10 days in Germany

It is doable but for my taste it would be too rush.

German cities offer so many sights that the time windows especially for Berlin and Hamburg seem too narrow.
Berlin for example needs normally minimum 4-5 full days, Hamburg minimum 2-3 full days. Here the transport time from Cologne to Hamburg is too long to have a full day available.

Any special interests?

I would skip Nürnberg. Köln gives you the Rhein and the cathedral (also, check out the bone chapel!), Hamburg is of course the best city in the world, and Berlin is a close second. ;)

So you would spend the 17th in Köln, the 18th as a travel day plus some time in either city (depending on connections), 19 / 20 in Hamburg, sadly leave Hamburg on the 21st, and spend 22-24 in Berlin. Head back to Frankfurt either late on the 24th or early on the 25th, depending a bit on your flight.

I would spring for the ICE trains on this itinerary.

You should focus on two of three areas in Germany:
1) The Rhineland from Baden-Baden and Black Forest to Cologne
2) Bavaria- Munich, Garmish/Fussen, the Romantic Road
3) Berlin

Your plan does include Berlin, that's great, but Hamburg??? Consider skipping, for one thing it doesn't measure up compared to what I stated above. Second, it is is way out of the way.
Nuremberg is nice, but again, you are ignoring more significant places and it is geographically out of the way considering what you have listed.

I feel like it is a bit rushed. I would take out Nuremberg and add extra days to Hamburg and Berlin. (There are some great day trips from each location).

I actually like Hamburg. It has a very different feel than southern Germany, but for me, that is part of the draw. We did a northern Germany trip that I am scrapbooking right now and it was a great trip. We did Hamburg, Kiel, Lübeck, Lüneburg, Stade/Cuxhaven, and Bremen. I would do all of those places again in a heartbeat. (Any of them would be the great day trip from Hamburg that I mentioned above)

Thanks for the advise. Think will remove Nuremberg, add a day each to Hamburg and Berlin. My plan is to take IC train throughout.

Question, what are your interests? You haven't said what you want to see in these cities.
Also, are you sure you want to get on a train after a long flight? Are you doing rail and fly or will you have to wait around on that train? You land so late in the evening, that you will see little of Cologne that night. Recommend staying in Frankfurt, get a good nights sleep and then take an early morning train to Cologne. That way you can take advantage of a cheaper train ticket and not risk losing it if your flight is delayed.

Lot of festivals happening in May in Frankfurt. Let us know your dates and will post the information here on the forum.

Noted and thanks, will consider your recommendation. I do not have any special interest. Just that not a fan of beer.

Germany is certainly more than beer. If you like wine, the whole area near the Rhein is known for its' vineyards.
For interests - ancient churches, medieval towns, Romans, Cold War, WW2, scenery, music, literature, art, museums, Holy Roman Empire, castles, nature, festivals, Jewish heritage, Celts, Foodies, or Farmers markets.

For my taste, I would not bother with Hamburg. I would also not go to Koln. They are both one trick ponies.
You can enjoy the Rhine from Frankfurt.
I would add days to Berlin and if Nürnberg is your cup of tea, add time there and enjoy the surrounding area.

I'm sorry, but it is completely incorrect to suggest that there is nothing in Cologne except the Cathedral. You barely have enough time to get the most out of Cologne.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/germany/can-i-see-enough-of-cologne

Your tickets are bought, and there's nothing wrong with taking the train to Cologne, but we were able to get a second air-segment on our transatlantic flight that delivered us to Cologne.

It's a fine point, and you don't even bring up the detail, but as nice as Cologne is, it's important to understand that "Cologne" does not deliver "the scenic Middle Rhine", which is often of interest to posters on this board. Example:

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/germany/suggestions-for-extra-days-in-the-rhine-river-valley-before-our-tour-begins-in-trier

As others have said, what do you want to see and do in Germany?

In 9 days (May 17 - 25) I think you are visting too many cities that are too far apart if Cologne, Hamburg, Berlin and Frankfurt as still in the mix. Additionally, you will spend one half of those days doing nothing but going north to Hamburg & Berlin and and another half day getting back to Frankfurt.

I am traveling from Dusseldorf to Berlin in February as part of a 27-day trip to Germany. So, it not the train time itself, its the train time as a percentage of your entire trip.

Sorry, but Hamburg is far from a one trick pony, but most people don't know how to fully explore it. It is often treated as such in guidebooks, but that is mistaken. I actually find it far more interesting than Munich (and I have lived in both), for example, and it has WAY more than commonly listed places like Rothenburg odT (and that isn't to take away from Rothenburg). I have written a whole lot on the things you can see and do in and around Hamburg, and I haven't mentioned everything by a long shot! We have the port, the harbor tour, and the Rathaus--but we also have our own pirate (and the museum where you can see his alleged skull). We have the seedy Reeperbahn--but its history is heavy with religious freedom implications and regional politics and music as much as it is with red light life.

Did you know that Hamburg has more musicals than anywhere but NYC or London, and that you can catch big name shows right next to two man productions? That our new concert hall has unbelievable acoustics as well as a free and excellent viewing platform, complete with a bar selling the local brew that was named for the aforementioned pirate? Or that you can go to the beach and walk out to two shipwrecks--right there in the city and at the base of the terraced, cobbled, reed-roofed-home-filled neighborhood that is fun to explore on foot? Or that we have more bridges than Amsterdam and Venice combined? We don't have a true "old town" thanks to our history of the city being ravaged and rebuilt--the floods of the 1962, Operation Gomorrah / WWII, the fire of 1842--yet there are places that have survived these events, and these little pockets are all the more special for it (Krameramtstuben, Deichstraße, and Peterstraße are all different and closely grouped within main visitor areas).

Why not rent a canoe or SUP and make your way through the leafy upscale neighborhoods by canal and see how our rich--and Hamburg has some serious wealth--neighbors live. Or feed the elephants at our zoo--the first to have enclosures that were made to mimic the nature of the animals' respective ecosystems and still a leader in conservation projects (and yes, for just a few Euros you can buy a sack of veggies and feed the elephants). I mentioned we have beaches along the Elbe, but we also have sand dunes for hiking within and just outside the city. And how many places have a market that so seamlessly combines the older couples buying their fish and flowers with the bachelorettes looking to continue the party after the bars closed at 5am? I mean, beer and live rock music and fish mongers completely go together over breakfast!

Four of our five "Hauptkirchen" (main churches) are still active, and all five rank in the top 30 tallest in the world. The one not still an active church is a poignant war memorial, where only the gothic spire still stands. It was briefly the tallest building in the world and now houses a museum in the basement because yes, the footprints of WWII are everywhere in Germany, even in the often overlooked Hamburg. But Hamburg is a rebellious city, and nowhere is that more evident than our Sternschanze; outsiders would call it hipster, and parts of it are, but the best parts are the actual communal parts--the squatters' theatre that remains a center for social activism and justice remains a critical agent in driving protests and campaigning for human rights issues.

It's true that not all of our locales and events appeal to tourists, especially not the RS crowd--Schlagermove is an example. But it is a city that is very much alive and one of the most vibrant, interesting places I have lived.

If you think of Hamburg as a city with a big harbor and an impressive city hall near a pedestrian shopping district on a lake, you might think of it as a one trick pony. What a shame you never got the pony to show you all its other tricks.

I do not have any details planning yet, just want to fix the city then decide how to move around. I open up to explore any place of interest.

Are you landing at 17:40 at FRA? If so, then spend the night in Frankfurt. Good recommended hotels are located across the street from the Frankfurt central station, take the Poststrasse exit.

Now, if you were landing in the morning, say 10 AM in FRA, then I would suggest leaving for Hamburg after lunch so that you arrive in Hamburg before 18:00 hrs. That's what I would do.

Take the early morning ICE train to Hamburg. Two different route possibilities if you can't get a direct route., 1, Frankfurt to Hannover, change in Hannover Hbf to Hamburg Hbf, much better than changing in Düsseldorf or Duisburg.

Still you only have 1.5 days in Hamburg, maybe a little more, depending on when you dep Hamburg for Berlin, which is a bit under 3 hours on the ICE, Hamburg Hbf to Berlin Hbf. Spend the rest of the time in Berlin.

Take the Nuremberg to Frankfurt departure getting you there by the early evening on the day prior to flying out on 25 May.

Hi,

part 2 here:

Due to your 10 day time constraint, you have to choose between skipping Cologne or Nuremberg. I've done trips like yours requiring long stretches of train rides in Germany. Most definitely, it can be done when more time is available.

I suggest dropping Cologne and opting for Hamburg and Berlin, which you barely will even scratch the surface anyway, especially with the time allotted for Berlin.

Keep in mind too as you're planning and deciding: Hamburg is the cultural center of North Germany, which in and of itself makes the place worth visiting and exploring, and Germany's 2nd largest city.

I do not have any details planning yet, just want to fix the city then
decide how to move around. I open up to explore any place of interest.

If you have not made any firm decisions on cities to visit, my suggestion is to look south and east from Frankfurt: Nuremberg, Rothenberg of der Tauber, Munich, and Stuttgart. This will significanly cut down on your long distance train travel. All of these places are big enough that you will find plenty to do, and also small enought that you can hit their highlights in a day and a half of sightseeing.

No slight to Berlin or Hamburg. I will be visiting Berlin in February and Hamburg is #1 on my list for my next trip to Germany in 2025.

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wongme77, I think you should go where you want to, but as others have mentioned, you will enjoy your time more if you are not so rushed. So I do think dropping Nuremberg is a good idea. Not just because of the location (although that is a good reason) but also because I think it is the least memorable of the four cities.

Don't get me wrong - I really enjoyed Nuremberg, but of the four, I enjoyed Cologne, Hamburg and Berlin much more, and think that they all have a lot to offer. And the fact that you chose them tells me that these are places you want to see. Everyone has different tastes (as you can tell from the replies below) but it's your trip, so go where you want.

Thanks for advise. Agreed on the time spend on the train take away much of the time. Will reconsider my plan on the city, to shorten the traveling time.

Hello everyone, thanks for the intel. I first wanted to ask the original poster, how their trip went? I also wanted to get insight on how I should set my trip up. I'm flying into Frankfurt arriving on a Friday morning for an event on Saturday. I'll be in Germany for 10 days. I wanted to See Berlin, Cologne, and obviously I'm staying in Frankfurt, but is is possible to do all three cities and not feel hurried? I'm pretty diverse, I love history, partying, food, museusm, art, etc.