Traveling to Garmisch-Partenkirchen
 

Has anyone taken the train from Munich to Garmisch-Partenkirchen. My starting point in Munich would be the airport. Can you share pointers or experiences? I plan to travel 1 Feb.

The Munich airport is connected with the Hauptbahnhof (Main Train Station) by a train that runs between the airport and the city frequently.

From the main station, as I recall, there are trains to Garmisch about every hour.

Check the ticket price, but remember that a one day Bavaria Pass (which you can purchase at the airport train station) allows UP TO 5 PEOPLE to travel together anywhere in Bavaria (not on the express trains, but those don't run on these routes anyway) for often less than what it costs to purchase a one way ticket.

Go to the Deutsche Bahn (they have an English version) to get timetables and prices.

It's a piece of cake and you'll be from the airport to Garmisch in about three hours.

please continue to follow this thread in our Germany forum :)

regards

chrissxb
moderator
europe forum

Great place
 

The wife and I visited in Oct, great little town. had a great dinner @ French rest on main street straight out the front doors of station down 2 blocks on right, just past the creek.


the areas main atraction is Zugspitze(2962M high)
Highest beirgarten in the World and great views, You can straddling Austria and Germany on top of the mountain. Get there early as the last train leaves the mountain for the main station ( you have to catch a second train from DB to Zugspitze, 40euro ). around 1800hr and there is lots to see up top

MUC/Bavaria is the greatest region on the planet

Its a 2+ hour train ride down to GP from MUC...........a very beautiful ride I might add. I would recommend continuing further down the line from GP into Mittenwald. (45 minutes....maybe) Mittenwald is a much smaller town and has much more of the Bavarian charm. GP is a somewhat large town with a cute old town area. Mittenwald is nothing but a cute old town.

From there you can ride the Karwendel Bahn up to a 6,000-ish ft peak and do some great hiking.

Trains run hourly from Munich to GP for much of the day.

I am thinking of doing this in a couple weeks. I found this option on the website:
http://www.zugspitze.de/zugspitze/rundreise_en.php

I would take the train from Munich to the Garmisch-P stop(?) and then how would I get to the place to catch the train for the roundtrip??

Other suggestions for things to do while there appreciated. I will be arriving to MUC at 7:35am and hope to checkin to hotel and then get to the train station in time to catch the 9:32 train to Garmisch. If this would be pushing it, I would wait to go the following day.

Hello Tazi,

Not sure how good your German is, but there's a FAQ on the German site:
http://www.zugspitze.de/diebzb/faq.php

Basically the Zugspitz train leaves from the Garmisch Central Station and takes 75 minutes. You have to change to the cog rail at Eibsee.

Die Fahrt zur Zugspitze ab Eibsee bis zum Zugspitzplatt dauert mit der Zahnradbahn 45 Minuten, mit der Eibsee-Seilbahn 10 Minuten. Ab Garmisch benötigt die Zahnradbahn bis zum Zugspitzplatt 75 Minuten.
Während der Fahrt mit der Zahnradbahn ab Bahnhof Garmisch ist aufgrund des Wechsels von Reibungs- auf Zahnradantrieb ein Umsteigen notwendig, was jedoch im Zug angesagt wird.

The schedule is here: http://www.zugspitze.de/pdf/Ganzjahr...106_Bahnen.pdf

In case you can't check into your hotel that early there are luggage lockers at the Hauptbahnhof. You could leave your luggage there and catch the train to Garmisch-Partenkirchen.

Enjoy.

Thank you roesner!

I will probably save the trip to Garmisch for Saturday morning instead of trying to do it right after arriving on an overnight flight.

Garmisch-Partenkirchen or Innsbruck?
 

I'm trying to decide if I should stay a night in Garmisch-Partenkirchen or Innsbruck. This April I will be in Munich for two nights with a flex day and then the next night in Dornbirn Austria (I will have a rental car). I like old towns and architecture that are tourist friendly, but not too touristy.

I know this is the Germany forum so it may be a little biased, but I was curious if one city stands out over the other. Any recommendations?

:D

To the previous poster, while I may be biased, I would stay in GAP any day over Innsbruck. Innsbruck bores me; for a first time even a few hours is generally enough. I will admit that the switchback road down the mountain also puts me off; going up and down is a little hair raising in bad weather

If you are interested in old towns, than INN is your choice. Also the mountains around INN are outstanding.

I'm not really biased (I love the entire region......from Germany thru Austria to Italy and over to Switzerland)............and I agree with you.

Innsbruck is a nice place.......not a thing wrong with it. But it just seemed like a somewhat large city to me. I was really looking forward to seeing it, but after visiting Munich (And a lot of Bavaria) and Salzburg first I ended up being a bit disappointed.

True, Innsbruck and Garmisch-Partenkirchen have a very different 'feel'. But I like the older and often overlooked Partenkirchen. To me it has more charm than Innsbruck. It is smaller and more rustic, but has a lot of tradition and history.

I spent several hours in Innsbruck a few months ago, trying to uncover exactly why it is so popular. Never did find out, but even in November there were masses of tourists milling around. I have been there many times; it just doesn't excite me, I suppose.

My first choice is always Salzburg, but I still don't really understand the appeal of Innsbruck. Pretty, but not that much to see.

If I am missing something, do let me know however!!