Car or Train - Munich/Salzburg/Berchtesgaden

Germany has the best rail system in Europe. It's far more extensive and only 1% less dense than Switzerland's. There are over 5400 rail stations in Germany, over 90% of which are small stations in rural towns.

In Bavaria, there are over 1000 stations, and the rail system in southern Bavaria is augmented by a major bus network, RVO, run by German Rail.

In short, there is no need for a car in Bavaria. You can get almost anywhere you want to by public transportation. I've traveled extensively in Bavaria (over 2 month, total), without ever needing a car.

First, determine where you want to go; then look up train connections and schedules on the Bahn query page. If you use regional trains, you can enjoy unlimited travel on regional trains all day long (after 9 AM workdays) with a Bayern-Ticket, 23€ for one person, 5€ more for travelers 2-5. Salzburg is a border station for the Bayern-Ticket, travel to Salzburg from Freilassing, Germany, is included.

If you're only hitting those three locations, then you won't need a car. But if you wanted to explore the hinterland of Upper Bavaria, Tyrol and Salzburgerland a little further (places like Chiemsee, Rosenheim, Kitzbühel, Burghausen, etc), a car can significantly add to the convenience and allow you to make some spontaneous discoveries. Just don't pick up the rental car until you leave Munich.

Whether or not Neuschwanstein is worth your time is a question only you can answer. Some scoff at it, and say "Hmm, it's not a REAL castle...", which brings to mind the question of what a castle actually is, and to me, is beside the point anyway. It's iconic because it's a beautiful structure in a magnificent setting. And if you pre-read about the life of King Ludwig II and his obsession with the operas of Richard Wagner, the castle becomes a fascinating window into the mind of one of the oddest monarchs of modern times...I don't think the tour can quite do this justice, although the recently opened Wittelsbach museum (located at the bottom of the hill near Burg Hohenschwangau... the "other castle") explains the life of Ludwig quite well.

I tend to agree with Lee. The rail and bus system in Germany is extensive, so no need for a car. Using well planned public transit will also avoid the steep parking charges you'd have to pay.

Which city to use as a home base will depend on exactly which places you want to see. Salzburg is as convenient as any, and there's a DB Bus that makes the short trip from there to Berchtesgaden several times a day. While I enjoy both Munich and Salzburg, I find Salzburg to be a bit smaller and a more relaxing and less crowded place to stay. I was back there again in September and I quite enjoyed my visit.

Regarding Neuschwanstein, as a previous reply indicated, this is pretty much a matter of personal preference. I think it's a worthwhile site to visit, especially considering the "interesting" history and mysterious demise of Ludwig. I agree with Tom in that while it may not be a Castle in same sense as others in Europe, it's a spectacular structure in a beautiful location. You could also visit Hohenschwangau while there, if time permits.

On the other hand, I don't think you can take many day trips (any?) by train from Salzburg. And there's the potential difficulty of train travel from Austria to Germany because of the immigrant crisis.

What do you want to see/do in Berchtesgaden? The two big draws are Kehlstein (Eagle's Nest, Documentation Center and bunkers) and Lake Königssee. With a car, it's possible to do both in a day. Without a car, it's not. Either is possible by bus from Salzburg. I was able to visit the Documentation Center and then return to Salzburg and take a bus to the Freilichtmuseum in the afternoon, but only because Kehlstein was shrouded in fog, so I didn't go up to Eagle's Nest.

I was less than impressed by Hohenschwangau and the castles. There were way too many people (and I was there in early June). The acoustics in the castles are poor, so it was hard to hear the guides.

If the car rental isn't expensive (sometimes a longer rental period is close to the same price as a short one), it could be a good idea - especially if you don't have to pay for parking. You won't need the car for sightseeing in Munich or in Salzburg and there's good train service between them (probably easier and faster to take the train from one to the other). Often there's no drop-off fee between the two for a one-way rental.

I'm going to say car would be my preference for day trips out of Munich and Salzburg. If you plan to visit Hallstatt, Wolfgangsee, Berchtesgaden, etc, it is just easier, despite the excellent public transport system. You will just be able to use your time more efficiently. If you are only planning on larger cities, then train/bus is the way to go.

For the places you mentioned, trains and buses will work. If you have other places in mind, though, a car might be nice. I visited both Eagle's Nest and Koenigsee in Berchtesgaden on a day trip from Salzburg by taking the bus. It was easy, and cheap. For Neuschwanstein I think it would be easier to visit from Munich or someplace closer than Salzburg. I completely agree with Tom on visiting Neuschwanstein. I don't understand when people say don't visit it because it isn't an authentic castle. It isn't, but it is something else unique and worth seeing if it interests you. I enjoyed it.

Why is it some people like to pick on Neuschwanstein? Thanks to the French, there are not a lot of "authentic" castles in Germany. Some of the same people that bad-mouth Neuschwanstein recommend seeing the Hohenzollernburg in Hechingen or the Reichsburg in Cochem or staying in Auf Schönberg or Stahleck, none of which are any more authentic than Neuschwanstein.

There are buses from the Hauptbahnhof in Berchtesgaden to Schonau a. Königssee or to the bus startup at Obersalzberg (you can't drive up to the Eagles Nest; it's a private, bus only, road).

"The two big draws are Kehlstein (Eagle's Nest, Documentation Center and bunkers) and Lake Königssee. With a car, it's possible to do both in a day."

That's not true for me. I went up to Kehlsteinhaus, hiked around, had lunch, then came down and toured the Dok Center and bunkers. I spent almost the entire day. There was no time left for Königssee. Why even bother to go there if you are going to skimp on the time necessary to really see it.

As for side trips, in 2009 I went from Salzburg Hbf by bus to Mondsee (SOM wedding church), then to Wolfgangsee and Bad Ischl to Lahn (my overnight accommodations and the bus stop for Hallstatt were in Lahn, as is the parking for Hallstatt). What I paid for the bus tickets was about the same as for fuel alone for a car. The bus traveled on the same roads as you would by car, but because I didn't have to drive and watch the road, I was free to look at scenery.

Lee, just to clarify - I did say possible, not recommended. And I did try to indicate that if you spend a lot of time in the Documentation Center/bunkers, then time to go up to Eagle's Nest, you may not have much time left. Sadly IMHO many people don't spend much time in the Documentation Center.

Thanks very much for everyone's valuable input.

Considering your recommendations, I will revise the plans as follows -

• Train from Munich to Salzburg
• Salzburg as the base for ~10 day stay
• Spend 3 days in Salzburg/vicinity - town/city, concerts, sounds of music tour, etc
• Pick up rental car in Salzburg for a week long rental to visit nearby sights, Berchtesgaden, Hallstat, etc.
  
• Train back to Munich from Salzburg

Hope the current plan is of slow enough place for us to take in the scenery/culture...

Any other suggestions?