Munich to Salzburg by car or Train
 

My wife, 19 yr old and 20 yr old sons and myself will be spending 4 days in Munich in June and we want to take a day trip to Salzburg. Would it be best to rent a car and enjoy the ride or take the train? What are the must sees in Salzburg?

I vote for the train, especially if you qualify for the landers family pass which allows you to travel in Bavaria (incl. Salzburg Station) for ~ 30 euros for the day (starting aft. 9:00 a.m. on weekdays and all day on weekends)! Just check the schedule and don't miss the last train back!

Well drive time and best train time is the same at about 1.5 hours.

If you get advance tickets you can often get very good discount prices and you will go from one center city to another without worrying about a place to park a car.
'
Since one day is very little to see much of Salzburg you won;t really have time to stop on the way to or fro so I would go for the train.

Check out destinations above to find out what you want to see - but don;t miss the Hohensalzburg in the center of the city, Mozart's birthplace and the Mirabell Palace. If you get a chance have dinner in the Stiff's Keller - it;s a hoot! (We had mixed grill bearnaise - which included hot dogs.)

Thanks all. We will be doing a lot of travel by train so I thought it would have been nice to drive someplace one day but it seems that the train might be the best option for this excursion. Have to remember to visit Stiff's Keller.

The Bayern Ticket 1-5 people traveling together Munich - Salzburg is a great bargain at 28 euro inclusive for all.
No need to purchase prior to your journey.
The ticket has some restrictions .
weekday travel from 9AM on regional trains ticket is good for your return also on the same day up to 3 AM next day.
Weekends - you can travel from anytime in the morning.

While driving is not hard - train makes it easy- no traffic worry- cheaper - especially with parking garages in Salzburg being quite expensive.

To MAXIMIZE your very short time I would not wait until one of those "discount" tickets is valied..I would get the kids up EARLY and be On the first train out.

Driving? You mean and picking up and parking the car? Fuel and other possible costs? Sure, you get more flexibility with a car and I've always appreciated having one but for your pqarticular trip I'd say one would be a waste of money.

Normally we like to rent cars but we got a ticket mailed to us a few months after returning from our trip for driving in a restricted zone in Salzburg. We had no idea we even entered a restricted zone, as we were just looking for parking. We've driven in Salzburg many times and it's a pain.

If you are just going to Salzburg and not visiting the surrounding countryside I would vote for the train as well.

I do not believe having to leave Munich extra early in the morning is essential. Original poster goes in June - a time of longest daylight of the year -probably not dark until well after 9PM.
Some of the nicest things to do in Salzburg consist of walking the streets and alleyways of the Old City . This can be done at most anytime.
Cafes and restaurants open for relaxation and dining without problems for many hours.
Sites like the Hohensalzburg fortress are open until 7 at night .

In addition, the Bayern Ticket if used on the weekend has no time restricttion to leave Saturday or Sunday the morning.
Some times the nicest images of Salzburg can be found early in the evening , with most tourists gone and a chance to see another aspect of the city.

It's much easier to take the train, you won't have to worry about parking in Salzburg. Driving and parking in that city is a headache waiting to happen.

Couldn't find anything bad about driving in Salzburg. It's just like anywhere else in a city. And it's a small city too. The Salzburg Autobahn is quite stressfull, to many poor drivers and too much traffic. When driving up the Irschenberg, why do those ... drive in the centre lane at 50kmh. Grrrr.

Yes, take the train and get one of those tax payer subsidized Bayerntickets.

Hi t,

For a day in Salzburg, I'd go by train.

((I))

Train. Easier, more relaxing than the drive. I've not had issues driving in Salzburg or parking. I agree with logos999 the autobahn is the pain.

great info...

Tony56~~~Our daughter and her l8 yr old daughter, AND another mother and her l8 yr. old daughter will be in Munich for four days the middle of June.,,,,,and plan a day trip to Salzburg.
I'm helping them plan the trip and they'll take the train also. Hummmm,,,,the ages seem about right...perhaps they will see your family at some time.~!

Since there are 4 people, The Bayern ticket sounds great...but I've never heard of the Landers Pass. It just happens that they will be in Munich on a weekend, so the time restrictions would not be in effect.

Mari5
we will be taking the train and will keep a lookout for them. The boys want to take a side trip to Eagle's Nest which we should be able to get to from Salzburg.
We probably will rent a car another day and drive the Romantic Road. After using the train from Rome to Venice and then to Munich and then to Paris with another train from Paris to Normandy a ride thru the countryside might be nice.

tony56....sounds like you have a wonderful trip planned. Yes, cars are great.....My husband and I have always traveled that way in Europe. Though our daughter has driven around Europe...when she was teaching in Turkey 25 years ago, this time these "girls" (all 4) will have an "overview" trip(first time for the other three), and will use the train, though flying from Paris to Venice to save time.(on EasyJet, good prices) They will, however, be traveling by train from Venice to Munich also around the middle of June.(followed by the 4 days in Munich). I don't have that train ride firmed up yet....It's about 6 hours,,right? I don't know if making a reservation or buying a ticket ahead of time is necessary. You probably have a train pass for your trip....but this is their only train ride! (except the Eurostar London to Paris, which doesn't apply)
They are squeezing in London,Paris, Venice, Munich in 14 days, 12 days "on the ground". ....but they are young and energetic! They will fly back home to Houston from Munich (via Frankfurt).

Rome 12th-16th
Venice 17-18th
Munich 19-23rd
Paris 24-28th
Haven't purchased a train pass yet as most recomendations on this site say that it is just as easy to purchase a few days out. Actually the excursion to Naples will be a bus tour out of Rome.

last part of the trip.....Venice ~~15th,16th
Munich~~~17th , 20th
Am checking rail europe now...various times!(Venice to Munich) Should be a beautiful train ride, through Verona,and the Alps, Insbruck etc.
They haven't yet figured out what day to Salzburg, and I think they might wait till they arrive in Munich. :):)

tony25.......you have a beautiful trip planned.
Have you found the train trip ,Venice-Munich, for anything less than $223 per person? (or $147 2nd class, which wasn't encouraged by lady at Rail Europe. (well, they'd make less money that way, would't they?)
With your several train trips perhaps you will have a rail pass.

Help!! Leaving for Munich in two weeks. We have one day to plan a trip to either Salzburg, Berchtesgaden (no Eagles Nest), see the Koenigsee, the salt mines, or the ice caves.

Will have a rental car. Based on the time of year, any suggestions on an itinerary for the family including 2 boy age 12 and 14. We would love to spend more time and do all but can't. To get the most out of the one day, would greatly appreciate some expert advice.

>tony25.......you have a beautiful trip planned.
Have you found the train trip ,Venice-Munich, for anything less than $223 per person? (or $147 2nd class, which wasn't encouraged by lady at Rail Europe. (well, they'd make less money that way, would't they?)

Forget RailEurope. Why is anybody in USA thinking they are the ones to buy train tickets from? Why not simply buy the ticket directly from the rail authority?
www.bahn.de
www.trenitalia.com

instead of some overpriced travel agency...

Thanks Altamiro,
I was planning on bahn and trenitalia but I think I'm still too far out. I think if I look around May 1 I should be OK. Others have even suggested waiting until I get to Italy and by them the day of or the day before.

altairo: Yes I agree.....having just discovered that fact a few days ago....
Felt a little uncomfortable so did some more research.
Thanks for reinforcing my thoughts!

oops! VERY sorry about your name misprint!!!!!
correction = altamiro