Suggestions needed
 

We will be spending 1 week in Strasbourg France in June. Since we need to be there, we plan to spend the week before doing something fun. We are flying into Frankfurt.

For years I've thought the Black Forest region would be wonderful to visit so that is in our plans somewhere. Amsterdam? Munich? We don't want to spend the entire week traveling from place to place, nor do we want to visit every castle in the area - a couple would be nice.
The question is, with a free week, what suggestions come to mind?
Has anyone done the "ride - drive" plan? Would a car rental or just trains work best?

Since this may be our only European trip we want to make the most of it.
Thanks!

Stasbourg is a neat place, and it will be nice that you will be able to give it more than a day or two.
I must say that I didn't find the Black Forest all that enchanting, compared to some of the other places that you could easily see in the area.

You arrive in Frankfurt? Do you depart from there also? Do you like to drive thru the countryside, or see the very large cities??

My choice might be to rent a car, and go west and north to see some of the Rhine river valley, and the mosel river valley. Perhaps stay in Cochem and Trier. End up in Cologne to see the castle, then you could get on the autobahn and head south toward Strasbourg.

This is just a thought. There are plenty of other choices too. Venturing into France to the wine road (near Colmar). Further south in Germany to Lake Constance (Meersberg), Baden-Baden, Bavaria.
Gosh...you are making me want to go back.

We've dont the "ride-drive" program, but my opinion is to use it when you are going to do some longer distances and want to use the train for those legs of the trip.
There are so many interesting things to see within a short distance from Frankfurt and Strasbourg (even if you wander over toward munich), that I think the car would be better, and don't worry about driving over there. IT is pretty logical. Just read up on pointers.
EK

not getting many responses to this post. If you want to email me direct, feel free.
[email protected]

Well, you aren't getting many responses because you have specific questions but a very geberic title - not even mentioning the country(s) you are asking about.

Youv'e gotten some help - but you would get a lot more if you start a new thread with a useful title.

"Suggestions needed" could be asking anything about anywhere in Europe . . . . .

If you are looking for a one week itinerary prior to your visit to Strasbourg - you might consider this -

Day 1 - pick up rental car and drive one hour to the Rhine Gorge area somewhere between Rüdesheim and St. Goar. Bacharach would be a good choice. Spend two days and nights exploring the Rhine and Mosel and some of the many castles along their banks.

Day 3 - early morning drive east (approx 3 hours) to Rothenburg o.d.T. Spend rest of day and evening discovering this wonderful old walled village.

Day 4 - early morning drive south along the Romantic Road (3 to 4 hours) to the Füssen area. Length of drive depends on any stops along the way (the Altstadts of Dinkelsbühl or Nördlingen would be my choice). Spend remainder of day and all of next day exploring the Royal Castles - Oberammergau - the Wieskirche - the Ettal - Linderhof - possibly Garmisch-Partenkirchen.

Day 6 - early morning drive west along the Bodensee to the Black Forest (3 to 4 hours). Meersburg is a good village to stop for lunch and a town walk. Spend rest of this day and next day discovering the valleys and museums of the Schwarzwald.

If you choose to do something like I have outlined you can visit my webpages for recommendations of places to stay in all those locations. If you have any questions please feel free to email me at [email protected]. Have a good trip... Ben

http://www.bensbauernhof.com

I agree with bavariaben. The Romantic Road is delightful.You might think you are in Disneyland but this is for real! A bit touristy of course but most places worth seeing are. After all, we are all tourists. I was disappointed in the Black Forest area. forward to it

I agree with bavariaben. The Romantic Road is delightful.You might think you are in Disneyland but this is for real! A bit touristy of course but well worth seeing . I was disappointed in the Black Forest area. Somehow less interesting than I expected.

Thanks for the ideas!
I will post more questions with a more specific title in a day or two.
The romantic road sounds very interesting. We may be taking trains, so I'm not sure how that would work out. It is on our want-to-do list.

Looking west from Strasbourg, you are at 2 or 3 hours by train from Paris... Did that occur to you or is it a definite no-go?

Discovering Germany by train can also be a wonderful experience however by doing so you introduce a completely different factor into the equation - dependence on public transportation. Visiting castles and small villages (whether along the Rhine or deep in Bavaria) becomes more of a challenge when traveling by train and bus. Some folks prefer traveling by train (some think it's the only way to go) but even veteran train travelers would have to admit that there is usually a tradeoff in sightseeing capabilities when you do so, especially for the first time visitor not familiar with the public transportation systems of a foreign country. You can do basically the same things but there are more steps and lost time coordinating the effort. Veteran train travelers may jump all over my comments but remember that this is the first European trip for the original poster of this thread. I suggest the use of a car rental, especially if your group is more than two persons. The comment by baldrick about Paris being 2 or 3 hours by train from Strasbourg is a bit misleading. That trip by train is a minimum of 4 hours... Ben

i live in Germany, so i'm a bit prejudiced, but you MUST go to Rothenburg ob der Tauber! it is a medieval walled city that oozes atmosphere. we take all of our guests there, and they always want to go back there on return visits. it's kinda on the way to the black forest from frankfurt area. (take the a-3 past wuerzburg - see The Residenz there! - to the a-7 toward rothenburg.) about a 2-hour drive from the airport.

there are a LOT of castles in germany, but it depends on what you want. Heidelberg Castle is a great, semi-restored castle that offers regular tours in english - as well as a great view of the city! DON'T walk up from the city unless you're in great shape. there is parking up the hill. Neuschwanstein (in Fussen, southern Germany) is the fairy-tale castle. if you go there, likewise, DON'T walk unless you're in great shape. take the horse-drawn cart, which is way cool, or the tram. (about 5 hours south of frankfurt airport.) Frankenstein Castle is a nice creepy place - it's right outside Darmstadt, about a half-hour from Frankfurt Airport. it's the ruin that inspired mary shelley to write the book.

from darmstadt (the road you take to frankenstein castle), drive the bergstrasse (or take the a-5) toward heidelberg, and you will pass Alsbach, Auerbach and other cool castle remnants that can be seen from the a-5 (autobahn). you can get off and explore, or just enjoy from the road. (if you drive the road at night, many are lit up and quite impressive.

if you're driving into strasbourg, MAKE SURE your hotel offers parking; it can be expensive there. if it doesn't, check out the 24-hour parking under the train station; we've used that a few times.

in strasbourg, there's a GREAT vegetarian gourmet restaurant called Poelles de Carottes (sp?) - "carrot tops." we take all of our carnivorous friends there, and it's always the best meal of their trip!

in france, go up into the vosges mountains and see el struthof, which was a wwii concentration camp.

also verdun, which is farther east into france, is a wwi/wwii fortress historic site. very impressive - many outlying towns were destroyed (they literally "are no more") in the bombing. the area surrounding the fortress for miles resembles the texture of a golf ball; there's also a memorial trench there, where many soldiers were buried alive - the tips of their bayonets can still be seen. very moving.

ok, i'm running out of time - but not ideas! contact me if you want more advice (i live about 10 mins. from frankfurt airport!)

good luck.

I agree with the suggestion that you visit the Rhine and Mosel Valleys, but I think the area is so special, and that there is so much to see and do in adjacent regions, that you could spare yourself a lot of moving around and simply enjoy your whole week right there. I'd suggest 3-4 days on the Mosel (probably in Cochem if getting around by train) and 3-4 days on the Rhine (St. Goar if by train.) Sightseeing suggestions, including castles you can actually visit (many other castles are not accessible):

MOSEL CASTLES:
Burg Eltz (the BEST castle tour anywhere, pretty 45-min + walk each way from Moselkern station east of Cochem, or drive.)

Reichsburg Castle (right in the middle of Cochem, walk up, or taxi/shuttle if infirmed, good tour, great falconry show too.)

Burg Arras Castle/Hotel (pretty 30-min. walk from Alf, across river from Bullay; very small, not that much to see, go for the hike and a beer on the patio there.)

Marienburg (not a castle anymore, but still a nice hike from Alf to one of the most picturesque overlooks on the Mosel; cafe/restaurant at top.)

MOSEL TOWNS:
Trier, Cochem, Traben-Trarbach (all reachable by train), Bernkastel (train to Wittlich + bus connection), Beilstein (by riverboat from Cochem or by bus) and many others.

RHINE CASTLES:
Marksburg in Braubach (best on the Rhine, short but steep hike up from town or by "choo-choo" shuttle from middle of town.)

Rheinfels in St. Goar (ruined; short but steep hike from town or by "choo-choo" shuttle; what a view. Beautiful hike south through woods, pastures along the top of the cliffs toward Loreley cliffs)

Burg Maus in Wellmich (just north of and visible from St. Goar on other side of river; no castle tour, but falconry show in castle courtyard. Ferry over, then walk, bike, bus, or taxi north.)

Burg Reichenstein (Trechtingshausen - never been there myself.)

RHINE TOWNS worth a visit: Boppard, Bacharach, Oberwesel, St. Goar, Remagen WW II museum, north of Koblenz), Mainz (south) and Koblenz all on west bank; Linz (north of Koblenz; you can ferry across at Remagen and walk south into Linz), Braubach, Rudesheim, and a few others. All towns are reachable by train.

TOWNS A BIT FURTHER OUT, but do-able as daytrips:

Cologne, Heidelberg, Idar-Oberstein, Saarburg, Luxembourg (also all reachable by train.)

There probably is a small learning curve for train travel. Some stations in small towns are unmanned and require you to purchase tix from machines on the platforms, and you need to be able to read a train schedule. If you are the type of person who stresses out watching your clock, working around a schedule might be annoying. Personally, I find hassles of car travel in Europe far more annoying, but many traveling Americans prefer to have a car. This is becoming an expensive choice as prices rise, the dollar falls, and the German rail system continues to offer daypasses for very affordable travel (between 21 and 30 Euros/day/group of 5.)

I forgot to mention that on June 6 this year the "Happy Mosel" festival takes place along the Mosel; the main river road between Cochem and Schweich is closed to auto traffic for biking, rollerblading, etc. A lot of fun, but reserve ahead if you'll be there then, and don't plan to drive there that day.

Hi,

How about Switzerland? In less than three and half hours on the train you can be in Bern.

You'll want to read our Strasbourg and Bern travelogue
http://www.thetravelzine.com/40-40-strasbourgbern.htm
for restaurant suggestions and sightseeing ideas.

Have a great trip!
Don and Linda
TheTravelzine is non-commercial

Just noticed that you have posted another question. I answered you yesterday wondering why you'd want to stay in so many of the cities of Europe when there are literally thousands upon thousands of great "other" places to visit throughout the part of Europe that you are visiting. With a car, anything is possible.

There are so many places to visit. You can't go wrong. A few of the out of the way places that I don't read much about on Fodors would include:

You might look at the part of Germany that sits on the Southern most Austrian border. Obersdorf is a great city.

How about visiting Kufstein, they have a great castle there. It's a 90 minute train ride from Munich to Kufstein. From Kufstein you can easily head into Austria. Stay in any of the small towns along the way to St Johann. GrossGlockner isn't that far away from St Johann

If you want to stay around Rothenberg, why not take up a few days in towns like Bamberg, or spend some time along the Main River in Franconia and attend some of the wine fests that'll be taking place in June and July. Staying in Wurzburg might even be a possibility.

Russ and Bavarian Ben both provide excellent advice. Again, why not add a little taste of small town Europe to the tastes of big city Europe and you'll make for a wonderful trip.

Have Fun!

Winnapeg, we have narrowed our search quite a bit since I posted this in February. It gave us a place to start. We are now closing in on just Bavaria and the Black Forest regions. I posted 2 questions this week, one on German castles and one on visiting Nurnburg and have gotten great feed back. In fact we were convinced renting a car is the way to go.

We are looking for small towns, but also want to check out Munich if only for a day.
Thanks for your ideas. Can you tell me the which and why of towns you like?

I only wish I was as good as some of the others that post regularly to Fodor's.

Even though this years trip will be my 30th or so, I have usually been by myself so I typically travelled by trains. There are plenty of people out there with some excellent ideas for the out of the way places that can only be reached by car.

I do believe that I'd be giving you some good suggestions, but they'd be some of your bigger, more well known places in Germany. Towns such as Salzburg, Berctesgaden, Rhein River towns etc.

I guess that looking back, I should have done more of Europe by car but I do enjoy the occasional adult beverage and drinking and driving just doesn't match in Germany.

I'll be anxious to hear from the Bavarian Bens and Russ's of the Fodor's world to give you some of their thoughts. You might even search for suggestions from the late Wes Fowler. Wes gave only excellent advice. I know for sure that he was the absolute "king" of travel advice on these forums.

So, anyway have fun. If you find yourself around Rothenburg this June or July, maybe we'll bump into one another. I'll be in Sommerach Germany for 2 months. I am sure Rothenburg, Donaueschingen, Lake Constance, Island Mainau, Frieberg, Bamberg, Iphofen, Heidelberg, Obersdorf, the Beer Street, Kufstein, Going Austria, the GrossGlockner and even some of the smaller towns below Munich such Tegernsee and Schliersee along with a side trip to Bayrischzell might be on my list of places to do.

Have fun.

Forgot to mention airfare.

I notice you are flying into Frankfurt.

Singapore is flying June and July from JFK to Frankfurt for $557.

It's on their website and that includes the fees and taxes.

Great airline. I usally fly them whenever I can.

This time I'm flying from Philly to Frankfurt. I was fortunate enough to have the points I needed to fly for free this time.

Take care