We are in the process of planning our trip to southern Germany and the Alsace region of France for next year and need advice on our itinerary. We are trying to plan out about 21-22 days and are interested in visiting Munich and smaller cities/towns/villages. We usually rent apartments and do day trips in France and Italy. This is our first trip to Germany (except for a stop in Berlin from a cruise several years ago) and we'd like to visit both Bavaria and the Rhine / Mosel Valley areas as well as Alsace, France. I've tried to limit our "hotel hopping". We always get good advice from Fodorites and would appreciate your thoughts.

If we leave from Frankfurt:

Day 1 Flight to Munich
Days 2-5 Munich (day trip to Salzburg or Nuremberg)
Days 6-7 Munich to Fussen (pick up car in Munich) see castles, Linderhof plus drive around area
Days 8-11 Alsace (should we spend 2 days in Strasbourg and 2 days in smaller wine towns or stay 4 nights in Colmar and day trip to each?)
Days 12-14 Cochem (Trier, Cochem castle, Burg Eltz, maybe Cologne if extra time)
Days 15-17 Bacharach (Marksburg castle, river cruise and bike riding)
Days 18-20 Rothenburg (with a day trip to Bamberg or Heidelberg)
Day 21 Wurzburg
Day 22 Frankfurt & home

Which city as day trip from Munich – Salzburg or Nuremberg?
Which town as day trip from Rothenburg – Bamberg or Heidelberg?
Are we spending too much time in Rhine / Mosel Valley? Would you change anything?


If we leave from Basel or Stuttgart

Days 1-7 same as above
Days 8-10 Rothenburg (day trip to Bamberg or Wurzburg) Which town would you recommend?
Days 11-13 Bacharach
Days 14-16 Cochem
Days 17-20 Alsace
Day 21 Stuttgart or Basel
Day 22 Flight home

For bike riding I would prefer the Mosel by far over the Rhine. Bike paths hug the tranquil Mosel and also the Rhine but the Rhine is also lined by busy highways and train lines on each side - not nearly as peaceful as the Mosel.

a great ride on Mosel would go from Cochem to Beilstein, about ten miles or so over one of the most awesomely scenic stretches of the scenic Mosel.

I have biked up and down the Mosel dozens of times and this is one of the primo biking venues in Europe - many hotels provide bikes and rentals abound - can rent at Cochem train station, ride up or down the river and put your bike on a train to return to Cochem if wish. Boats also take bikes - boat to Beilsetin and pedal downstream to Cochem. (winds often IME blow down the natural wind tunnel or funnel that is the deep Mosel Valley.

Your pace seems nice, but too many hotel changes IMO.

I would spend all 4 nights in Colmar and daytrip as desired to the smaller Alsatian villages (driving/train/bus time is not that onerous). If you had the chance, Gengenbach is not terribly far by car from this region--a beautiful town of half-timbered houses, virtually unknown to Americans and often described as "the Rothenburg for Germans." You can check out the city's website at www.stadt-gengenbach.de.
Likewise, I would spend all 5 nights in Bacharach and daytrip to Cochem/Winnigen/?Trier/St.Goar as desired. Again, the distances are by no means prohibitive to the Mosel villages. I spent 2 weeks in a Ferienwohnung in Bacharach a few years ago-great decision!
Are you travelling by train or car?
What time of year will you go?
If fortunate enough to be travelling in September/October, it will be new wine season along the Rhine/Mosel and in Alsace!

You may want to consider visiting the villages in the northern part of Alsace which are not part of the wine country.

From here to Strasbourg:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/...ith/4203584571

PalenQ: Thanks for the feedback on biking in Mosel vs Rhine. I did have some notes about great biking from Cochem to Bielstein, so will definitely add that my list.

Mokka4: I like your idea about reducing hotel stays; I wasn't sure if too far to travel between Rhine & Mosel valleys as day trips. I will definitely check out Gengenbach.
We will be traveling by car once we leave Munich and are planning this trip for next September. It sounds like that is the best time and most foruntate that it will be the wine season along the Rhine/Mosel and Alsace.

Michael: I have viewed most of your fantastic photos and read most of your great trip reports. I will check out the northern part of Alsace. Thanks!

Michael:
Beautiful Photos!
Which towns are these?

Click on "show info" on the top right hand side of the screen and they are identified. If there are mistakes in identity, I would like to know.

Michael: Photos are beautiful. All of these towns look charming. Which did you prefer?

should we spend 2 days in Strasbourg and 2 days in smaller wine towns or stay 4 nights in Colmar and day trip to each?)>

I would spend two days in each as each is very very different places - I enjoyed being in Strasbourg at night, with its wealth of restaurants and ambience in the main square fronting the huge cathedral.

Colmar is churchmouse quiet at night - you may even want to stay in one of the cute small wine villages that are set in rural areas with vineyards right up to town - like Riquewehr (?) or ribeauville (sp?) - I have biked along that wine road thru those villages as well so a base there would be conducive to short putzes by bike to some famous wine houses and vineyards and cute wine villages.

Hunspach is a <i>plus beau village</i>, which has its pluses and minuses.

http://www.villagesdefrance.free.fr/page_hunspach.htm

I've read comments that Mosel Valley is prettier than Rhine. If picking Bacharach vs Cochem as a base, which would you choose?

I would pick Cochem in a heartbeat. Not that Bacharach is not nice but it is a fairly modern town with a cute riverfront. Cochem is through and thru a picture postcard town, set on a lovely stretch of vineyard-carpeted river with the castle of your dreams poking out of vineyards in the town center - the castle is Ersatz but so what - this makes it even more dreamier - a pristine medieval-looking castle. and the riverfront is much more relaxed than at Bacharach where a boisterous train line is not far from it.

Winnick: Bacharach and Cochem are both very charming. Both have dozens of fabulous half-timbered buildings, nice eateries, and wineries. If i were asked to choose between them, I guess I'm more partial to Cochem overall for its atmosphere and because there's a bit more to do there, but it is also more heavily touristed and generally more crowded, which turns some people off. 2-3 days in each town, as you've planned it, is indeed the way to go.

PalenQ: Thanks, I was leaning towards Cochem vs Bacharach.

If you were day tripping from Munich, would you choose Salzburg or Nuremberg?
What about from Rothenburg - Bamberg or Wurzburg?

tough choices there winnick but I would chose Salzburg, one of Europe's most gorgeous cities IMO and also it is Austria so a bit different than a German town. Nuremburg itself was largely blitzed in last war and though has been pieced back together nicely just lacks the authentic charm of an ancient city like Salzburg is easily managed in a day trip as its centrum is compact - just 1.5 hours by hourly fast trains.

I'd do Rothenburg, but stay overnight and take the night tour of Rothenburg.

Thanks everyone for your much valued input. I will rework some of the itinerary.

PalenQ: I was leaning towards Salzburg and you confirmed that I was leaning in the right direction.