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5 Nights in Germany/Austria Itinerary

Hi everyone,

I will be spending 5 nights in Germany in May, and I was wondering if I could get some feedback on the first part of the itinerary for Germany I put together. After Salzburg, we would like to head off to see Vienna and Prague, but here is what I have for the period in Germany.

Tuesday, May 12: Land at 1:00 pm local time in Munich. Travelling from US so want to rest and recover a bit. Once rested, go check out some of the beer halls in Munich in the evening. Stay in Munich City Center.

Wednesday, May 13: Take a guided day trip to Nuremberg (says these last 10 hours). Explore Munich at night once back. Stay in Munich City Center.

Thursday, May 14: Dedicate this day to staying in Munich to explore more of the city during the day (e.g., restaurants, walking tour, museums, beer halls, etc.). Stay in Munich City Center.

Friday, May 15: Visit Dachau Concentration Camp in the morning. Take train to Salzburg in late afternoon and explore Salzburg in the evening. Stay in Salzburg.

Saturday, May 16: Rent car out of Salzburg in early morning. Take car to Berchtesgaden region to see Hitler's Eagle's Nest and then take car to Hallstatt to briefly see the town. Return car to Salzburg in evening and stay in Salzburg this night.

Sunday, May 17: Catch train from Salzburg to Vienna for next leg of trip.

I originally wanted to try and see Neuschwanstein Castle, but I don't think I will have time in the above days. I really enjoy history, so I would like to see the WWII history of Nuremberg over the Neuschwanstein Castle. The only thing booked so far is my roundtrip Airfare into Munich, so there is a lot of flexibility still for changes to the itinerary.

Does the itinerary seem doable? Thanks in advance for any feedback or recommendations!

Joey

Posted by
2311 posts

I think Saturday is going to be very rushed. Berchtesgaden and Hallstatt are both spectacular, but seeing them both in one day isn’t going to give you much time at each. Can you add another day in Salzburg? Day 1 could include Konigsee and Eagle’s Nest. Drive to or from Berchtesgaden via Hallein and stop at the sommerrodelbahn! On Day 2 go to Hallstatt (including the Salt Mine).

Posted by
6632 posts

I think the Koenigssee and the Jennerbahn lift could be done in one long day along with the Eagles Nest (which you cannot drive all the way to anyway.) You do not need a car. And IMHO while Hallstatt and the Hallstaettersee are very pretty, the Koenigssee is its equal. Bus 840 (Watzmann Express) gets you to B'gaden from Salzburg in just 40 minutes.

Posted by
6632 posts

If you find extra time and you want to see a real castle... don't go all the way to Fuessen (Neuschwanstein is a modern residence with steel construction finished near the dawn of the 20th century - and sports a fake castle exterior.) Hohenwerfen, in Werfen outside Salzburg, has stood for hundreds of years and offers a falconry show as well as the castle visit.

Posted by
5374 posts

You cannot visit Hallstatt and Berchtesgaden in one day. Simply not possible.

When will you see Salzburg? It seems you have very little time there and there is at least 2 day's worth of sites.

Posted by
6632 posts

Wed. day trip to Nuremberg: 10 hours sounds like a long time to be taken around.

It's very easy to get to Nuremberg on your own by train. Once there, you could join a locally organized tour for part of your visit... and do your own thing before/after.

Walking tour of the old town in English (daily after April 12.)
"City train" tour (daily, several start times per day)

In Nuremberg there is a large variety of options you can do on your own...

https://tourismus.nuernberg.de/en/discover/places-of-interest/
https://tourismus.nuernberg.de/en/discover/museums/

Stop off in any one of the brew-pubs in Nuremberg whenever hunger strikes for local food/beer...
https://www.europeanbeerguide.net/nurnpubs.htm

By train you aren't locked into a strict schedule - stay as long as you like and return to Munich whenever.

Posted by
2329 posts

Return car to Salzburg in evening

That would come with a huge drop off fee. Return your car in Freilassing just over the border in bavaria. There are buses from F. into Salzburg.

Posted by
17 posts

Thanks everyone for the feedback. For those saying it is simply too much to try and do Hallstatt and Eagle's Nest in one day, would it make more sense to do a day trip out of Munich to Eagle's Nest on the Wednesday rather than doing Nuremberg? That would leave all of Saturday to explore Hallstatt, and I could try and see Nuremberg on the way back to Munich on the tail end of the trip when we have to come back to Munch from Prague.