Wife and I planning a trip to Munich and drive around its surroundings for a week this Nov. Where should we venture to from Munich ? And how could we find charming and not-too-expensive places we can spend the night? Grateful for any recommendations?

If you go toward Fussen, you can stay right in the center of two of Ludwig's castles. We stayed at the Hotel Mueller a couple of years ago and it was reasonably priced and our room looked out over Neuswainstein castle (sp). You can take day trips from there to charming villages.<BR><BR>If you go toward Austria, the scenery is fabulous. If you have a week after Munich for touring, you might want to do both. ViaMichelin.com is a great distance planner so you can estimate how long a drive will take you. Just check to be sure passes are open. We were there in October one year and had to divert because of a closed road in the mountains.<BR><BR>Bed and breakfast places in Germany are a good choice.

Great tip on viamichelin.com! May be should clarify that we are looking also for 1 great place to stay - and to hell with the budget. Any ideas (see separate posting)??

Lawrence,<BR><BR>First, if you'll be driving, let me recommend the Michelin Tourist and Motoring Atlas for Germany, Benelux, Austria, Switzerland and Czech Republic (ISBN 2-06-100020-7). It's an excellent atlas, extensively detailed. The maps for Germany are at a scale of 1cm=3km, for Austria 1cm=4km. <BR>The Bavarian area southwest of Munich is known both as the Allgau and more familiarly as "Pfaffenwinkel" which roughly translates as "Priests Corner" due to the number of magnificent Baroque monasteries and parish churches.<BR>If you'd like to see what type of scenery you'll encounter, take a look at:<BR>www.romanticroad.com/pfafsigh.htm<BR><BR>If you go to the following website, www.romanticroad.com/pfafroom.htm<BR>scroll down to the first hotel shown, the Landgasthof u. Cafe Schonach-Hof. I recommend it highly. You'll find favorable comments from two visitors to whom I recommended it (one group with children) in the itineraries I can provide to you. <BR><BR>Take a look at the following, as well. Scroll down to "Panoramabild", click and then scroll about the photo.<BR>www.allgaeu-schwaben.com/sneuschwanstein.html<BR>Go also to: www.allgaeu-schwaben.com/view.html You see these wherever you travel in Upper Bavaria. They dominate the southern horizon. You'll also drive across or through them if you choose to visit Austria. <BR><BR>Before dwelling on itineraries, let's talk a little about Bavarian accommodations. Almost every Bavarian village has one or more gasthausen. These are small inns, usually with 20 to 30 rooms at most and almost always family owned and operated. Any I've stayed in have been immaculately clean with good-sized rooms and private bath and an in house restaurant invariably featuring excellent regional cuisine at moderate prices. A number also have beer gardens, as well. All will include breakfast in their room costs. Breakfasts usually consist of cereals, yogurt, meats, cheeses, eggs, breads, fruit and coffee. Rates for these inns range between $55.00US and $70.00 per room, approximately 56 to 70 Euro. Since many of them cater to German skiers in winter months, you'll find rooms that can accommodate three or four people. Many also have kitchenettes as well. The little inn in Hohenfurch to which I refer in the Bavarian itineraries has such rooms. (Ask for the Pfaffenwinkel room.) The room had a refrigerator, two burner stove, sink, table and chairs and was indeed spacious<BR>To get an idea of the amenities of a typical gasthaus, check the following websites: <BR>www.steingaden.de/gasthof_ilgen.htm<BR>www.steingaden.de/gasthof_lindenhof.htm<BR><BR>The Bavarian driving itineraries will expose you to three castles, two monasteries, some magnificent Baroque architecture, thirteen Alpine lakes and some charming villages and towns. If you'd like copies, drop me an Email but do so promptly. I'll be hospitalized at weeksend and unable to respond to Emails for an extended period.<BR>

The southwest area has nice places like the Church in the Meadow, Ludwig's castles, Oberammergau, and definitely in the winter Garmisch. Don't forget south east of Munich either - wonderful places like Chiemsee (the third Ludwig place), Konigsee, Bad Reichenhall, Berchtesgaden, Hohenringstrasse, Befreiungshalle, etc. (and Salzburg is right over the border from those areas)<BR><BR>To my mind an under visited place is Wasserburg, right on a bend in the Inn river. Take the road north of Wasserburg and head south to the city, you'll run into an incredible place at Ai am Inn with a restaurant view of the whole valley. Then proceed on towards Wasserburg and stop with a view of the castle below. Just incredible small town Gernmany stuff. My ancestors are from this area - tiny town called Buchbach. You can generally get a clean, but uneventful "zimmer" at about every other small town in the area. Not just in Lanshut, Rosenheim or Erding, but the Ebersberg, Wasserburg, Rott, etc. sized towns. It's very easy to pick perhaps just one spot for a week, and use that as a base. Try any of those places for small country hotels, as well as perhaps Prien close to Chiemsee.

Lawrence, Take heed---Wes has spoken !

Lawrence, <BR>go to Garmisch-Partenkirchen at the foot of the Zugspitze.<BR>Stay at the lovely Hotel Panorama with memorable food and good prices.<BR>Enjoy, Ismael

If you have the time, Take Mike's BikeTours. It is a great way to see the city and the guides are excellent.

Dear Wes - Thank you for your amazing posting - it will take some digesting! All the best for your treatment.

Check out Tegernsee or Scliersee, or any of the other towns that are in that part the area.<BR><BR>Tegernsee is 37 kms from Munich. Hourly trains take about 55 minutes. According to the brochures, Tegernsee is home to some of the most beautiful homes in Germany. Supposedly, most of the wealthiest Germans have houses in Tegernsee.<BR><BR>I am staying in a doubleroom in a lake front hotel in October for 80 Euros, breakfast included.<BR><BR>Not bad for 37 kms from Munich

We just returned from our trip to Bavaria and highly recommend the Hotel Alphenhof in Murnau. Beautiful facility, including a spa, less than 30 minutes to Munich on the autobahn (of course, it's another 30 minutes to park,etc.) or 55 minutes by train, and the surrounding area is wonderful. Each morning my husband jogged and I hiked the Murnau Moos, an easy walk from the Alpenhof. Good luck deciding. There are many lovely towns very close to Munich.