Please provide suggestions on Germany Itinerary
 

I'd appreciate any advice on the proposed itinerary below for a two week visit to Germany in September of 2010.

Some specifics, I'm a single male traveling alone, I plan on traveling by rental car the entire time in Germany, photography is a favorite hobby so a goal is good photo opportunities, I am more of a morning person than one to hit the nightlife so I plan on getting out early every day, I do enjoy good wine and quality hand crafted beers, some of the destinations chosen for overnight stays allow me the opportunity to use up hotel free stay points (Hilton/Marriott) of which I have many. This will be my third trip to Europe with other countries visited in the past being Prague, Czech Republic, Paris, France and Greece.

9/18/10 Arrive by plane in Frankfurt, spend the night in Mainz

9/19/10 Spend the day exploring Mainz, spend the night in Mainz (gives me a chance to get over the jet lag)

9/20/10 Drive up highway B9 along the Rhine exploring the castles and towns. Spend a night around Oberwesel or Boppard (possibly in the Schönburg Castle)

9/21/10 Side trip to Eltz Castle and then to Zell or Beilstein to spend a night, again exploring along the way

9/22/10 Drive to Trier along the Mosel river arriving early enough to do some walking around. Spend the night in Trier

9/23/10 Spend the morning in Trier and then drive to Heidelberg stopping at any interesting stops along the way. Spend the night in Heidelberg

9/24/10 Explore Heidelberg. Spend a second night in Heidelberg.

9/25/10 Drive to Rothenburg ob der Tauber. Spend the night.

9/26/10 Explore Rothenburg ob der Tauber, spend a second night in Rothenburg ob der Tauber

9/27/10 Drive to Stuttgart stopping at any interesting stops along the way. Spend the night in Stuttgart
9/28-29/10 Explore Stuttgart including Volksfest, the Porsche museum and the Mercedes Benz museum. Spend the nights in Stuttgart.

9/30/10 Drive to Frankfurt and spend the night there (primary goal this day is just travel)

10/1/10 Board flight from Frankfurt to home.

Am I biting off too much to chew? The distances don't look that great but it is hard to judge without experiencing it. This is still a work in progress so I'm open to and would appreciate any other suggestions. Are there any sites along the proposed route that are a "can't miss"?

Thanks for any help!

Rothenburg is cute but IMHO Trier has more to see - esp if you're interested in Roman ruins. I would add the day to the latter and make the former a shorter stay.

for my taste too many stops. I prefer not moving hotels unless I have to - and doing day trips instead.

I agree with nytraveler, too many stops. The first time we went to Germany our itinerary looked a bit like yours. We didn’t see much of what we’d planned. Germany is best enjoyed at a much slower pace, imo.

Make day trips.

I don't think your itinerary is that bad. You have several 2 nighters and if you are comfortable with the pace, then go for it.

My husband is also a serious photographer and we have been to many of the places on your itinerary as Germany is one of our favorite countries.

We have stayed at the Auf Schoenburg Hotel in Oberwesel and it is a beautiful setting and lovely hotel. We also stayed in Beilstein at the Haus Lipmann which I can also recommend.

About an hour's drive from Heidelberg is Bad Wimpfen on the Neckar River. I always recommend this lovely little town to anyone traveling in the area. Also, if you can work in stops in Schwaebisch Hall and Dinkelsbuhl on your way to Rothenburg, I think you'll find them quite interesting.

Here is a link to our webshots website if you are interested:

http://community.webshots.com/user/dkubiak

Personally, I'd probably skip Rothenburg altogether, and spend more time in the West/SW than going East all the way just to see Rothenburg. Possibly go from Trier via Luxemburg, Speyer, upper Alsace to Stuttgart (with 1-2 nights on the way), and sort Heidelberg at the end of the trip because of its proximity to Frankfurt airport.
But again, that is just taste, and not any factual reasoning.

You wrote that you want a car for the whole trip - but you don't need it for the first 2 nights in Mainz. It's just a short hop with suburban trains from FRA to Mainz, and you can pick up the car there on 9/20.

I'd skip Rothenburg, too. When in Heidelberg, add a side trip to Ladenburg instead. 15 minutes by car or train. Since the little place is not overrun by tourist hordes it will be better than Rothenburg for a photographer. Some tips and impressions by yours truly here: http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/f86bd/aa6e/

Great comments by everyone. Thanks! The only concern I have with day trips vs overnight stays in multiple towns is catching the “Golden Hours” for photography which is much easier when I’m staying in the town I’m shooting. Looks like I'll have to reconsider Rothenburg though. Cowboy, we were on the same page for the most part as I had already made the rental arrangements as you suggested except I'm picking it up on the 19th as I want an early start on the 20th. Great photos bettyk, thanks for sharing. Thanks for the info on Ladenburg quokka! It definitely looks like it is worth looking into.

A whole day in Rothenburg is a bit much for me, having been there several times but as a base i would consider, if not enough to do in the town itself for the whole day, driving the Romantik Road to nearby Dinkelsbuhl, to me even dreamier than Rothenburg - or at least as dreamy.

Ah, yes, the "golden hours". That's why my husband was up at the crack of dawn so many mornings!

Maybe you should think about leaving out Rothenburg this trip and adding Tuebingen. It's an amazing university town with a town square to rival the best of them! Also nearby are two wonderful little towns -- Hechingen and Herrenburg -- as well as Burg Hohenzollern. My husband got some really great photos while we were in this area. (He's had 3 Featured Albums on Webshots, not a small feat!)

http://travel.webshots.com/album/561038806XxDcvw

rothenburg gets all the hype and it is cute but there are yes other towns just as cute IMO and that are not plastic museum towns like i find Rothenburg still is in September - tour bus group central!

More great suggestions. Thanks again! Looks like I have some homework the next few weeks to do some rerouting. But, that is why I like to start this process WELL in advance as I usually go through multiple iterations of my itinerary as I continue to research and learn more about the area. That is half the fun of taking a trip like this!

More jewels in the surroundings of Heidelberg would include the 18th century palace gardens of Schwetzingen, the wine villages in Palatine during wine harvest, the Romanesque Cistercian monastery of Maulbronn, Michelstadt in the Odenwald hills, the Neckar valley with Hirschhorn, Neckargemünd, Dilsberg... You could easily fill two weeks in that region alone.

Hi,

Just my opinions...

You can get to the Rhine from Franfurt airport easily in about an hour and a half. I'd spend the first night somewhere along the Rhine. We loved visiting Marksburg Castle!

We based for 4 nights in Valwig, across the Mosel from Cochem. From Cochem Burg Eltz is about 30 minutes away and Trier is about an hour away (via highway). Our favorite towns on the Mosel are Cochem and Bernkastel.

I wouldn't skip Rothenberg ob der Tauber. Touristy, yes, but nothing else is Rothenberg. Plus, in the morning and evening, it's pretty quiet. We went in mid October and in the evening we felt we had the entire town to ourselves. The other draw for us in and around Rothenberg was to see two 500 year old wood carved alter masterpieces done by Tilman Riemanschneider. One is in St. Jacobs church in Rothenberg and the other in nearby Creglingen in the Herrgottskirche. Simply amazing.

www.herrgottskirche.de

If interested, we have photo's at:

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

www.worldisround.com/home/pja1/travel15.html

We also have a "trip report" of these are's that you may find helpful:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ith-photos.cfm

(note: the Hotel Rebenhof in Valwig's website is incorrect, it should read
www.hotel-rebenhof.com)

Paul

I lived in Stuttgart for 2.5 years and you've pretty much come up with my dream vacation through those parts. The Mosel/Rhein region is my favorite region of Germany (so far, at least - there is much I have yet to see).

As it stands, I don't think your itinerary is too hectic. My husband and I travel at that pace frequently, trying to set a balance between spending time in a place and seeing as much as we can. We also love to drive, so the travel through the countryside is a big part of the experience. (Since you mention the auto museums, I am guessing you are a car guy as well.) While the Autobahn is awesome for getting from point A to point B as fast as possible, it is also fun to meander your way through the small towns on the secondary routes - especially if you have a good navi (GPS).

Of course, you are now juggling a dozen more worthwhile suggestions for places to visit, which could make your itinerary a wee bit more hectic. You do have a number of travel days that would give you time to stop at some of these places en route...just be sure to map out your route and don't bite off more than you can chew. On big travel days we always tried to avoid driving more than about 4 hours, as estimated by online mapping tools, which gives you time to stop and smell the roses - or take photos, as the mood strikes.

bettyk and I share similar opinions on all things German, and she has already given good advice. I second her recommendations of Tuebingen, Schwaebisch Hall, Bad Wimpfen, and Burg Hohenzollern. I can also vouch for Haus Lipmann in Beilstein on the Mosel - a favorite among Fodorites. Beilstein is tiny, but gorgeous. The view from the castle ruins above the village is spectacular in the evening.

I personally would still recommend a visit to Rothenburg. Yes it is touristy, but there is a reason why it is one of the most popular attractions in Germany - it is beautiful, and you just can't beat those spectacular town walls and towers. For a slightly different experience you might consider staying at Burg Colmberg, just a short drive from Rothenburg(www.burg-colmberg.de). It is a true castle - not quite as grand as the Schoenburg (my favorite hotel in Germany) but very atmospheric.

Stuttgart is a great city and you will enjoy the museums and the Volksfest.

Unfortunately I only have a small subset of my photos online, but here are a few that may be of interest:

Mosel (first day) and Rhine (last day):
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hausfra...7603934765680/

Stuttgart and environs:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hausfra...7603855868390/

Lastly, if you really are a car nut and have some cash to burn, you might consider a detour to the Nordschleife at the Nuerburgring, where you can take a ride in an M5 or a Viper for a few hundred dollars:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hausfra...7603916783879/

hausfrau, I think it was you who turned me on to Burg Hohenzollern which was a fabulous recommendation. As far as I'm concerned, you really can't go wrong with most places in Germany. It always seems to come down to having enough time and money but there are beautiful places around every corner.

Hmmmm, this looks very interesting! We really loved Germany and lind of wanted to do Berlin and someplace else. Too far?

Yes, keep Rothenburg. The views from the walls provide good camera angles. I thought Dinklesbuhl was nice, but not as picturesque as Rothenburg.

The middle Rhine/Mosel parts of your trip are close to one another. You could stay on the nearer Mosel, say in Cochem, for both -- if you want to cut down your transfers. But it sounds like you don't for good reason.

We loved the Mosel. Whereas I think Trier and Heidelburg only require about a day each.

I'd never skip Rothenburg. More photos per square meter there than anywhere

hausfrau - i was surprised at the controversy over the redevelopment of Stuttgart's main train station area -some humungous development-any insights? Cheers

Palenque, that rail development (known as Stuttgart 21) was still in the planning stages when we left at the end of 2007. As I understand it, the idea is to modernize the existing rail system, redevelop some areas around the train station, and make it easier for regional trains to move through Stuttgart. There has been stiff opposition from the Green party and locals - apparently they have had little say in the design process because the funding is coming from regional and federal sources. As far as I know the project is still moving forward as planned, with construction scheduled to begin next year.