I know this is a difficult question but I will try to provide as many perameters as possible. I have spent many hours on the internet searching this question so I am not asking without doing my studying. We are traveling at Christmas time between the Rothenburg market and Munich. We had hoped to spend extra days in Rothenburg and day-trip from there but our hotel of choice cannot accommodate us. I am looking for something really special between Rothenburg and Munich to spend 2 days - castle, town inn, country inn, even a really upstyle B&B. $100-$250 per night.Somewhere we will always remember our Christmas memories at this hotel/inn. We will have a car. Indoor pool, catering service amenities are not important but ambiance is. Your suggestions are truly appreciated.

The famous "Ludwig" castles are not exactly on the way from Rothenburg obT to Munich, but they aren't out of the way by much. What about staying in Fussen or Schwangau and visiting Hohenschwangau and Neuschwanstein one day, and Linderhof and the Ettal Monastery the next? There are plenty of other good sights in the area as well.

Some suggestions that may work:

Burg-Hotel Rothenburg -- the hotel in the wall

Hotel Colmberg
http://tinyurl.com/3bt3hw

Schloss Sommersdorf
http://tinyurl.com/yo675k

You are wise to be looking for reservations now. It can be difficult to find availability for only one or two nights over the Christmas holiday. Many places only book 3/5/7 day packages.

Good luck and have fun!

We ate dinner at Burg Colmberg and the restaurant was fantastic! We also loved the deer in the park around the castle. We got to peek into the rooms and they appeared quite nice, though not luxurious. Burg Colmberg isn't really in between Rothernburg obT and Munich though... it is only 15 minutes from Rothenburg obT.

There is also Burg Harburg. It is also not too far from Rothenburg, but it looks amazing.

http://www.burgschenke-harburg.de/

This castle hotel might be about half way as you specified:

http://www.933-egge.german-castles.biz/

If you like Baroque Residences, I would recommend the Park Hotel Maximilian in Regensburg. It was built in 1891. Its breakfast room has that look; my wife loved it. I am not into Baroque so I was a little less impressed:

http://www.maximilian-hotel.de/index.htm

Regensburg is a lovely city on the Danube River. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. I especially liked the river front and the Gothic cathedral. Check out the Roman ruins, Port Praetoria. There is a palace that still belongs to one of Germany's richest aristocratic families that offers tours: Thurn and Taxis Schloß. The Schloß is very near the hotel.

We got a reasonable price for the Park Hotel on HRS.com. It was much more expensive on our last visit and we stayed elsewhere.

Regards, Gary

Are you planning to be in this special hotel for Chrismtas Eve/ Christmas Day? If so, be sure to find somewhere that serves meals.

We were in Regensburg for two Christmas vacations (2002 and 2005). We stayed at the Insel Hotel Sorat, which we really like. In 2002 the hotel had all these special meals for the Christmas holdiday, which was lovely. In 2005, however, the restaurant was closed for dinner on both Christmas Eve (the big day for celebration in Germany) and Christmas night.

It was a bit difficult for me to research in advance, but I was able to find reservations for the 25th (a wonderful meal) but not for the 24th, so we did a picnic in our room. The entire town closed down at 2:00 on the 24th and stayed closed on the 25th and the 26th. It is a beautiful town, and I enjoyed walking the old streets, but there was little else to do.

The Christmas Eve service at the Dom was the most amazing Mass I've ever attended (both times). The 800-year old boy choir (Domspatzen) sang, and it was simply heavenly. To get a seat, you'd want to get there well in advance. Also, there's virtually no heat in that old building, so we wore our long undies and woolens and still were freezing (my daughter couldn't feel her feet by the end of Mass!) It was worth it, however!

The hotel is quite modern, although it is located in a former manufacturing facility on an island in the middle of the Danube. In fact, the river flows right under the hotel. We had spectacular views across the river to the Dom and the old town. The hotel's breakfast buffet is the best breakfast I've ever seen or eaten anywhere.

Regensburg has several Christmas markets, including one on the grounds of the Schloss Thurn and Taxis which features all handmade crafts (and has the craftspeople there working).

Another thought: it's not on the way, but what about Salzburg? It's an easy train ride from Munich.

I highly recommend the Greifen-Post in Feuchtwangen:

- historical town right in the middle of the Romantic Road (20 min from Rothenburg)

- historical hotel, beautiful rooms

- atmospheric public rooms

- indoor pool, sauna

- good food

- reasonable prices

http://www.hotel-greifen.de/

Ok, this is not on the way from Rothenburg to Munich, but a little beyond Munich. Residenz Heinz Winkler Aschau is one of the top hotels in Germany and Heinz Winkler one of the top Chefs:
http://www.relaischateaux.com/en/sea...urant/winkler/

After reading your post several times, and trying to anticipate your parameters, I believe that I have a good sense of what you are requesting and offer my own reflections.

I have either stayed at or done a walk through of almost each of the possibilities suggested by others so far. Without adding any new possibilities I would strongly urge that you consider Burg Colmberg. It fits the parameters you have indicated and is not pretensious, glitzy orotherwise 'touristy'. The hyperlink previously posted was that of a hotel booking site. Burg Colmberg's web site is http://www.burg-colmberg.de
The ambiance of Burg Colmberg, especially over the holidays (I did a walk through in December), will surely satisfy your wishes for a 'special and most memorable' Christmas. Should you choose Burg Colmberg, don't hesitate to ask that you be allowed to visit all of the various halls, dining rooms, the chapel, etc. Of all the castles we've visited in Europe, Colmberg is unique and not pretentious.

RE Regensburg . . . although a bit out of the way, Regensburg has a lot to offer at that time of the year. A visit to the Thurn and Taxis Palace and the 'old fashioned' Christkindl Markt there could be a most memorable experience. Peruse the web site http://www.thurnundtaxis.de/en/intro/ you may be fortunate and see Princess Gloria while there.

Regarding the Regensburg Hotel Insel Sorat; although this is ideally situated on a small island in the Danube River, with wonderful views across the river to the town, it doesn't exactly fit your criteria for ambiance. The Insel Sorat is a wonderful hotel albeit a contemporary establishment. Unless you are assigned a room on the 'river' side of the hotel your stay there would be not be much different than staying at a Hilton or Marriot, etc. There is car parking under the hotel.
http://www.sorat-hotels.com/en/hotel/regensburg.html

If the ambiance, charm and anticipated memories of your accomodations are primary . . . consider Colmberg. If your daytime activities during those two days are primary choose Regensburg. At the moment I can't recall a hotel there that fits your expectations although I'm sure other posters will produce.

Thank you all very much for your suggestions. We have already stayed at Schloss Colmberg several years ago. Enjoyed it very much but would like to try something different if possible. If not, we can always go back there again although we are already spending several nights in Rothenburg.

We are beginning to consider really special B&Bs in the general vicinity of Augusburg