Planning a trip for 8 adults. The last week of September and first week of October.
We have 16 days .
Departing from Usa .
We definitely want to attend at least 2 days of the Octoberfest in Munich and spend 3-5 days in Barcelona .
Open to suggestion on planning a itinerary.
We are willing to travel by plane or train.
We want to experience the history, culture, and all of the great food and wine.
Munich to Barcelona, the closest major city in Spain, would take about 22 hours by train, if not a bit more, so you'll need to fly from Germany to somewhere in Spain. Spain, like Germany, is huge, with great destinations all over, so you'll have to be brutal in whittling down your itinerary. Don't forget that your arrival day (jetlag) and your departure day will not provide much serious sightseeing time, and something similar can be said for your shift-to-Spain day, by the time you deal with the airport rigamarole.
Barcelona needs quite a lot of time because of the number of sights and the need to pre-book most of the top ones (generally with timed tickets) because the ticket lines are so long. It is impossible to have a maximally efficient sightseeing schedule with a stack of timed entries, because you need to allow extra time alomg the way, not knowing how much time you'll want at each site. For this reason, I'd suggest five nights in Barcelona, more if you are nuts for modernista architecture or really want to overdose on the art museums.
The Oktoberfest drives up hotel prices in Munich, and availability is an issue as well. I suspect that it may also affect demand for flights in and out of the city (including to Barcelona), so it would be best to look into those arrangements ASAP.
Book your hotels for the fest early, since they go very fast. You are going to catch the end of the fest, which means you will miss the parade, which is great and at the beginning.
If you haven't been to Bavaria before, you might wish to spend more time there visiting places like Nuremburg, Augsburg, Berchtesgaden (and Salzburg, Austria), Garmish and Fussen. Don't forget Oberamergau. The Romantic Road up to Rothenburg on the Tauber is great.
If you have 16 days and still want to go to Spain, consider dividing you time between Barcelona and Madrid. We have been to both and enjoyed both about the same. The Prado Art Museum in Madrid is super. Monserratt is a must see from Barcelona. Also, go inside the Sagrada Familia.
There is a high speed train from Barcelona to Madrid.
