Hi all!

We have an upcoming trip to Munich scheduled 10/30-11/8 and are excited. It'll be my wife and two kids (son 9 and daughter 7). Looking for some feedback on our itinerary, as there are some "unknowns" and probably lots of "gotchas" too so was looking for some of those gaps that we can try to address or close out. This all came about originally because I have a work conference there 11/5-11/7 so decided to make a family vacation out of it. Anyway, here goes:

10/29 - Tuesday - depart LAX 6:30pm
10/30 - Wednesday - arrive 1:45pm MUC: check-in to Marriott Munich Berliner, explore Marienplatz area and grab something to eat at Viktualienmarkt
10/31 - Thursday - Munich City Exploration: Nymphenburg in the AM and English Garden in the PM.
11/1 - Friday - Grayline Tour of Neuschwanstein & Linderhof all day
11/2 - Saturday - Train to Garmisch-Partnach, Zugspitze & Partnach Gorge AM-PM and Mittenwald later in the PM
11/3 - Sunday - Train to Salzburg Austria, amphibious tour at 11:15am and Sound of Music Tour at 2pm
11/4 - Monday - Train or bus to Koenigssee AM and Berchtesgaden Salt Mine PM (I'm really uncertain of transportation/schedule/timing for this though)
11/5 - Tuesday - Conference Day 1 (starts in at 4pm) - Deutches Museum, Alte Pinakothek and Munich Residenz then meet Munich Greeter at 2pm
11/6 -Wednesday - Conference Day 2 - If rainy wife can take kids to Therme Erding. Otherwise maybe Wildpark Poing. Lego Store & Harry Potter store/shopping back in Munich later.
11/7 - Thursday - Conference Day 3 - Elements Boulders, maybe Olympiapark (wife didn't seem to ecstatic about this, and the tower is closed too)
11/8 - Friday - Depart MUC 12:00pm

My wife is pretty apprehensive about the idea of her taking the kids out and around on her own in an unfamiliar city so I'm just trying to encourage her to do her best. She's pretty low-key and a homebody though so she will definitely be out of her element. In terms of interests, she's all about landmarks (as shallow as it sounds, she just likes to know that she hit the major landmarks, got a picture, and "has been there" lol) and more importantly good food hahaha. For the kids: my son is doing AYSO so loves playing soccer (not sure how much he'd like just watching) and is learning ukulele. My daughter loves art/drawing/painting and is learning piano. Both like pretend playing, playing with Legos, playing Roblox and Minecraft and running around/climbing stuff/etc... pretty normal 'kid stuff' if you will. We have taken them to aquariums and zoos here in California (Monterey Bay Aquarium, Aquarium of the Pacific, SD Zoo, SD Safari park, etc) and I wouldn't say those excite them *as* much but that's why I haven't listed Sea Life or the Munich Zoo as possibilities above. One thing they do love is boat rides though, so anywhere I can fit something like that involving water is a huge plus. And swimming is great too, which is why I added Therme Erding (quite a few ppl have suggested this on other forums and groups)

Anyway, any feedback and suggestions would be much appreciated!

“She's pretty low-key and a homebody though so she will definitely be out of her element. In terms of interests, she's all about landmarks (as shallow as it sounds, she just likes to know that she hit the major landmarks, got a picture, and "has been there" lol) “

Goodness, you would consider me shallower than shallow! I don’t even get a picture.
But you would not believe the thrill I get, seeing in person something I have seen or will see on the news.
And I 1000% feel in my element. (Perhaps reconsider how you speak about your wife? Lol)

If she read that she would agree LOL. I don't mean it to sound as bad as I guess it came off but she has said that about herself - she really doesn't care as much about all the facts and 'deeper' things behind historical sites, etc and would rather just say "Been there done that" - she definitely just enjoys being "in the moment" and with her loved ones. And of course getting pictures helps solidfy the memory for her.

Worst thing I ever saw in my 40 years of travel: Mona Lisa//Louvre. Bus load of Asians, 50 of them took over the viewing area, took selfies in front of the most famous work of art in the world and then turned and left. Not one person actually admired the beauty. Same in Oslo at the The Scream. The same folks posed in front of the artwork pretended to be the famous character on the bridge snapped photos/selfies and simply walked away. Sad

mmh, somehow no-one has really picked-up on this thread. am I the only one thinking this is very ambitious? Nov 1-4 is one fully packed day after the other, each time involving lengthy commutes...

some other details:
11/1 - note that this is a public holiday in Bavaria (and lots of parts of Germany). it will not affect you much, just that you know. usually, you can organise Neuschwanstein pretty much by yourself at a fraction of the cost of a tour, however there are currently maintenance works on that line and there is a bus replacement for parts of the journey - so an organised trip will save your family hassle and time, therefore likely money well spent.

11/2 - make sure to check the weather beforehand, no use going up the Zugspitze if it's all cloudy. don't forget it will be pretty cold up there (below zero) and howling wind is also a strong probability. I wouldn't leave Munich later than with the 8:32 train (Bayernticket is good all day on weekends). even then, you will arrive at Zugspitzplatt roughly 11:30, i.e. the peak at noon by the earliest. now including the Partnach-gorge, I really wonder whether it will be worth going on to Mittenwald. it's a small place and you can see everything noteworthy rather quickly (and don't forget it gets dark early), but even if you get an early dinner it will be really late once you return to Munich. well, you can always decide spur of the moment. note that Zugspitze cable car and trains close for maintenance on Monday, 11/4, in case you want to shift plans.

11/3 - some snag here: again, track maintenance, this time near Salzburg, i.e. no through trains, travel times almost double. my suggestion would be either Flixbus or switching to Monday, if possible (when the regular schedule kicks in again).

11/4 - not familair with that area, so can't comment on feasability

11/5 - three museums until noon (roughly)? choose one (and let the kids decide or split up - imo)

THANK YOU… lol

so for 11/2-11/5 i will likely be renting a car due to the track maintenance. Ive been following the weather and it seems like it might be good in Garmisch on 11/2. We will be driving up prob 9:30am after getting the car from Munchen HBF. We will do Zugspitze first, then Partnach Gorge, and then may consider taking the train from Garmisch to Mittenwald just so the kids can at least experience one proper train ride while there

11/3 we are now planning to drive out to Berchtesgaden/Konigssee then spend the night in Salzburg and drive back 11/4. The car we would return 11/5 in the morning and probably will do Nymphenburg after that for most of that day until meeting the Munich greeter at 3pm. I will have to head back to the hotel as my work events start at 4pm

while I normally always recommend the train, I think under these circumstances a rented car might indeed be the better choice. note that the A95 motorway to Garmisch has a rep of being a speedsters highway: few speed limits, little traffic. please drive responsibly.

the train ride between Mittenwald is pretty, albeit pretty short, too (and don't forget dusk). in case you want your kids to enjoy a 'proper train ride', and looking at your further schedule, one more idea: the track between Munich and Nuremberg is one of the actually few dedicated highspeed-tracks in Germany (surprisingly often it's just fast trains on slower tracks). your Wednesday/Thursday schedules appear to have some slack.

so if your wife and kids start after the rush hour, maybe from 9am onwards, there are currently still plenty of cheap saver fares around € 20/trip left (Wednesday seems to be slightly cheaper compared to Thursday). be aware that in Germany kids up to the age of 14 (accompanied by a fare-paying adult) travel free on long-distance trains, so that would be roughly 40-50 Euro for a (half-)daytrip to Nuremberg. you _must_ however indicate the number of kids when booking your ticket (there will be just no charge for them). don't forget that saver fares are train specific and non-refundable, so if your plans change, you won't get reimbursed (or you need to pick a more expensive flex-fare). right now they have an offer of 12%-off if you book until 10/29 midnight (local time, so whatever that is at your place).

make sure to pick a train that doesn't stop in Ingolstadt, so your kids can enjoy going up to 300kph on a sleek train for most of the time (which is just one hour per trip). 2nd class is fine, and while you can book seats, it's nothing they will actually need (there is a coach dedicated to families where there should be plenty of space at that time of day). or they can drop by the restaurant car and just enjoy a (quite decent) hot chocolate (as the trains won't be busy around that time, they should be able to just stay seated there the whole time if they like). displays indicating the trains' speed can be found in the coaches and near the doors, however not in the restaurant car afaik. children usually get a colouring book and a small toy-train, too, yet normally you have to wait for the conductor to hand your kids a voucher (sometimes they can be reluctant if they realise you're not spending that long on the train, however it never hurts to ask with a smile, either the conductor or directly at the restaurant car, where you need to head anyway to get the kids stuff).

book directly from the source at https://int.bahn.de/en - tickets come as a pdf mail attachment that your wife can either print at home or just display from her phone (or use the DB Navigator App, which is great for checking real-time timetables/delays). in Munich, the train should be waiting at the platform probably 10mins before departure, maybe even earlier, in Nuremberg you just hop on. sidenote: DB German Railways does have some issues with punctuality. most important passenger rights: in case your train has an expected delay of 20+ mins you are entiteld to switch to any other train, same applies in case your booked train is cancelled. if you arrive 60+mins delayed you are entitled to a (partial) refund.

I haven't been to Nuremberg for a long time, but I recall a pleasant enough old-town. the famous Christkindl-market doesn't start until the end of Novemeber, however the traditional gingerbread should be availbale throughout the year. theoretically there are a number of interesting museums as well (https://tourismus.nuernberg.de/en/), yet maybe your family would not mind taking it easy for a change.

Thanks for the suggestions! Nuremberg was a place that wasn't really too on the map for us but maybe I'll have my wife consider taking the kids there during one of my conference days. Else, we were talking about her taking them to Therme Erding or Wildpark Poing on one day (prob Nov 5th). We'll see and play it by ear. We will be on the road (via car) Nov 2nd, 3rd and 4th either way so at least for myself not a ton of time being spent around Munich itself (or closer cities).