We fly in to Frankfurt next Wednesday (thanks to the US Air E Saver) and will be spending one week in Germany.<BR><BR>Neither of us have ever been there, and as of yet have made no hotel/rail reservations. We are open to anything for this spur of the moment vacation.<BR><BR>Can anyone Please provide us with some guidance? This isn't a four star vacation for us, but we do want to get the most out of what this country has to offer.<BR><BR>Thanks in advance,<BR><BR>Jacqueline and John

Boy, are you in for trouble... by the time you finish reading all the suggestions you might be getting you will be more confused than you were when you started.<BR>Anyway, a good Germany for Beginners route is in my mind the Romantic Road (Romantischestrasse). Check out http://www.romantischestrasse.de/ . Here is another link, in English, just to let you taste the flavour: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/H...anticroad.html

Well a nice route in my mind would be to rent a car at Frankfurt airport, drive to Hiedleberg and spend the night, see the town the next day, then perhaps a quick drop through the upper part of the Black Forest and then over to Rothenberg. From there you could drive back to the Rhine valley just north of Frankfurt, ride a river boat, visit some vineyards, and then back to the airport to fly home. Very doable in a week with a car.

That's a tough one as Germany has so much to offer and a week is not long. You can go to Bavaria--Munich, Oberammagau, the Romantic Road, the Fairy Tale road, see the castles. You can go east and see Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig. Both are great trips but very different.

We have done this trip many times. First: rent a car. Drive from airport to Rothenburg and spend two nights. Then head down the Romantic Road and end the day in Garmisch. Easy trip. Visit the castles around Garmisch, Innsbruck if time permits. Then end your trip in Heidelberg. Spend last night there as it is an easy drive from Heidelberg to Frankfurt airport. If you need any other ideas just email me. Bavaria is great this time of the year, especially if you get some snow.