Itinerary Advice: Paris, Rothenberg, Munich, Lake Como, Zurich
Dec 29th, 2014, 09:09 AM
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Itinerary Advice: Paris, Rothenberg, Munich, Lake Como, Zurich
Hello everyone,
Hoping to receive some travel advice or tips for planning my upcoming Honeymoon to Europe in Sept or October of 2015. We definitely want to see Paris, Germany, Italy and try to squeeze in some WW2 history, hiking, castles, romance and beer drinking!
We have 12-14 days.
Here is what I have outlined so far but would love input on whether you foresee any issues with trying to fit this all in or if I'm misallocating our time by the cities or missing anything major?
1 Day - Fly to Paris & either stay there or continue to Normandy (no specific plans)
1 Day - Normandy (WW2 tours of the beaches, cemetary, etc)
2 Days - Paris (Eiffel Tower, Museum, Versailles) - Is this enough time?
1 Day - Heidelberg/Landenburg - Is this too much time for these cities? Would like to stay in a castle during the trip so had found Hotel Burg Colmberg, is this a nice castle hotel?
1 Day - Rothenberg (explore town & spend the night here for the full experience) - Is this too much time or worth spending the night here vs. combining into 1 day with Heidelberg?
3 Days/Nights - Munich (Nymphenburg Palace, Andechs Monastery Brewery, Neuschwenstein Castle, Hofbraus Haus)
1 Day - Milan (Duomo)
2 Days - Lake Como - Not sure which town to stay at... Como, Veranna, Bellagio??
1 Day - Zurich
1 Day - Fly home from Zurich
Most of our travel will hopefully be done by train with 1 flight between Munich & Milan. Does this seem doable?
If we didn't head to Lake Como after Munich, where else would you recommend in Italy for 2-3 days?
Thank you all for the input!!!
Hoping to receive some travel advice or tips for planning my upcoming Honeymoon to Europe in Sept or October of 2015. We definitely want to see Paris, Germany, Italy and try to squeeze in some WW2 history, hiking, castles, romance and beer drinking!
We have 12-14 days.
Here is what I have outlined so far but would love input on whether you foresee any issues with trying to fit this all in or if I'm misallocating our time by the cities or missing anything major?
1 Day - Fly to Paris & either stay there or continue to Normandy (no specific plans)
1 Day - Normandy (WW2 tours of the beaches, cemetary, etc)
2 Days - Paris (Eiffel Tower, Museum, Versailles) - Is this enough time?
1 Day - Heidelberg/Landenburg - Is this too much time for these cities? Would like to stay in a castle during the trip so had found Hotel Burg Colmberg, is this a nice castle hotel?
1 Day - Rothenberg (explore town & spend the night here for the full experience) - Is this too much time or worth spending the night here vs. combining into 1 day with Heidelberg?
3 Days/Nights - Munich (Nymphenburg Palace, Andechs Monastery Brewery, Neuschwenstein Castle, Hofbraus Haus)
1 Day - Milan (Duomo)
2 Days - Lake Como - Not sure which town to stay at... Como, Veranna, Bellagio??
1 Day - Zurich
1 Day - Fly home from Zurich
Most of our travel will hopefully be done by train with 1 flight between Munich & Milan. Does this seem doable?
If we didn't head to Lake Como after Munich, where else would you recommend in Italy for 2-3 days?
Thank you all for the input!!!
Dec 29th, 2014, 09:36 AM
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I'm not sure it is worth to fly from Munich to Milan, since the train from Munich can get you into Italy (Verona) in about 5 hours, and you don't seem much committed to that part of Italy anyway. There are all sorts of flights from Munich to Italy -- the Italian Riviera, or Rome, or Venice,
I may be a real outlier on this, but if you are a beer lover, I think there is better beer in places other than Munich -- unless you are timing your trip not so much for the beer but for Oktoberfest -- which might not everyone would consider the honeymoon memories they want to make. But for beer alone, I would go elsewhere (Beligium would be my fave, plus it has WW2 sights, but others would name other places).
I may be a real outlier on this, but if you are a beer lover, I think there is better beer in places other than Munich -- unless you are timing your trip not so much for the beer but for Oktoberfest -- which might not everyone would consider the honeymoon memories they want to make. But for beer alone, I would go elsewhere (Beligium would be my fave, plus it has WW2 sights, but others would name other places).
Dec 29th, 2014, 09:38 AM
#3
at the risk of disappointing you, I'm sorry to say that IMO this itinerary [or anything like it] won't work. Once you factor in jet lag, and the time taken to get from one place to another [at least ½ a day] you are seriously short-changing the places you are intending to visit, to the extent that there is hardly any point in going there.
let's take the beginning of your itinerary - and plot out exactly what you might achieve in the time you've given each place:
Day 1 - arrive CDH at roughly 9am. 11 am - clear passport and customs. ? hire car [it's now noon] and set off for Normandy [not a good idea when you've just got off a plane] or get the train to ? [do you know where in Normandy you want to stay?]. Settle in.
Day 2 - tour beaches.
Day 3 - return to Paris, arrive lunchtime [if you're lucky]. see sights [? eiffel Tower, Notre Dame]
Day 4 - Paris - Versailles
Day 5 - Paris - Heidelberg - [how are you intending o get there? driving? - it's 5 hours, or 3 ½ on the train, so the earliest you will arrive is lunchtime] Afternoon in Heidelberg.
Day 6 - Heidelberg to Rottenburg [a two hour drive or 4 on the train]. arrive late morning and spend day in Rothenburg.
etc. etc.
you really need to have a re-think and seriously trim your itinerary or you will be utterly miserable and exhausted by the time you get home. I would suggest dropping Como for starters [ you seem much more interested in Normandy and Germany] and seeing if you can fly home from Munich. you could then spend more time in Paris and Normandy, and expand the time you've got for Germany too.
it would still be pretty stretched, but it would at least give you time to do something in each of the places you want to see.
let's take the beginning of your itinerary - and plot out exactly what you might achieve in the time you've given each place:
Day 1 - arrive CDH at roughly 9am. 11 am - clear passport and customs. ? hire car [it's now noon] and set off for Normandy [not a good idea when you've just got off a plane] or get the train to ? [do you know where in Normandy you want to stay?]. Settle in.
Day 2 - tour beaches.
Day 3 - return to Paris, arrive lunchtime [if you're lucky]. see sights [? eiffel Tower, Notre Dame]
Day 4 - Paris - Versailles
Day 5 - Paris - Heidelberg - [how are you intending o get there? driving? - it's 5 hours, or 3 ½ on the train, so the earliest you will arrive is lunchtime] Afternoon in Heidelberg.
Day 6 - Heidelberg to Rottenburg [a two hour drive or 4 on the train]. arrive late morning and spend day in Rothenburg.
etc. etc.
you really need to have a re-think and seriously trim your itinerary or you will be utterly miserable and exhausted by the time you get home. I would suggest dropping Como for starters [ you seem much more interested in Normandy and Germany] and seeing if you can fly home from Munich. you could then spend more time in Paris and Normandy, and expand the time you've got for Germany too.
it would still be pretty stretched, but it would at least give you time to do something in each of the places you want to see.
Dec 29th, 2014, 09:42 AM
#4
Frankly, since it seems to be at the center of your trip, I would look into spending more time in Switzerland. You can buy a Swiss Pass for 3 days (starting in 2015 -- before, the minimum was 4 days), and it covers almost all trains, buses, boats, cable cars, trams, etc. in the country and gives you entrance to 470 Swiss museums.
Dec 29th, 2014, 10:12 AM
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Sorry - you are trying to fit in about 3 times as many things as you can actually see.
And some I don;t understand at all. Zurich? this is primarily a business city - not the Alps which is why one typically head to Switz.
First, how many days do you really have on the ground - not counting day you arrive and day you leave?
Second, which cities/sites are most important to you since you will need to drop several things on your list if you actually want to see anything.
Based on your itinerary - you just won;t have time to see many things on your list.
And some I don;t understand at all. Zurich? this is primarily a business city - not the Alps which is why one typically head to Switz.
First, how many days do you really have on the ground - not counting day you arrive and day you leave?
Second, which cities/sites are most important to you since you will need to drop several things on your list if you actually want to see anything.
Based on your itinerary - you just won;t have time to see many things on your list.
Dec 29th, 2014, 11:37 AM
#6
>>>1 Day - Fly to Paris & either stay there or continue to Normandy (no specific plans)
1 Day - Normandy (WW2 tours of the beaches, cemetary, etc) <<<
Not possible to do that on Day 1.
>>>2 Days - Paris (Eiffel Tower, Museum, Versailles) - Is this enough time?<<<
No, it isn't.
>>>1 Day - Heidelberg/Landenburg - Is this too much time for these cities? <<<
It's too little time.
>>>1 Day - Rothenberg (explore town & spend the night here for the full experience) - Is this too much time <<<
Again, too little time.
You need to look at how many nights you are staying somewhere. Three nights somewhere only gives you two sightseeing days. If you have 14 days (not counting arrival and departure days), then limit it to 3 (possibly 4) hotel locations. Otherwise, you are spending all your time on trains, checking in and out of hotels and attempting to orient to each new location.
1 Day - Normandy (WW2 tours of the beaches, cemetary, etc) <<<
Not possible to do that on Day 1.
>>>2 Days - Paris (Eiffel Tower, Museum, Versailles) - Is this enough time?<<<
No, it isn't.
>>>1 Day - Heidelberg/Landenburg - Is this too much time for these cities? <<<
It's too little time.
>>>1 Day - Rothenberg (explore town & spend the night here for the full experience) - Is this too much time <<<
Again, too little time.
You need to look at how many nights you are staying somewhere. Three nights somewhere only gives you two sightseeing days. If you have 14 days (not counting arrival and departure days), then limit it to 3 (possibly 4) hotel locations. Otherwise, you are spending all your time on trains, checking in and out of hotels and attempting to orient to each new location.
Dec 29th, 2014, 12:22 PM
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1 day is definetly too much for RothenBERG. Rothenberg is a tiny village in the Odenwald hills and an hour would already be too long there. The town you intend to visit is named RothenBURG (also, not RoTTenburg which is again a different town). Note the difference between the letters U and E and use the correct spelling, for example when looking up train connections and buying tickets, booking a hotel, and/or setting a GPS, or you'll be in for a surprise.
I agree with the others that this itinerary is far too much in too little time.
I agree with the others that this itinerary is far too much in too little time.
Dec 29th, 2014, 12:52 PM
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I took longer than I thought for someone to tell you your itinerary is impossible. (I was betting on the first post.) Just a few random comments:
Paris: In two days you want to do the Eiffel Tower, "Museum" (the Louvre?) and Versailles. With that kind of schedule, most people will tell you you're sort of missing the point of going to Paris -- to relax and take in the city.
Milan: One day, too see the Duomo. I like Milan a lot, but if that's all the time you can allot to it, you may want to drop it from your plans.
Lake Como: I prefer Varenna. Nice little town. Easy to get to. Good boat transportation to other parts of the lake.
As mentioned, you really do need to factor in travel time between destinations. It will eat up far more than you planned.
I and others understand the "I want to see and do it all" approach, but experienced travelers will tell you that quality is better than quantity.
Paris: In two days you want to do the Eiffel Tower, "Museum" (the Louvre?) and Versailles. With that kind of schedule, most people will tell you you're sort of missing the point of going to Paris -- to relax and take in the city.
Milan: One day, too see the Duomo. I like Milan a lot, but if that's all the time you can allot to it, you may want to drop it from your plans.
Lake Como: I prefer Varenna. Nice little town. Easy to get to. Good boat transportation to other parts of the lake.
As mentioned, you really do need to factor in travel time between destinations. It will eat up far more than you planned.
I and others understand the "I want to see and do it all" approach, but experienced travelers will tell you that quality is better than quantity.
Dec 29th, 2014, 12:57 PM
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Fly into Paris CDG, Taxi to Paris
4 nights Paris
- day trip to D-Day Beaches
TGV train Paris to Frankfurt, Rent a car, drive to Colmberg
1 Night Colmberg
1 Night Rothenburg (or 2nd night in Colmberg day trip to Rothenburg)
- drive to Fussen via Romantic Road or Autobahn
1 Night Fussen
- tour the castles in the morning (reservations from USA),
drive to Munich, turn in car
3 Nights Munich
Fly or train to Venice or fly to Rome
3 Nights Venice or Rome
Fly home
4 nights Paris
- day trip to D-Day Beaches
TGV train Paris to Frankfurt, Rent a car, drive to Colmberg
1 Night Colmberg
1 Night Rothenburg (or 2nd night in Colmberg day trip to Rothenburg)
- drive to Fussen via Romantic Road or Autobahn
1 Night Fussen
- tour the castles in the morning (reservations from USA),
drive to Munich, turn in car
3 Nights Munich
Fly or train to Venice or fly to Rome
3 Nights Venice or Rome
Fly home
Dec 29th, 2014, 01:29 PM
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Rothenburg ob der Tauber is best at night after the buses have left. The night watchmen tour is hokey but fun so do that. Great cafes and squares and walled city to walk. Good beer and food. Do spend the night there.
Normandy and the tours of the beaches need two days at least. You can take a train directly from Paris to Bayeux which is a good base. There are some very good tours from there and you would not need to rent a car. It is a short distance to the hotels from the train station. You could do this on day one after landing and have a nice walk around the town, see the cathedral and the tapestry. Great dining here and nice hotels. Do your tour early the next day and I would spend one more night and head off to Paris on the early morning train. Paris needs at least three nights imo. You will not regret this as it is so beautiful and many things to see and do. Versailles if your heart is set on it. I would do Munich and drink in all the beer halls. I am old and still love it. Great beer and food. Day trip to Fussen to see Ludwig's folly. Linderhof is better imo.
If we didn't head to Lake Como after Munich, where else would you recommend in Italy for 2-3 days?
Florence.
Normandy and the tours of the beaches need two days at least. You can take a train directly from Paris to Bayeux which is a good base. There are some very good tours from there and you would not need to rent a car. It is a short distance to the hotels from the train station. You could do this on day one after landing and have a nice walk around the town, see the cathedral and the tapestry. Great dining here and nice hotels. Do your tour early the next day and I would spend one more night and head off to Paris on the early morning train. Paris needs at least three nights imo. You will not regret this as it is so beautiful and many things to see and do. Versailles if your heart is set on it. I would do Munich and drink in all the beer halls. I am old and still love it. Great beer and food. Day trip to Fussen to see Ludwig's folly. Linderhof is better imo.
If we didn't head to Lake Como after Munich, where else would you recommend in Italy for 2-3 days?
Florence.
Dec 29th, 2014, 02:26 PM
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I would try to make it to Antwerp. I visited it and it was amazing. It was not full of tourist and it had a lot great sites. I know you are looking for ww2 stuff but there was a very important battle in Antwerp during ww1. Also Belgium beet is not bad. When I visited I loved it. I know you are looking to to Spain Greece or Iceland. But please check out my blog with great pics to those cities.
Dec 30th, 2014, 04:33 AM
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http://www.oktoberfest.de/en/article...eral+FAQs/751/
Dates for Oktoberfest 2015. Booking hotels in Munich gets pricey during this time. I always suggest Murnau as a place to stay because the train stops there and it is a great little village. Love the Griesbrau brewery there. Not a bad train ride to Munich and the you can even train it to Oberammergu which is a short distance to Linderhof. http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel...rammergau.html
You said Sept or Oct so something to think about. Weekdays and early in the day you can get into the tents and still see many. Augustiner is a great one and visit them in town also.
Dates for Oktoberfest 2015. Booking hotels in Munich gets pricey during this time. I always suggest Murnau as a place to stay because the train stops there and it is a great little village. Love the Griesbrau brewery there. Not a bad train ride to Munich and the you can even train it to Oberammergu which is a short distance to Linderhof. http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel...rammergau.html
You said Sept or Oct so something to think about. Weekdays and early in the day you can get into the tents and still see many. Augustiner is a great one and visit them in town also.
