Driving from Munich to Prague (and back)

Make sure the rental car agency you use knows you will be taking the car into the Czech Republic. Also, be sure to pick up a motorway vignette. Not expensive.

I would guess the route would be A9 to A93, A6 then the Czech Autobahn into Prag. You will drive through the Holledau Hop region on A 93. You might consider Regensberg for a few nights and a short stop in Pilsen. You will need a vignette for the Czech Autobahn. We have parked in Prag at the main train station for a day. It's guarded and I can't remember the cost. Otherwise I would recommend a hotel with a guarded park place. A short stop in Pilsen and you can stop at the Pilsner Urquell brewery for a visit and park place (also guarded) and walk in to the Altstadt. Along the route you could stop at the Kuchlbauer brewery and Kelheim with the Weltenburg Kloster brewery and Danube gorge (near Regensberg) . A small relatively unknown town with a Medieval wall for a short stop along the way too is Nabburg. The Oberpfälzer Freilandmuseum is nearby too.

To me the point of driving is to make stops along the way. Otherwise a direct train or bus (operated by the German railway, is very convenient. Obviously, you can drive different routes coming and going. I've enjoyed these, which are quite popular and covered in most guidebooks: Cesky Krumlov (the cutest town), Cesky Budejovice (bigger town, pleasant stop), Konopiste Castle or other castle, and Kutna Hora (I haven't been to this one).

Or you could go east to Salzburg and visit Hallstadt. Then over to Linz and north to Cesky Krumlov on the way to Prague.

I second the idea of Salzburg and Hallstatt. And Cesky Krumlov is a great smaller city.

Thanks so much for all the ideas!

We've decided to drive up to Nurnburg for a day and then over to Prague, with a stop along the way in Plzen. We're staying with friends in Prague, and then on our way back to Munich a stop in Regensburg to visit the sites near there. :) I think it's a solid plan with a little wiggle room if anything changes.

Any thoughts on Regensburg places to stay?

Just to prepare you - I was just south of Nuremberg for a week a few weeks ago. The A6 autobahn both southwest (Schwabach) and east of Nuremberg is a basket case. There is tons of road works and the traffic is very heavy.

I went west on my last morning and looked at my Stau Finder app (StauMobile) and both it and Michelin reported a three hour Stau going east between Nuremberg and Regensburg and a further 2 hour one between Regensburg and the Czech border.

I'm sure that it won't be that bad every day, but forewarned is forearmed.

BTW, with a car the Holiday Inn Express in Schwabach (at the A6) is very good with easy parking and a 5 to 10 minute walk to the nearest station to ride into Nuremberg.

@Nigel - Oh thanks for letting me know, I might change up our plans a bit if that's the case. I hate sitting in traffic. I can still change our reservations for the hotel in Nuremburg. Is it best to stick to the main highways (such as A6) to cross the border into the Czech Republic or would another route perhaps be better?

I considered taking us down through Austria, maybe that'd be the better option. Going to need to get a good road map for Germany and Czech Republic as well. I'll add it to my list of last minute items!

Just to second the problem with the A6 - we got stuck in standing traffic a few weeks ago - meaning we sat there so long that people were out of their cars, walking around and talking to each other. Eventually enough people started to back up in the shoulder lane to the nearest off ramp (not far behind us) that we were able to get off that way. We ended up stopping for gas and lunch and when we went on an over or underpass (can't remember which it was) the traffic was still stopped. Avoid it if possible.

If A6 is particularly bad, you can consider a scenic detour to the north and east of Nürnberg through the castle-filled Fränkische Schweiz region. The route along B470 is particularly attractive. Pottenstein makes a goods stop to stretch your legs for an hour or so.

I was thinking we could pick up the car after a couple days in Munich, but I'm open to suggestions. By all means, yes, pick the car up as you leave Munich. This is by far the worst city in Germany for driving.