First time in Germany with a teen and elderly parents

Public transportation in Munich was a dream come true, but I live in a US city with little usable public transportation. YMMV, of course.

Do you have only the last week in August for this trip? If the only places people want to see are Vienna (mother) and Berlin (son) then I'd fly in a triangle. Boston to Vienna and home to Boston from Berlin for about $1000. I'd connect Vienna to Berlin with an Easyjet flight. If you have more than week you have more possibilities.

You can take a direct flight to Munich on Lufthansa. They also fly to Frankfort.
Munich is a good 4 day city and it is very interesting. I would also suggest the very popular Salzburg you can reach by train is 2 hours or so from Munich. If you had another week, Vienna would be another great city to visit--one of our favorites.

While Salzburg can be visited on a day-trip from Munich (about 2 hours each way), Berlin (4-1/2 hours) and Vienna (about the same) cannot. Berlin and Vienna are at least 8 hours apart; Salzburg and Vienna, about 2-1/2 hours. So: The excellent trains in that area will allow you to pair Salzburg with either Munich OR Vienna from a single base. Berlin is much more of a challenge.

I loved the 20th-century historical sights and art museums in Berlin and could easily spend a full week there. Or one might split a week between Munich and Vienna (if not a huge fan of art museums), perhaps with a short stopover in the much smaller Salzburg. For me, there would be too much to do in Berlin and Vienna to cram them into one week, but of course everyone's interests are different.

I don't think you're going to be able to satisfy everyone's wishes on this short trip. Attempting to do so will result in spending a great deal of time on trains rather than actually sightseeing, though I assume there will be some very nice scenery to enjoy. For the areas you want to see, two weeks would be about my recommended minimum.

I believe a regional ticket can be used to travel between Munich and Salzburg, but for the other trips, I think you stand to save a lot of money on train fares by buying the tickets well in advance. However, the bargain prices are usually on non-refundable/non-changeable tickets.

Your son is young. He can go to Berlin later. I would fly to Munich or Vienna and fly back from the other.. I like Salzburg better than either Munich or Vienna so I would go there for a couple of days rather than as a long day trip from Munich. Public transport is excellent.

I would fly to Munich and travel immediately to Salzburg, visiting Munich as a day trip from Salzburg. I'd spend half of my time in Salzburg and the other half in Vienna. Fly back to Boston from Vienna (no direct flights, but you should be able to get home easily with one change).

I just want to emphasize acraven's point. In 7 days, you not only cannot see all of the places on your list (Munich, Salzburg, Vienna, Berlin), you cannot please everyone. Everyone should start preparing, now, that at least one thing they desperately want to see or do will not happen on this trip.

If you do want to see Vienna and Berlin, and no other places, you can fly between them. That's what I did, but I had 10 days, and had been to Berlin before. Remember that you lost a half a day or more every time you change locations. Also remember that two nights in a place equals a full day, and a single night is less than a full day.

To see train times and fares, look at https://reiseauskunft.bahn.de//bin/query.exe/en for Germany and http://fahrplan.oebb.at/bin/query.exe/en? for Austria. To find flights, look at Skyscanner: https://www.skyscanner.com/

I too favor Salzburg. Much to see, safe city. Side trip include theEagles Nest, Salzkammergut, Sound of Music tour that shows city and Hills/lakes around Salzburg. Many city sites also. Loved walking the streets of Salzburg. Don't miss the Monestery for food, drink and entertainment.

Since your son has an interest in WWII, have him check out a site called thirdreichruins.com. It has photos of many places right after the war and photos of the same places today.

Thank you, everyone, for the excellent suggestions. We can extend it to 8 days and fly between the cities. A direct flight to Munich from Boston is a big benefit and perhaps we can do Salzburg from Munich and then stay in Vienna for 3 days. I will skip Berlin for now. Is there enough stuff to do in Munich with a teen? He likes museums and outdoors but does not like to go to a beach or watch a movie :(

There are wonderful art and history museums in Munich, as well as a fantastic science museum. You will find plenty for him to do. Have him start researching now.

You can do both Berlin and Vienna, skip Munich this time. Fly to Frankfurt, then connect to Berlin or Vienna. The public transportation is excellent in Germany, especially going from the airport to the train station.

You can do both Berlin and Vienna, skip Munich this time. Fly to Frankfurt, then connect to Berlin or Vienna. The public transportation is excellent in Germany, especially going from the airport to the train station.