Graciecatt

We have 3 days to spend in inner Germany - Mon Nov 12 - Thursday morning Nov 15. We have never been to Germany and do not speak the language at all.

We are coming from Dresden and need to be back there Thursday afternoon.

My husband and I want to see things that are in different directions so we tried to prioritize.

Here's what I've come up with - please comment with suggestions!

Monday -
- morning - fly to Munich from Dresden
- check into hotel - Marriott Munich
- explore Munich
- Marienplatz
- Deutsches Museum
- Munich Residenz
- beer at Hofbrauhaus

Tuesday -
- train to Neuschwanstein Castle - what train? will I find it at bahn.de?
- see the Church in the Meadow at Steingaden - how would I get there?
- back to Munich

Wednesday -
- train (or rental car - seems more direct and easier?) to Rothenburg ob der Tauber
- Explore Rothenburg
- train/rental car back to Munich

Thursday -
- check out of hotel
- morning Lufthansa flight to Dresden

Options -

1 - Don't go to the Church in the Meadow and get back to Munich faster to see more of city

2 - Other? I'm open to suggestions!

Thanks for your advice!

etch5895

Rent a car to get out to Neuschwanstein/Hohenschwangau. You will want to get your tickets early. The closest train station is Fuessen, if I recall, but you will probably want the flexibility of a car.

Your first day looks a little too busy. The Deutsches Museum deserves a little more time.

Train or rental car up to Rothenburg, but it will be a long trip. The car once again gives you a little more flexibility, but I'd opt for the train in this case as your trip won't be as time sensitive as the castles trip.

CubsFanJohn

Correct regarding Fuessen. They do have a Bus that meets the train to go to the Castles. I would 2nd the recommendation of getting the tickets early. I wouldn't wait until you get there. Also I'd do the rental car recommendation because the Train isn't exactly the fastest.

Heidelberg Barbie

I agree with etch5895, the Deutsche Museum deserves and needs more time. It is quite extensive. My opinion is, Munich needs more time ( I love Munich!).

I'd think staying within the general sphere of Munich might be more time-effective. Why not visit the Cloisters Andechs. Dopple Bock Bier and a nice Haxen, a visit to the beautiful church.

Salzburg is closer to Munich then is Rottenburg ob der Tauber.

Driving in Germany is not a difficult endeavor and distances are not what they are in the USA but you don't want to spend all your time on the road. I'd spend more time in Munich.

Certainly one should visit the Nymphenburg Palace or the Viktualienmarkt or Olympia Stadium? The Chinesischer Turm in the Englische Garten? So much to do in Munich!

Graciecatt

I was already thinking about a car rather than a train. I am getting my international permit next week.

How can I get tickets early? Like online? Now? I thought the train would be OK since Neuschwanstein is such a tourist destination but maybe now that I think of it, that might be an even better reason to drive.

thank you for the suggestions - yes there is way too much to see and do. I hadn't thought of Salzburg! I will look into that.

But I really want to know about how to get early Neuschwanstein tickets!

bqkali

Show up at the ticket office as soon as they open. You cannot buy tickets online, though you can get more info on the official website: http://www.neuschwanstein.de/englisch/tourist/index.htm

I love Munich and could easily spend the entire time there, but if you are set on going to all 3 locations, have you considered driving from Neuschwanstein directly to Rotheburg o.d.t. rather than returning to Munich inbetween as day trips? It would save you some time.

Graciecatt

According to google, it's about 2 hours to Neuschwanstein from Munich. Then Neuschwanstein to Rothenburg is about 2 1/2 hours. The website says tickets go on sale at 0900 and the castle opens at 1000. But we would spend, what, a couple hours at Neuschwanstein - so say we leave there at 1300 to account for lunch then drive 2 1/2 hours to Rothenburg. That would be around 1630 and the day would be over. So then we'd have to sleep near Rothenburg. I'm not sure I really want to do that. Am I missing something though?

Heidelberg Barbie

Check at the hotel at which you are staying and see if they can book the trip for you? You may be able to do that online before you get there by emailing direct to the Marriott in Munich. Or at least ask the question.

Graciecatt

Great idea! Thank you!

FLYGVA

The Marriott Munich is the one in Munich, not the one at the airport?

The Marriott Munich is actually closer and easier to reach by Lufthansa Airport bus (http://www.airportbus-muenchen.de/cms/en/home/) to stop Schwabing Nord. It is less than five minutes to walk to the hotel from there. There is a google maps with the line and the bus stop available.

You can check in or leave your luggage and the hotel and take the underground (direct service) to Marienplatz. The Munich public transportation network could be found here: http://www.mvv-muenchen.de/en/homepage/index.html and a map is here: http://www.mvv-muenchen.de/fileadmin...tz_2012_en.pdf

The Marriott is next to stop Nordfriedhof on U6 (blue line).

And skip Deutsches Museum, it is a museum for a day or even more, but not really worth the money for less than half a day.

bqkali

I was just trying to point out by that method you save roughly 2 hours in total driving time by not returning to Munich for the night and instead overnighting in Rothenburg o.d.t. I prefer not to spend a lot of time on the road if I don't have to, sounds like you'd prefer to spend the night in Munich.

You are not missing anything, and there's nothing wrong with returning to Munich for the night. Just wanted to suggest another option in case you hadn't considered it

oliver2002

Neuschwanstein is a day trip, don't try to do more that day. November can be pretty rainy, and you will regret being stuck in traffic driving a car in unfamiliar rules. Munich Salzburg is also not a nice drive, its mostly on the Autobahn and you will get lost in Salzburg, besides the expense or time wasted to find parking. Go to Munich, take the bus to the Marriott or the S-Bahn to the other hotel you select, and use public transport. As mentioned before a Bayernticket will cover your day trip to Salzburg and the next day a new Bayernticket will cover you to Fuessen.

Trust me, you will come back to Munich, so don't rush to see it all.

Graciecatt

Yes. I think it was your advice from my other thread. I couldn't get rooms at the Courtyard East or the Residence Inn East - both seem to be booked for weeks.

Thank you for these websites. I would never have found them - nor would I have found the way from Tegel to Schonefeld without your help.

I know the Bayernticket is super affordable but I read that the trains to Fussen only leave Munich once an hour and the bus to Neuschwanstein only leaves every half hour. So I was thinking that if we missed a train to Fussen, we'd be wasting an hour hanging around - and that there was the possibility of a lot of hanging around during the day between bus and train if we just missed a connection.

And we are trying not to rush to see it all - you should have seen the list of things we pared down while prioritizing! I wish we had a couple of weeks.

FLYMSY

Why?

You don't need one. I've been to Germany about 60 times in the last 10 years, latest trip was 2 weeks ago, rented a car each time and never needed the int'l permit.

Also, IMHO, you are trying to do too much with too little time - a little too typical American-style drive-by tourism. But, you'll finally realize it, if you follow your described itinerary.

szg

You can drive the B304 to SZG, so no need to go for the highway. There are a lot of "Park & Ride" options to go to the city, so you don't have to waste the time for searching a parking place. Going by train with the Bayernticket is a great option.