Munich to....???? Advice?
 

I'm flying to Munich (not sure why I picked Munich) in November for 10 days and want to take a couple side trips while I'm there but I'm not quite sure what to do.

Some background: I'm a 33 yr. old female traveling by myself. I enjoy traveling and am very comfortable going places on my own. When I travel, I like to explore the cultural aspects of a place, go for scenic jogs, etc. by day ...By night, I like to go to cool/upscale restaurants and bars where I can chat with interesting local people while I enjoy a few cocktails. Maybe listen to some nice music. That's pretty much my M.O. everywhere I go...

I'd like to check out the spa town of Baden Baden for a day or two for some R&R (during the day) but worried there will be nothing for me to do at night? Will this be boring for me? I've heard the spa towns are quite dull and have mostly elderly people who visit? But I've also heard Baden Baden is a fantastic town!?

I'm also interested in going over into Eastern France for a few days. Maybe Chamonix to be in the mountains? Since it's Novemeber, ski resorts are closed and town might not be too exciting?

I'm saving Austria for a ski trip in March so I've ruled that out, but I'm open to anywhere else that's not too far from Munich.

Any thoughts/opinions/ideas would be appreciated! Also any tips on good bars (not clubs) would be great!

Thanks in advance!

Liz

I am partial to Rothenburg (for at least an over-nighter) but several others come to mind - Garmisch, Landshut, Fussen & Salzburg would all make good daytrips from Munich. You can get everywhere by train. We typically stay at the Hotel Amba (www.hotel-amba.de)right across from the main train station & near the Ped. zone. There are a lot of posts on here regarding Munich. Do a search once you need specifics.

I would go to Salzburg, my favorite small city.

Hello Lizzie,

My wife and I stayed in Baden in May. There were a lot of "older" people (my wife and I are in our mid 30's). It is a beautiful town. A trip (or two) to the spa is required. We went to the Friederichs Bad. The restaurants are good and the big hotels have good bars - not really clubs. The shopping is excellent. At night we spent one evening in the Baden Casino which is spectacular - dress is fancy. We had a bottle of chmapagne and watched the "working girls" work the room. Hilarious. Baden also has an opera house and has some quite good classical music performances at night. Not sure if that is your cup of tea. People watching is great in Baden as there are quite a few plastic surgeons working there. You get to watch the various experiments as they walk by. We saw at least a dozen women of a "certain" age who had drastic surgery and probably could not eat soup because their faces were stretched so tight. We liked Baden and would happily go back.

Thanks for the reply! The reason I to go to BB is for the spa experience. So you got naked at Friederichs, huh?! ;-)I've read that a bathing suit can be worn at the other spa. But, when in Rome...

I'd love to take in a nice classical performance in Germany. Especially if there's nothing exciting going on at night. I suppose I can always check out the casino (never win!) and do some shopping.

Thanks Sansparis and Lostmymind(cute name). I want to save Salzburg for my ski trip to Austria in March. I've heard it's beautiful and that the hills are alive with the sound of music. Not sure where that comes from but it sounds familiar... ;-)

Oh yes, right down to the raw hide. My wife was a little concerned but we did the "honeymoon" package and did not run into many other people. We were also there early in the afternoon on a Wednesday, not very busy. Mind you walking out on to the deck around the big pool in front of everyone is not for everyone - but we had just enjoyed a bottle of wine - so one's inhibitions are much diminished.
The casino is quite a place and if you are an ooutgoing person you will make friends. There were people in there from all over the world. I think the Baden opera house has a website. Our hotel organized tickets for us to a Brahms/Mozart concert once we got there. If you are there in November then the season should be in full swing. We stayed at the Belle Epoque and would recommend it.

I will certainly look up the website for the Baden opera house and see what's playing.

I think I'd be fine with the naked spa if I were with someone--and after a bottle of wine might even enjoy it! Sounds like a great thing to do on a honeymoon. But the thought of being surrounded by a bunch of naked old people is not all that appealing. I'll have to see how adventurous I feel when I arrive, though.

I'll also check out the hotel you stayed in. Thanks for the tips!

I don't know how people ever traveled before the internet. Makes things much easier!

Well, we were not there on our honeymoon, we just took the package as it included a body peel, private spa room, bottle of wine, and hour and fifteen minute massage and then a dip in the central pool. I certainly saw a few pretty girls - cannot comment on the men though - not really my thing. The spa is very quiet and serene - you will feel perfectly comfortable. The hotel is beautiful. Get the Louis XIV suite.

Munich is great - we spend several days there last summer and had a blast.

We also enjoyed Nuremberg - plenty of things to fit your criteria there. I think by train Nuremberg was 2 1/2 hours from Munich.

There are two spas at Baden-Baden. Friedrichsbad is naked, Caracallatherme with swimsuit. Caracalla is really nice - I've never been to Friedrichsbad myself for imagineable reasons.

If you want to see a performance at the Festspielhaus, book tickets WELL in advance (read: as soon as possible), which can be done online. The website is www.festspielhaus.de

while in Munich, check out upscale and very hip vegetarian restaurant PRINZ MISHKIN Tel. 089-265596.

To clear up any possible confusion, the OP was referring to Baden-Baden in Germany. The town Baden (singular) is in Austria, near Vienna. I think the posters above were actually referring to Baden-Baden, not Baden.
We go to Baden-Baden several times a year, most recently last month. It's a very enjoyable place to relax and it does offer things to do.
You are not restricted to the Caracalla and Friedrichsbad public spas. Several of the hotels have their own spas, including (but not limited to) Brenner's Park and the Dorint Sofitel. We usually stay at the Dorint/Sofitel and use their spa as we can just throw our bathrobes on over our bathing suits and catch the elevator down to the spa. It's quite a good spa, very plush, although not as large as Friedrichsbad or Caracalla by any means. You can also get massages and facials there. At Friedrichsbad, on Mondays and Thursdays, men and women bathe separately, other days it's co-ed.
Re music, the Festspielhaus concert hall is outstanding. Tickets can be hard to come by BUT three hotels, the Dorint Sofitel, Brenners Park, and Kleine Prinz, "own" the first several rows in the first balcony (excellent seats) and keep those seats exclusively for their guests. If you stay in one of those hotels, when you reserve the room, ask them if they are any performances for that night and if the tickets are still available. For example, we plan to go back to BB in December and have already reserved the hotel's tickets for a Christmas concert. These are the premium tickets which entitles you to take in the light buffet and drinks at the Festspielhaus.
Some restaurants in BB do cater to the over 40 crowd, such as the Kurhaus restaurant by the casino. But Amadeus, a casual restaurant/bar on Leopoldplatz (right in the heart of town) draws a younger crowd. You will find plenty of people around your age (and younger) hanging out there.
Shopping in BB is, as expected, very good. There is a department store, Wagener, which has quite good merchandize; it has two stores, ModeWagener, which is the more upscale, designer store, and the regular WagenerGalerie, which has more inexpensive clothing and other goods (www.wagener.de). There are also dozens of boutiques.
Worth a visit is the Frieder Burda art museum. It had a fabulous Chagall show but unfortunately, the exhibition closes at the end of month.
Those who visited BB in the past may be surprised at how lively the town has now become. It's notably different from even a few years ago. The NYTimes recently wrote a glowing article about BB in its travel section.

http://www.baden-baden.de/en/index.html

FYI, the Belle Epoque hotel, mentioned above, is a sister hotel to the Kleine Prinz and if you stay there, you probably also can take advantage of the KP's reserved Festspielhaus tickets.
Also, our favorite place for pastries is the Cafe-Konditorei Beeg in the Hotel Beeg, near Caracalla. Superb. They also do light, inexpensive lunches.

I was so excited to read all the great responses to my request for info! Thanks so much! All the travel books combined can't provide such wonderful first-hand information! I'm so grateful for all the tips and that youn all took time to respond. I'll def. check out the spas mentioned and see about reserving concert tickets ASAP. I'm getting excited for my adventure to Germany!

lizzie,
You'll have a great time in Germany (I live in Stuttgart). Munich is an awesome city and will be a great base for you. The Bavarians are so friendly!

I've only driven through Baden-Baden but I think everyone's given you good advice on going there for the spa experience.

I think you are right that the French mountain towns might be a bit dead prior to ski season.

On the topic of skiing, although you didn't ask...we took a ski trip to Austria last year and had a great time - we skiied the Alberg, staying in St. Christoph. The skiing was phenomenal and we stayed at a lovely family-run hotel called the Maiensee that included a gourmet dinner every night. As you are solo, I would recommend St. Anton for its night life. We ended our trip with a day and night in Salzburg. Try to catch a Mozart dinner concert while you are there. We did the one at St. Peterskeller and it was fantastic!

Have fun!

Hausfrau,

I loved your advice and will certainly look into the Mozart dinner while in Salzburg.

Funny you mention St.Anton. My original plan was to spend 4-5 days there skiing until I found out the resorts in Europe don't open until end of December. The resorts in Colorado are always open end of November so I assumed (foolishly) European ski resorts would be open, as well. I'm thinking I'll get to St. Anton in February when things are in full swing.
I've heard they have the best apres ski (part of the fun!) in all of Europe!

I would like to get over to E. France for a couple days from Baden Baden. Just not sure what town to choose?! Any ideas would be appreciated.
Danke!

lizzie,

for St.Anton you'd maybe want to make a stop at Moserwirt for starting the après-ski fun (raucous, but at least an experience). Then swing (carefully after a few beers and schnaps) down to Poststube/Piccadilly at the end of the slope.

Ischgl rivals St. Anton (and probably outperforms it nightlife-wise) - but I like both skiing and the after-ski fun in Anton much better (it is, after all, a bit classier and not quite as nouveau riche IMHO - even though Moserwirt is a bit proletarian in its appearance).

Oh, and for a nice and leisurely lunch, I love to turn into Rodelhuette in St. Anton, which is a bit out of the way to the left if you come down the mountain in the skiing area of Valuga.

For France, I would suggest to look into Val d'Isère in late November/early December. It has a vast skiing area that reaches out to Tignes (ugly) and is at quite a high altitude. Some of the best skiing I have ever experienced - but it lacks the colour and "Gemuetlichkeit" of Austrian resorts (and St. Anton certainly can compete in skiing, too). It is a very long drive from Germany, though.

One thing more to add (and clarify): I have not been to Val d'Isère as early as beginning of December. I once spent New Year's Eve there, but never went before that time, so cannot judge on whether the slopes will be open and the town lively.

HSV,

I've never even heard of Ischgl or Moserwirt but will certainly look into them when I go to Austria.

From what I've heard, all of the ski resorts in Europe will be closed end of November. The only possibility (I'm told) is glacier skiing, which isn't very challenging. I've never skiied in Europe. Only in the US and South America. But instead of my usual trip to Colorado this year, decided to ski (and do the after-ski)European style! I actually find (lately) I enjoy Europeans more than Americans, in general. But don't tell any of my American friends I said that! ;-)

Also, I only know a tiny bit of German, but am trying to learn more--tough language! Will I be okay in the smaller towns?

Since you'll be too early to enjoy the snow in eastern France, how about going to Strasbourg from Baden-Baden instead? It would be a quick train trip (I am assuming you'll be traveling by train) and you'll get a little taste of the Alsace-Lorraine area. The central city is on a sort of island and has beautiful winding streets to wander - it won't be dressed up for Christmas yet but should still be gorgeous!

February will be perfect for St. Anton. Best chance for great snow and good weather. We've skiied in Tahoe and Colorado (Vail) many times, and find that the Alberg compares nicely to the Rockies. One thing we noticed about the Arlberg is that there are far fewer mogul runs and a lot more of what they call "off-piste" skiing, meaning ungroomed runs. These can be great if the powder is fresh but virtually impossible to negotiate (at least for "once-a-year skiiers" like us) once it gets crusty. Also there is a lot more skiing above the tree line, which means that during whiteout conditions you will appreciate the many signs they have posted marking the sides of the runs! Be sure to check out the St. Christoph side if it gets too crowded on the St. Anton side. There are also several other smaller ski areas in the area that are accessible by shuttle and are included in your lift pass.

I can't speak from experience but I have heard from several Europeans that St. Anton has the best combination of skiing and night life in Europe. We've heard that the town is also far prettier than most of the French ski resort towns. We were told that if you are just going to ski, go to France, but if you want night life, go to St. Anton!

German is a very difficult language, I agree! :-) I've been here over a year and have taken lessons and I'm still speaking "Kinder Deutsch." Every effort you make to speak even a few words will be appreciated. In Munich, the locals were very friendly and when we made an effort to speak German, they made an effort to speak slowly and clearly back. On the other hand many people in the inner city speak English too. In smaller towns you will run into fewer English speakers, but most service providers like hotels and restaurants will have some people who speak English. Again, it's all about being friendly and respectful and making an effort, and you'll be just fine!

English won't be an issue in St. Anton - it's very popular with a British and Scandinavian crowd, the latter relying on English for communication, too.
In fact at the Krazy Kangaroo bar, one can pretty much only order in English (many of the waiters appear to be from Australia) - it has seen better days, though IMHO.

Hausfrau,
I've just looked at a website for Strausbourg and it's exactly what I had in mind! Great suggestion!

How far of a train ride would you say it is from Baden Baden? Do trains go right into town?

I agree you--it's all about being friendly, respectful and showing that you're at least trying to learn.
Any place I go I always learn to say the phrase "I'm sorry that my (insert language) is very bad, but I really want to learn" in their language. People seem to appreciate that.

Krazy Kangaroo sounds good--Aussies are always great fun. But I like going places where they don't speak English-it's part of the fun and I like the challenge.

Strasbourg is about 40 minutes from BB by train. It's an easy walk to the highlights of the old town.

Another day trip possibility is Basel, Switzerland. It's 1.5 hours, but the city has a lovely old town for poking around, many museums, great shopping, etc. You could, for example, catch an early morning train down, explore Basel, have lunch, catch a train back around 3:30 pm, and be back in BB in time for an evening concert or loll in a spa.

I haven't done Baden-Baden to Strasbourg by train but I would guess that it is only an hour or so because it is less than an hour by car. I haven't taken the train to Strasbourg in over 10 years(!) but at the time I was backpacking with my brother and as I recall we walked from the train station to our hotel and had no problem navigating the city on foot.

While I of course memorized the phrase "Ich spreche nur ein bisschen Deutsch" very quickly, I find that I get more smiles when I say, "Mein Deutsch ist sehr schlecht!" (My German is very bad!)

You'll hear a lot of different languages in St. Anton and very few Americans, which is always fun! We didn't go to the Krazy Kangaroo but it is something of a St. Anton landmark (a bar located on the slopes).

We've decided to return to the Arlberg for our ski trip next year (probably early March) even though we could go anywhere in Europe - we just loved our hotel and like the idea of going back to a place that we know.