PerfectStranger

I am in the beginning stages of planning a week in Bavaria this June. We are flying to/from Munich. Me and my wife are seasoned travelers. Our teenage daughter although having traveled to Canada, Mexico and some Caribbean islands hasn't visited Europe yet. I do realize that a week is by no means enough for that area but it's better than nothing. Therefore, we would like to accomplish as much as possible. So far I know that we will spend some time in Munich and Salzburg. I would love to read your suggestions on how to squeeze in 2-3 more places, day or half-day trips. Perfectly we would love to travel by trains but for time saving purposes we will most likely rent a car. Any suggestions on which cities/towns to use for our hus)?
All your advice is greatly appreciated!

PerfectStranger

The second sentence from the bottom should read:
Any suggestions on which cities/towns to use as our hus)?

PerfectStranger

Sorry but by some odd reason I just can't get read of this emoticon replacing a letter "B".

PalenQ

Perfectly we would love to travel by trains but for time saving purposes we will most likely rent a car.>

trains could well be faster and take you to the town center - in Salzburg you may have to park at a remote lot and walk or bus and with the Bavaria Pass you and up to five people (5 i think could be more) for a total of 29 or perhaps 39 euros total for each day and this pass is good not only on trains but buses and trams and metros (U-Bahns) and commuter trains (S-Bahns) - it will take you to Fussen-

home to the world's most recognizable castle - Neuschwanstein, built lovingly as an Ersatz medieval castle where there is a surprise at every turn. You could even stay the night there in its slew of guest houses (in Fussen not the castle!) and then take a short bus ride thru the gap to Reutte, Austria and hop the train that putzes thru pastoral countryside to Garmish-Partenkirchen, back in Germany.

Garmisch could be a good base from which to hop to nearby Mittenwald or Innsbruck - both by train before heading back to Munich by train.

If going to Salzburg you can take a train to Prien and from the station take a tiny steam train down to the docks for boats to another of Mad Ludwig's fantasy castles - this one 'the Prussian Versailles' - Herrenchiemsee Palace, lovingly set on an island in this place Alpine lake.

From Salzburg you could day trip to so so many nice places like the Sound of Music country a k a The Lake District in and around St Wolfgang - The movie the Sound of Music was in part shot here - a gorgeous gorgeous lake area.

Ffrom Salzburg it is also possible to easily take an S-Bahn gtrain to Berchetsgaden and from there a bus to Hitler's famous Eagle's Nest lookout/retreat - now just a restaurant.

There are some salt mines for touring also just south of Salzburg - easily done by train.

So you need no car and trains will do this just as quick,

For loads of great info on trains in this area check out www.seat61.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

Aramis

Doable by train, but you can see far more by car. Though the trains reach most towns, they don't run as frequently down there and you end up bound by the timetable. You also don't get to stop where you want to goo "oooooh!" "Ahhhhhh!"

I would hit Garmisch for the Zugspitze (easier with a car), and travel to Koenigsee (easier with a car) and perhaps even take a "longish" day trip to Hallstatt from Salzburg (easier by car). Other great sites in the area more easily reached with a car include Kloster Ettal and Schloss Linderhof.

If you enjoy driving at all as part of your vacation, this is the perfect place to do it.

PerfectStranger

Thanks for your great suggestions, PalenQ and Aramis!
I normally enjoy driving in US as a part of my vacation but I've never driven in Europe so this part is still to be decided.
Anyway I'm thinking of booking our accomodations as follows:
1 night-Munich,
3 nights-Salzburg(or nearby,
1 night- Garmish-Partenkirchen(or Fussen)
and the final night-Munich

Any thoughts on this?

Thanks!

pja1

Hi,

I'd put both Munich nights at the end and go from Munich airport directly to Salzburg. One less change of hotels for your trip.

Paul

PalenQ

If i put both Munich nights together then I would so it before your flight and upon landing gtake off for say Salzburg - but it depends on whether you are driving or taking the train.

pja1

I don't see driving or public transportation being a factor in putting your 2 nights in Munich at the end of your trip. You need to be in/near Munich to fly home, so it makes sense to make it your last stop. You don't need to be in/near Munich after arriving at Munich airport and Salzburg is close enough to head directly there.

PerfectStranger

I totally agree with all of you. It makes a perfect sense to book last 2 nights of our trip in Munich.
Approximately how long does it take to drive from Munich to Salzburg and from Garmish-Partenkirchen(or Fussen)to Munich?
Thanks for all your help!

LSky

Stay outside of Salzburg and make sure you tell the rental company you're going to Austria so they will equip you with a vignette.

It's a shame you won't have much time for Munich.

janisj

>>Sorry but by some odd reason I just can't get read of this emoticon replacing a letter "B"<<

That is because you typed >>hub (s)<< w/o the space b ( =

It'll help if you click preview before posting to see if any surprises like this pop up.

dwdvagamundo

Salzburg--Munich 90 minutes. We visited Hallstadt from Salzburg and then drove to Munich and got there mid-afternoon.

Garmisch--Munich--about an hour (according to Google).

So you could easily drive to either even with jet lag.

PalenQ

If you enjoy driving at all as part of your vacation, this is the perfect place to do it.>

I agree but only if you have several days to appreciate this wondrous area at a slow pace - yeh you can stop by the famous Weiss Kirche - White Church out in the middle of nowhere and stop by cute little villages.

But if just wanting to go to Fussen's castles or Garmisch-P or Zugspitze trains are great and easy and frequent. Garmisch is just about an hour or so from Munich I believe by rail - I based once in G-P and day tripped into Munich for Octoberfest - and trains go right from Garmisch-P to the Zugspitze train station.

PerfectStranger

Thanks, all of you, for the valuable info.
I've already booked the last two nights of the trip at Novotel Muenchen City which I chose for it's good reviews and convenience of getting to both Center City and the airport.
Any suggestions for similar hotels (not more than 150 Euros/night) in Salzburg and Garmisch or Fussen or nearby?
Also, I'm trying to decide if I should split the first 4 nights as 2 in Salzburg and 2 in Garmisch or 3 in Salzburg (or nearby) and 1 in Garnisch (or nearby).
Thanks in advance!

Aramis

Here are 4 options at around 150 Euros in June. All are very highly rated on the major hotel sites - because they are great hotels. I have stayed in 2 and considered the other 3. I varied it up so you would options to consider if driving - the parking options and distance are something to consider. And you may not think that what makes a hotel cool is the same as I would think.

The "Blue Goose" - fantastic boutique hotel right at the far end of the Getreidegasse- the main pedestrian street - sitting right below the Monschberg and Hohsalzburg fortress.
http://www.hotel-blaue-gans-salzburg.at/en

Hotel Am Dom - very chic and right in the middle of heart of the town.
http://www.hotelamdom.at/

The "Elephant" - another Monschberg side gem. Don't worry "Best Western" does not mean in Europe what it does in the US. There are some beautuful 4 store historic gems in the European portfolio.
http://bestwestern.at/bwc/hotel.ct?hotelId=89114

The"White Dove" -
http://www.weissetaube.at/en

Hotel Wolf Dietrich - this one is lovely but on the other side of the river ("newer" area of Salzburg)
http://www.salzburg-hotel.at/en

pja1

Hi,

The approximate drive times are:

Munich to Salzburg 1:30
Munich airport to Salzburg - 2 or so hours.
Garmisch to Munich 1:30
Fuessen to Munich - under 2 hours

In Fuessen we stayed twice ('01, '03) at the Hotel zum Hechten.
www.hotel-hechten.com

For visiting Salzburg we've always stayed in the Berchtesgaden area (30 min. away from Salzburg) and highly recommend both the Mayringerlehen (stayed in '06, '07, '09) and the Friedwiese (stayed in '10):

www.mayringerlehen.de
www.friedwiese.de/enska/isl.htm

In Mittenwald (20 min. from Garmisch) we stayed twice at the Schwalbennestl. It's not luxurious by any stretch of the imagination, but clean and comfortable with terrific views. We liked our stay in '05 enough to stay again in '06.

www.schwalbennestl.de

Friends of ours liked their stay in Mittenwald at the Eldhuber.

www.edlhuber-mittenwald.de

If interested, we have plenty of photo's (3 pages of them) at:

www.worldisround.com/home/pja1/index.html

How to split up the 4 nights, that a difficult choice. I'd proabably go with 2 Salzburg (or area) and 2 Garmisch or Mittenwald. We prefer Mittenwald to Garmisch. No matter how you split the nights up, you can't go wrong and won't be disappointed. It's all so beautiful.

Paul

PerfectStranger

To Aramis: thank you very much for the list of hotels. I do like all of them but unfortunately none of them are available when we'll be in the area. The only one that shows some limited availability is Hotel Wolf Dietrich but I'm not sure if the rooms have A/C. There is nothing about A/C in the description on their website but some reviewers did mention that they had it in the rooms. Do you by any chance have any info about that? If not, I'll contact the place directly.
Thanks!

PerfectStranger

To pja1: Many thanks for the info about the guesthouses in Mittenwald and Berchtesgaden. They look very nice and comfortable. Do you by any chance know if they have A/C in the rooms? Unlike most of the hotels their websites don't have any English translation. Thanks again!

PerfectStranger

I've managed to book a room in Hotel Blaue Gans in Salzburg (thanks to Aramis for a great suggestion) and also in Hotel Schlosskrone in Fussen. Both have A/C.
Therefore, we will be staying 2 nights in Salzburg, 2 nights in Fussen and 2 nights in Munich.
After the considerations I've decided that driving is a slightly better option in our case. Sorry, PalenQ. I'd rather use Bavaria Pass and enjoy the surroundings just like we did in Switzerland with Swiss Pass but it looks like we will save at least 1 hr every time we drive vs. trains.
Here is the question:
Should we visit Garmisch and Mittenwald on the way from Salzburg to Fussen or it would be better to take a day trip from Fussen?