We are planning a two week trip for the end of September or the beginning of October.
We are now considering flying into Vienna and out of Frankfurt, and we would love some help with the in between stops.

We are thinking:
-3 nights Vienna, then...
-train to Salzburg for 3 nights with the third day including a day trip to Berchtesgaden where we will pick up a car and return to Salzburg for the final night (The car rental is much cheaper renting it within Germany)
-drive to Munich the scenic southerly route...3 nights in Munich

Since we will have been in large cities, we would like the remainin nights to be in smaller picturesque towns:
-drive Romantic Road to Rottenburg ...2 nights?
-drive to ? Rhine area? 2 nights?
-final night or last two nights in Bacharach? before flying home from Frankfurt.

Thanks for any suggestions.

We flew into Munich, rented a car and drove to Rothenburg. Then drove the Romantic Road - went to Reutte and from there made day trips to the castles, and villages in the area. From Reutte we drove to Salzburg. Made a day trip to Berchtesgaden. Drove from Salzburg to Munich to fly home.

You could drive from Salzburg to Vienna - making a stop at Melk to view the Abbey.

I liked the Castle Road, between Rothenburg and Heidelberg a whole lot better than the Romantic Road - the Castle Road pretty much meanders along the Neckar River Valley, going thru cute Neckar Valley towns like Bad Wimpfen. Actually this themed road goes from Nuremberg to Mannheim - i took the Castle Road bus along the pretty portion Rothenburg to Heidelberg - this rest is not so scenic.

http://goeurope.about.com/od/mapsofg...stlerd_map.htm

Since you are flying out of Frankfurt, I would suggest heading up towards the Rhine and Mosel. After Munich you could stop over in Rothenburg for a night or two and then head towards the Rhine/Mosel (I personally prefer the Mosel for cute towns). From here its an easy drive to the Frankfurt airport.

I also agree with bratsandbeer about Melk. If you can, I would suggest either a daytrip or a drive to the Wachau Valley, which closer to Vienna but on the way from Vienna to Salzburg. The Melk Abbey is beyond gorgeous, and the towns are so picturesque. If you like wine, there are some great wineries to visit. We biked the path along the Danube, stopping in the various towns.

Tracy

I'd add another day/night to Vienna. Just my 2 cents.

if you're picking up a rental car and then spending 3 nights in munich, you're wasting money for the car & parking. get the car on you way out of munich.

We haven't made any flight arrangements yet, so we're open to other suggestions for our itinerary other than flying in to Vienna and out of Frankfurt.

We do want a combination of the larger cities (Vienna, Munich, Salzburg) and the smaller castle towns for our two week trip. We figure 3 nights each in the cities, which would leave us 4 or 5 nights for the smaller towns.

Your suggestions are always so helpful.
Any other ideas?

I would do 4 nights Vienna including a side trip to Melk and 2 nights Salzburg
From Munich either the Romantic Road or the castle Road would make sense.
I also like the Mosel valley more than the Rhine but it is a little farther for you

I think those who have not traveled the Romantic Road yet, over-estimate the scenery. Actually, there is not much. The towns along the RR are scenic, but the overall driving is not. Frankly, it's a pretty boring, rather flat countryside.

The Alpine Road (the "scenic southerly route" you mentioned) is one extremely scenic drive, though. It gets even more scenic if you divert a bit from the official route (it's a German scenic route, so it stays strictly on our side of the border, regardless of what may be more scenic South of it in Tirol). You follow the Alpine Road (Hwy 305) from Berchtesgaden to Reit im Winkl, then turn West towards Austria, road becomes Austrian Hwy 172, then 175 via Ebbs to Kufstein. Nice little town on River Inn with a mighty fortress. From Kufstein you follow the road signs to Thiersee, stay on that road until Bayrischzell (back in Bavaria) where you hit (German) Hwy 307 (the Alpine Road again). If you feel like going up a mountain, you will pass the cable car to the top of Wendelstein after a few kilometers at the village of Osterhofen. It's pricey (as any cable car in the Alps), but the view is great (IF there are no clouds or haze).

If you will be happy with a car IN Munich, only you can say. The more centrally located your hotel is, the more they will charge for parking. IF they have their own garage. There are many public parking garages in or near the Old Town, but for 3 nights you will run up quite a fee there as well (usually €15-20 for each day). Why not drop off your rental car after the drive from Salzburg? And rent again on your day of departure from Munich? You will save 2 days of rental fees, and a lot in parking fees.