Itinerary advice - London, Paris, Heidelberg & Munich Germany

The website of the German railways http://www.bahn.de/p_en/view/index.shtml gives you the schedules for all your connections, including that from Paris to Heidelberg. Advance buying (around 2 months ahead) gives considerable discount.
The main attraction in Heidelberg is indeed the Renaissance castle. Nearby Schwetzingen houses a palace with wonderful baroque gardens. A good outing when the weather is fine. A regular bus leaves from Heidelberg railway station.
For European travellers it is difficult to understand the fascination with Neuschwanstein. It is a long day for a nineteenth-century fantasy of a medieval castle. In Munich itself Nymphenburg is much more interesting, if only for its extensive gardens. Nearby Oberschleissheim houses another palace with its associated park, and somewhat further - on the same suburban railway line (S-Bahn) - there is the nice small town of Freising. Dachau is easily visited by using the S-Bahn system and a short walk or local bus. Schedules for the S-Bahn are on the website mentioned above.

Hi nreneegrim. Your trip, activities, and pace sound great. Icelandair airline is fine. Agree with previous poster that Neuschwanstein is a long day trip and can be a disappointment. The setting is fun, but the castle itself didn't do much for us. Many people shy away from Ibis hotels because they don't have much character. But we have stayed in many and find them to be practical and convenient. Enjoy your trip!

In Heidelberg, one of the places I enjoy visiting is the Student Prison. To add some special interest to your visit to Heidelberg and the Student Prison, you might want to read Mark Twains book, Tramps Abroad where he talks about the student fraternities.

The Jesuit church is beautiful and well worth a visit, as is the Aula of the university. When you buy your ticket to the Student Prison, it gets you into the Aula too.

You might want to do a day trip to Frankfurt as this is an easy 1 hour ride on the train and there is a lot of history and historical sites (plus lots of museums) to be found there.

Be sure to arrive at the Tower of London at opening, 09:00, to get ahead of the crowds. The Yeoman Warder tour (hourly) is terrific. Plan to spend about 3 hours. Try to add St. Paul's Cathedral to your plan for London. They have a fabulous self-guided audio tour. Magnificent place!

The Louvre is so overwhelming! We splurged on a tour with Paris Muse. It was just the two of us with an art historian in late afternoon when the crowds were a bit lighter. Highly recommend.

Approx 3.5 hours best time Paris to Heidelberg with a change at Mannheim.
Approx 3 hours best time Heidelberg to Munich direct.
Both journeys offer several convenient departure times for you.

Ibis hotels are fine. I've always found the beds to be really comfortable. Often the rooms are small, with the bed taking up a lot of space, but you won't be spending much time in the room. Towels are adequate, but no wash cloths and only an all-purpose soap/shampoo/conditioner, so you may want to bring your own. Ask for quiet rooms, skipping the view, if any.

The HOHO bus in London (and Paris too) are often a disappointment. They just get bogged down in city traffic and you may sit for what seems like ages before moving on to the next bit. Kensington Palace is less interesting than Windsor or Hampton Court. You can visit either on your own easily. Windsor only needs 1/2 day, but Hampton Court can take longer. A few people recently opined about the day trip to Stonehenge, Windsor Castle and Bath on another thread. It's a really long day, with lots of time on the bus and not nearly enough time in Bath. And most people find Stonehenge to be less than inspiring. Take a look at the day trips offered by London Walks. Their tour guides are excellent.

If you are huge Disneyland fans, then you'll probably enjoy the one in Paris, just to compare it with the U.S. versions. Otherwise, there are better day trips from Paris (and plenty to see in the city as well).

I'm with the majority here who found Neuschwanstein not really worth the day to see it. I was there in early June and it was very crowded. Consider a day trip to Salzburg instead.

I found the Deutsches Museum in Munich to be extremely interesting. There is something about almost everything there. The Neuschwanstein Castle tour shows only a small portion of the building and seems like a bit of a let down after all the time and effort to get there. I would spend the day at Garmish-Partenkirchen instead. Hike the gorge, take the railway to the top of the Zugspitze, enjoy the town. Easy regional train connection from Munich.

Thank you everyone for the great advice!

We do want to book airfare soon, just have to get clearance from jobs before we can. Thanks for the tip about flying into London Gatwick vs Heathrow- the airfare is the same at this point so we are considering it.

I was worried about the HOHO bus in London and Paris being busy with traffic- it's the same with NYC, but I've also heard that it's a good way to get around... But we might skip it.

Has anyone gotten the Pass for London/Paris? We are considering it, but it's hard to tell if we will come out ahead... I think we might but I have to do the math again.

I also saw there's supposed to be a fantastic Egyptian museum in Munich- I'm hoping to visit that too because I love everything Egyptian. But I'm also sure my husband would love the Deutsches Museum too.

-Nicole

In regards to the follow up question about passes, we have used the Paris Museum pass on 4 separate trips and always found it to be worth the money. Even if you end up spending a little more than paying as you go, you get to skip the line at most attractions (the most notable that you do not get to is Sainte-Chapelle, which I did not see on your list but highly recommend it). This benefit is highly valuable since you are travelling peak season. You can skip the line at the Louvre and use any entrance including the side entrance if it's open (in the archway on the River Seine side), which is a huge time saver and takes you right to the Italian paintings. You will also find yourself popping in quickly to some of the smaller sights that you may normally not have paid for since they are included on your pass. Have a great time in Paris!

Would you be comfortable renting a car in Germany? If so, my recommendation would be to rent one for the second half of your Heidelberg stay and get out to see some more of the surrounding area, then drive it to Munich stopping to see the King's castles along your way. Since you will get there late morning/early afternoon you will want to reserve times in advance. Rick's book has all the information but this is the website. http://www.hohenschwangau.de/ticketcenter.0.html

You could then drop off the car that evening in Munich or use it for one more day to see Dachau without relying on public transit. Just a suggestion since the day trip from Munich to the King's castles without a car can be lengthy!

Enjoy your trip!