Must...Fly!

Hi all!

My brother and I are doing a quickish 3 and a bit week trip through Europe in July.

We have filled in most of the itinerary with things we want to do, however we have a spare 3 nights between departing Nice and arriving in Frankfurt where we intend to stay for 5 nights due to its cheap hotels and relative proximity to Hockenheim for the German Grand Prix.

So for these 3 nights I have decided that we should spend it in Germany, since my brother speaks almost fluent German as a result of studying the language at school.

Berlin is currently in the lead, with Munich a close second, and Dusseldorf is always an option.

Does anyone have any opinions on which city is best to spend 3 nights in?

Cheers!

zigzagg900

I would say Berlin. Also Geneva is beautiful.

chrissxb

go to Berlin or Hamburg.

what are you interested in? what do you want to do? a little more information would help us to guide you more ...

EzzerBKK

As you are going to the German GP, assume you are into Cars, why not get to Munich, rent a BMW, go visit BMW, then keep driving up to see Porsche and Mercedes before the GP?

Alternatively, visit Nurburgring and all the other car related interests nearby from Dusseldorf

MSPeconomist

I vote for Munich.

Must...Fly!

Alas, I do not have a license that would allow me to do such a thing!

And just quietly, we have both already been to the Nurburgring, even if for just one day...2009 German GP

However I really love the idea of going to visit the BMW factory, and after looking it is reachable by the U3 route on the U-Bahn. That is one extra point to Munich!

We are both pretty keen on sports and I have a keen interest in WW2, but I wouldn't want to drag my brother around looking at that stuff, I'm too good a bro for that . We are not really looking for anything in particular.

The days we are there will likely be Monday-Thursday, so no weekend days.

Monty_GER

Since the Soccer league season is over when you are there, you should look up if there are other interesting sports events to that time. Visiting one of the relatively nice big stadiums (Munich, Gelsenkirchen, Dortmund) can be an event.

History can be a big point in nearly every big city but Berlin has a very special attitude because of the more recent german history. Tripadvisor may have some good ideas.

S.

757DUD

If you both are into sports, just visit in Berlin the Olympic Stadium gives you plenty to see.
757DUD

dexteraug

I would vote for Munich, Hamburg and Berlin. It's cheap to travel in Germany, if you think you won't be too tired, you should at least visit 2 of these 3 cities.

etch5895

I would say Munich, followed by Cologne, followed by Dresden.

Vidic15

Seconded or Berlin.

Munich for me though - much smaller, easy to navigate, people seem to be friendly as well.

Oh and the Beer.

pbiflyer

Berlin has better nightlife than Munich.
If you go to Munich, see the Deutsches Museum. Amazing place for technology and some WWII stuff. http://www.deutsches-museum.de/en/information/

Must...Fly!

Thanks for all the advice! We actually decided on Munich, then realised how hard it would be to get there from Rome. Berlin works nicely though, as there is a 6pm flight out of FCO on AirBerlin, so Berlin is the answer for 3 nights!

So the new question is where to stay in Berlin...there are no shortage of hotels, and I can't seem to get my head around the city, it just looks so big!!

Is there a particular hotel or area I should look at?

The Hilton looks interesting, although it seems a bit on the expensive side. The Grand Hyatt and Swissotel seem excellent as well. Eurostars Berlin is also a consideration.

I've found some excellent rates. The Grand Hyatt is at Potsdamer-Platz. The Swissotel is near the Zoo/Kaiser Wilhelm church. The Hilton is at Gendarmenmarkt.

If anyone could give me an idea of where is best, or if they have another region I should look at, I'd appreciate it greatly. Thanks!!

orthar

To oversimplify things - if you're planning on seeing the 'classic' historical sites/museums - stay on the east side of the Tiergarten (not by the zoo).

What's your price range for hotels? Fortunately, Berlin can suit pretty much any budget..

Must...Fly!

Thanks for the advice

Trying to stick to 120EUR or less per night. (the hyatt can be had for only a few euros more than this)