I recently took my sister on her first European adventure and she's already clamoring for another. So we've begun a preliminary itinerary to see all the Vermeers and Klimts that we can in Germany and possibly Vienna as well, next April. We will have as many as 11 days, excluding travel.

Initially my thoughts are, with x being unknowns as of now:

Fly into Frankfurt, spend x days -- thinking the day we land and that night, moving on later the next day
Fly to Berlin, spend 5 days (daytrip to Brunswick for Vermeer, daytrip/possible overnight to Dresden)
Fly to Vienna, spend x days (1 possibly 2, she is falling in love with the museums there already)
Fly to Munich, spend 2 days (because we should if we're there) and fly home from Munich.

We could also do this in the reverse, but I'm told Munich is extremely interesting and I don't want to be jetlagged there.

Now, my knowledge of Germany is limited, but I definitely want to see Berlin and Dresden and care little about Frankfurt and Brunswick other than their Vermeers, is this reasonable? Flights seem short and cheap, but I haven't investigated trains or a better more logical itinerary. I have already been to Vienna, but would spend 2 days there if only to see more museums and revisit Schonbrunn. We'd be going so she could see the Vermeers and Klimts there.

Any thoughts are greatly appreciated, particularly if there is a source of Klimts we may have missed! ;-)

> Flights seem short and cheap, but I haven't investigated trains or a better more logical itinerary.

Flying from Frankfurt to berlin doesn´t really make sense, unless you get a very cheap one.
Ditto Vienna to Munich.
As a general rule: If the train journey takes 4 h or less, you will be faster at your destination (not to mention more stress-free) by train than by plane. If the train journey takes 6 h or more, plane makes sense even if it is more expensive. In between, just go for what you prefer or what is cheaper (but don´t forget taking in account the transportation costs to and from the airport).
For train transportation see www.bahn.de

I can´t comment on Vermeers, but Munich has a wealth of 19th/early 20th century art museums which easily rivals Berlin or Vienna.

If you did want to see some of the bucolic countryside you'll be flying over then investigate the trains and the new Germany-Austria Eurailpass which would be worth it if doing this all by rail - very manageable and you'll see something besides airports.

Hi, I traveled from Vienna to Munich recently and it is a beautiful train ride. Also, if you can somehow add an extra day to Munich, a day trip to the Bavarian Alps is well worth the time and money (of course, if you take the suggestion to get a rail pass it will be included). It is still a good idea to have two days in Munich, especially if you intend to see the museums. Munich is such a jolly city, and the alpine countryside is so lovely, it would be a shame not to give them that extra time.

As you probably know Dresden has these two fantastic Vermeers and some more excellent pictures of that era of similar style.

I agree that Frankfurt doesn't offer much.

You should research airfare from Dresden to Vienna. It makes sense to spend three days in Berlin and two in Dresden IMO and then fly from here to Vienna.

It's really a shame you won't see anything of the beautiful countryside ...

Thank you all so far. This is the kind of feedback that can really help the itinerary.

I've been on some rides in Europe that were supposed to be interesting but I couldn't wait to get the heck off the train. If the ride MUC-VIE is indeed nice, we will certainly consider that. And I would definitely consider more time in Munich since my sister works for people who are from there and they say we'd love it.

>I've been on some rides in Europe that were supposed to be interesting but I couldn't wait to get the heck off the train.

The reason to take a train on many relations (such as Munich-Vienna or Frankfurt-Berlin) are not that the rides themselves are somehow special, but very simply, that you reach your goal (central Berlin or Munich) faster and with less stress. Trains are not some quiant tourist rides but just a normal, often high quality/speed means of transportation in this part of the world.

With only 11 days, might consider the following:

Day 1 - Connect in FRA for flight to Berlin. Or fly directly to Berlin. IMO Berlin much more interesting than Frankfurt.

Berlin - 2 more days

Train to Dresden - 2 days

Fly Vienna - 3 days

Train to Munich - 3 days. Munich's one of our favorite cities in Europe and you'll find more than enough to do if you were there a week.

Then home.

Frankfurt is a must for the Vermeer. Otherwise we wouldn't stop at all!

I wouldn't shortchange Berlin. 2-3 days isn't enough. You should go to Potsdam as well as seeing the art museums.

Vienna will take 2 days minimum to see the museums and the Schonbrunn, but you know that, having been there.

For Dresden, include at least one overnight. We did 2, arriving late one day and leaving in the am two days later. Try for the Green Vault - it really is amazing. I went to both Green Vaults and the Old Masters museum in one day, and it was a bit exhausting, but do-able.

I guess I'd do it:
Frankfurt- 1 night
Berlin- 4 nights (incl. Potsdam)
Dresden- 1 night
Vienna- 2 nights
Munich-2 nights

Any extra time I'd give to Vienna and/or Berlin.

Here's a link to my (long) trip report to Berlin/Dresden, with photo links: http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...p;tid=34981792
The Dresden section has a detailed account of the Green Vaults, and how to obtain tickets on the day. If you book early enough, you may be able to get your tickets online. The vaults shouldn't be missed - and are right across the street from the Zwinger, which has the Old Masters.

Thanks, noe847, I love trip reports like that, so I'll dig into that next. I agree that we should spend more time in Berlin, so I will continue to plan for that. Good to know that Dresden is worth an overnight too.

check on possible overnight trains - you can sleep on them and miss the extra cost of a hotel room. Personally, I found Munich and Bavaria more interesting than Berlin or Frankfurt. we use Frankfurt as a landing spot and immediately move out.