Germany/Austria Trip Question (Hesse vs Salzburg?)
 

Hi all,

I've settled on a rough itinerary for a late November and early December trip to Germany with a side trip to Salzburg. I was looking for some input from some people who have spent time in these areas as to what I've missed or if anything looks rushed. We plan on doing day trips from some of the towns we are making longer stays in.

Fly into Frankfurt (9:30 am on 11/27)
2 nights in Wuerzburg
3 nights in Nuernberg
2 nights in Regensburg
3 nights in Salzburg
1 night in Muenchen
Fly out of Muenchen 12/08



I am torn because I am thinking about dropping the three nights in Salzburg and spending that time in the Odenwald or north of Frankfurt in the Marburg/Fritzlar/Coburg area. I really do not want to feel rushed and I feel like this area has a lot to offer, but Salzburg does too. So I'm not sure whether to leave the itinerary as is or not. I've been to Germany before (mainly Bayern and the east German states). Hesse and points north will be new to me. We're interested in history, spending time walking and exploring the restaurants and beer spots (Christmas Markets as well). Is anyone familiar with that area north and east of Frankfurt and would it rival the Salzburg portion as far as things to do? Muenchen has been mostly left off other than for convenience the night before we fly out just because I've been there before and am hoping to focus on other areas.

Thank you all in advance!

I would try the new parts of Germany that you have not visited. We are doing that in May. We sort of get in a rut seeing the familiar. I am afraid I will not like it as much but what the heck.

You are aware that you are going at a time when days are at their shortest, the sky is grey and the weather terrible, right?

Not sure how Coburg slipped in here it is nowhere near the other two. Anyway you are spending five days in Franconia (Würzburg/Nuremberg) and the hotel change looks pretty superfluous to me. And arguably the hotel change to Regensburg is also unnecessary because it is a doable day trip from Nuremberg.
Should you do Hesse? Well, in winter I always prefer to stay in larger cities to have their museums to fall back on in the case of outright terrible weather. Frankfurt is just fine for that, Kassel theoretically, too, even though it obviously is best experienced in summer with the water games. Generally the northern part of Hesse is otherwise comprised of very small towns which are awesome in summer and like most of neighbouring Central Germany completely overlooked by clueless international tourists - but not necessarily my first choice in winter. Small towns are not really a romantic destination in bad and grey weather.

I didn't necessarily want to explore Regensburg with the time constraints of a day trip. I'd rather be there for two nights and if that's a little much do day trips from there to points further east. We'll be visiting from a part of the world that frequently experiences meters of snow and -30 degree temperatures in December so I'm not too put off by some less than great weather, though rain is less ideal than snow in my mind. I think by and large we prefer visiting smaller towns, but point taken regarding being stuck indoors without many options. It sounds like if anything Wuerzburg and Nuernberg can be combined and maybe a couple days given further north. Thanks for the info!

Have you been to Salzburg? I liked it a lot when we spent four nights there with day trips to Koenigsee and Wolfgangsee. This was in late Sept/early Oct 2018 when the weather was exceptionally warm and sunny except for one day. So probably quite different to a late Oct/early Nov trip.

We also spent three nights in Regensburg which I also loved. Two whole days gave us time to stroll around town in a leisurely way. Some people might prefer to condense it into one busy day but I like the relaxed approach.

One day I’d like to visit both Wuerzburg and Nuernburg which I haven’t seen yet.

Any recommendations for things to not miss while in Regensburg? I'm pretty excited for that leg of the trip.
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I actually have been to Salzburg once before in the summer, so different vibe I'm sure this time around. The Christmas markets will be going on so that would be the big draw if we keep it on the intinerary.

My remarks about the weather don't necessarily target snow and cold weather that is a common misperception about winter. I really mean the short days, grey skies without sun and possible rain. It is simply slightly depressing and picturesque small places feel much less so.
As for Hesse, its southern and middle part can be comfortably explored from Frankfurt on regional trains and day trips. You came up with Marburg, but Limburg, Seligenstadt, Büdingen and Gelnhausen are just some of your options - when the weather is nice. Only Fritzlar is more realistic from Kassel. Generally there are lots of historic small towns in the middle of Germany in Northern Hesse, Thuringia, southern Lower Saxony - hilariously the area most foreign tourists carefully circle around to see far less interesting places like the Upper Middle Rhine valley or the Black Forest - but again I'd make that rather a target of a trip from mid April to mid October.

I have been to Salzburg, not long enough to really enjoy it, though. Anything in particular in Regensburg that you recommend?

Thanks for the tips! Gelnhausen looks great, I'll check some of these towns out further. I also find myself wondering about the Black Forest obsession. I think it has a mythos due to foreign TV and books. To each their own, I guess.

I liked going inside all the very old churches, the history museum, crossing the bridge, walking around looking for the old towers, etc.