday in Dijon to take the train here. No reason to have a car in the city!

For OP's ambitious plans a car would be best and like scdreamer says driving in rural areas is easy and on autobahns sans speed limits rather exciting for some. And yes return car in Dijon or Reims, etc and take train into Paris.

With Pal in it