bryan

I will have 2 extra days on a business trip to spend near Frankfurt (Saturday / Sunday with return to Frankfurt on Monday in mid-March). Interested in visit to Rothenburg and Schloss Neuschwanstein castle near Schwangau. If anybody could provide opinion / assistance on the following it would be greatly appreciated:
1. Is such option reasonable to pursue from time perspective or is it too far to go from Frankfurt in that short time frame?
2. Can travel be achieved by train to Rothenburg and on to Schwangau?
3. If not, any suggestions on good alternative for highlights on Romantic Road in this time frame.

Thanks for any suggestions!

rhkkmk

you may be able to get near rothenberg with the train but not into town i do not believe....you will love it...stay there for 2 days and relax.... as i remember its about a 2+ hour drive from the airport..

the castle is way in the south, south west of munich...i think it would be too far..

have you thought about a short term car rental....it would be worthwhile...

heidleberg is doable as well

Dutch

your two days would be eaten up with travel if you tried to see both Rothenburg and Neuschwanstein. I would stick to Rothenburg for a night and maybe Wurzburg for a night. Both are easy to do by train or car.

Janine

You can take The Romantic Road bus from Frankfurt to Fussen (near Neuschwanstein) via Rothenburg. It takes a full day (about 12 hours altogether, I think) and stops to set up and pick down in many other towns along the way. With only 2 days however, I think it is probably too much to accomplish. Maybe if you were driving yourself?? and didn't get stuck in traffic??? but I still think it would be a rush, which would be a shame. Both well worth a visit.

xxxx

Yes, you can take the train from Frankfurt to Rothenburg. There is one train change involved--I forget where, but it is a very small station and not a difficult change. The train station in Rothenburg is outside the city walls. Depending on where you are staying and how much luggage you have, it could either be walked or taxi-ed.

RufusTFirefly

Driving: It's about a 4-1/2 hour drive from FRA to Hohenschwangau where the castles are. You could start out early Saturday AM and be in Hohenschwangau easily by lunchtime. It is possible to see both castles in one afternoon. Then Sunday morning you could drive up the Romantic Road, spend a few hours in Rothenburg and return to Frankfurt that evening. Or you could drive to someplace like Augsburg Saturday evening to get a head start. Rothenburg is about a 2 hour drive from Frankfurt. If you like to drive, it would be fine. If you don't like to drive, then I wouldn't do it.

I guess you might even be able to leave Friday afternoon or evening and overnight in or near Rothenburg--see Rothenburg Saturday morning and then drive Saturday to Hohenschwangau.

You might also consider visiting Wuertzburg and/or Bamberg. Both easily reachable by train from Frankfurt. Bamberg is one of my favorite cities in Europe--well-preserved and not overly touristed. If you wanted to drive to Bamberg, it's about 2-1/2 hours east. Wuertzburg would be on the way.

Russ

Neuschwanstein is too far for your time (and not an especially worthwhile tour, either.) Rothenburg is about 2.5 hours from Frankfurt by train, usually with changes in Würzburg and Steinach, a small town near R'burg. Dutch's suggestion is a good one. The Residenz in Würzburg is eye-popping and definitely worth a visit.

Another option would be a trip to the Rhine Gorge, slightly closer to Frankfurt to the northwest. Between Bingen and Koblenz, the vineyard-castle scenery is spectacular - there may even be a few blossoms out when you're there - and the towns along the west bank make for good strolling. Bacharach, Oberwesel, St. Goar and Boppard are idyllic little towns peppered with remnants of the old town walls, scenic trails winding up the cliffsides, and even some Roman ruins here and there (all have train stations along the same line.) I would be tempted to spend Saturday in the west bank towns, then head to Koblenz on Sunday, train south a few miles to Braubach for a tour of Marksburg Castle ( www.roadstoruins.com/marksburg.htm ), then head back down the river route along the east bank to Rüdesheim and on to Frankfurt.

RufusTFirefly

It's partly personal taste, but I'd disagree that Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau are not worthwhile.

First, from a purely aesthetic/scenic viewpoint, the setting of the two castles is absolutely gorgeous. Second the story of the "Mad King" is very interesting, and the Hohenschwangau/Neuschwanstein backdrop is a stunning one for this bit of history. And in a larger historical sense, the historical context of the fabulous wealth and power that the European ruling class had provides a base for understanding the upheavels that Europe suffered for the better part of its post-medieval history.

I had a history professor tell me once that once you've seen the opulence of Versailles, you understand why the French revolution was inevitable. Similarly, actually seeing these and others of Ludwig's castles and palaces really punctuates the history one reads in books.

But it is largely a matter of personal interest and taste.

Russ

I agree in part, Rufus. The setting for N'stein is surely one of the most awesome sights in Europe. I think if bryan is within 50 miles of N'stein for some other reason, it is worth driving to within eyeshot, at least. But to travel nearly 10 hours in bryan's time frame for a 45-minute tour (in marginally intelligible English) of a castle that was built only a century or so ago and was hardly ever used (except for tourism) just seems goofy to me, especially when interesting alternatives much nearer to Frankfurt are available. But I suppose if bryan would rather spend his limited time on the highway than exploring Germany up close, he should do just that.

RufusTFirefly

Russ--people do some mighty strange things for enjoyment.

bryan

Thanks to all for very informative and quick response to my inquiry. For the length of time it will take to get to the castles at Neuschwanstein / Schwangau I will most surely not attempt to go that far and will focus on Rothenburg and / or other closer destinations - possibly the Rhine area.