Help with Germany Itinerary
 

We have 12 days total. 2 days set aside for air travel, 2 days in Hamburg and 2 days in Berlin for World Cup 2006 leaves us with 6 days to see as much of Germany as possible. I think we are trying to plan too much but it is really difficult to narrow down such wonderful sights. Any recommendations for Days 6-11 would be appreciated.

Day 1 Fly
Day 2 Hamburg
Day 3 Hamburg – WC
Day 4 Berlin – WC
Day 5 Berlin
Day 6 Frankfurt/Heidelberg
Day 7 Rothenburg
Day 8 Fussen
Day 9 Garmisch/Munich
Day 10 Salzburg
Day 11 Munich
Day 12 Fly

Is this doable? If so, when do you recommend a train and when do you recommend we rent a car? I have read a lot of posts on this board and have found them to be very helpful. Thanks!

I would suggest the following:

Take the train between Hamburg and Berlin. While at € 55.- per person this is not a cheap option, it is a fast one. Travel time is 90 minutes with the ICE train.
Slightly cheaper at € 45.- the IC trains take about 2 hours.

I'd then fly out of Berlin and into Frankfurt. Check domestic carrier

http://www.flydba.com

Fares range from € 35.- and up for the one-way-trip.

From Frankfurt, I'd drive the rest of the trip.

hi there,
sorry, You have to skip something. Going from Berlin to Frankfurt/Heidelberg in one day, You will just travel and not see anyhting. How are You travelling? By car? So go first to Rothenburg. Or skip this also and go:
Berlin - Quedlinburg - Bamberg - Munich

It is too much. Even goinig first to Fuessen, than to Munich, then to Salzburg (not realy worth) and back to Munich will be a few way double.

have fun
Gar

You are trying to do too much in a short time.

Why not just concentrate on the area between Berlin and Frankfurt? This is doable in six days if you take rental car:

Days 1 and 2: Berlin to Wernigerode/Quedlinburg and Goslar/Braunlage

Day 3: Marburg

Day 4 and 5: Moselle valley with base in Bernkastel-Kues

Day 6: the Rhine from Bacharach (you can easily cut across country from Bernkastel to Bacharach, saving a lot of driving) to Mainz - and then to Frankfurt for your flight.

Harzer

Or how about something like this (which we did 20 years ago).

Days 1..6, Hamburg and Berlin as planned

Days 7,8,9. Stay in Nurenberg, Bamberg, or Rothenberg, take day trips to the others, see the Danube, hike in the Bayerisher Wald.

Days 10,11,12. Stay in Munich, day trips to Salzburg, Garmish-Partinkirchen, etc, leave from Munich.

ragdoll,

from what I seem to recall from your other posts, the visit to Hamburg is required for seeing the World Cup Games (do look forward to that - Hamburg's stadium is great!).

I happen to disagree with posters suggesting you skip something. If you train it from Hamburg to Berlin and fly between Berlin and Frankfurt, this is feasible.
It might be worthwhile to ask whether Frankfurt is mandatory for you as there isn't that much to see - and it might indeed be more interesting to include a stopover in Dresden on your way (by car) from Berlin to Munich.

If Frankfurt is a must in your itinerary, then skip Salzburg or Garmisch as the days at the end of your trip appear to be a bit crowded. Still nothing unmanageable here. Distances in Germany in general are not that big - and the driving is fast!

HSV, I like your way of thinking. Frankfurt is not a must. We slipped it in there because we thought it would be the most convenient place to get from Berlin and rent a car. I really don't want to miss Heidelberg though. I also like the previous poster's suggestion to stay in Bamburg and Munich and just do day trips. Thanks again for your feedback.

We are also trying to drive from Munich to Berlin in one day in July. I know the route will be crowded due to tourist/World Cup traffic. Please advise if we should reserve 1 night's stay in between. Thanks

Hiestand,

I don't think an overnight stop is mandatory between Munich and Berlin. You are looking at a distance of about 360 miles. The A 9 leading North has been widened over the last years and allows for sufficiently fast progress. I guess you should expect a driving time somewhere between 5 and 6.5 hours max.