Germany and surrounding area in July

You have a problem. There is no separate compartment for luggage on trains, all luggage is hand luggage. You are responsible for getting all your luggage on and off the trains, stowing it on the train, and for getting it to the train (which may involve stairs).

See this page for more info and pictures: http://www.seat61.com/luggage-on-european-trains.htm
I recommend this site as the best information source on the web about how to use trains.

But, the problem with a car is, it is a liabilty in cities (Paris, Amsterdam, ...), you would have to park it, and pay for the parking. And where would the bike be? In the same car park unguarded?
Not sure what you mean by "rent a car .... with a bike in tow.". Are you bringing a bike trailer over?

I think the only solution is to store the bike in a safe location after the race, and pick it up before your return. Or can you ship it back immediately after the race?

P.S. "looks like car rental may be cheaper than trains" - where are you getting your train prices from? I hope you are looking up ticket prices directly on the rail company website, and not just taking the price of a "pass" from a reseller.

With only 8-9 days, why don't you just stay in Germany? I would look at staying in perhaps 2-3 places in apartments where it would be easy to keep the bike. If the bike is in a case, you can take it on trains just as you would any suitcase. Some trains have cars that are for bikes, even in a case it would give you extra room.

Some trains have bike storage areas in some coaches, but these are bike hooks or stands. I am not sure a bike in a box would fit.
For more info see this page on the DB (German Railways) website: www.bahn.de/p_en/view/service/passengers/bike/bahn-and-bike.shtml
I am assuming this is not a folding bike, so how big is this bike case? Is it hard or soft? Is it on wheels?

Thank you for your responses. The bike is not the folding type. The handlebars are loosened and the pedals removed to make it fit in the hard sided case (which has 2 wheels to pull it). It is approx 47"x30"x11" in dimensions, and weighs 50 pounds or so.

Thank you Chris F for the link to the photos of the trains. This is very helpful. As I said I have never been to Europe or travelled by train so I don't really know what to expect.

Judging by these few responses I think travelling by train with the bike will not be an option. Given that the luggage compartments are not secure we would not want to risk placing it somewhere that we couldn't keep an eye on it. I have considered the thought of shipping it home but I believe that would be very costly and more likely that the bike could be damaged than during air travel.

I have searched the Europe rail sites for prices. For instance I just did a quick search of Rail Europe for trains going return from Nuremberg to Paris. The cost displayed is about $120 per person, each way. So the cost of just that trip would be around $500...does that sound right? Or am I not looking in the right place?

I'm sure the rest of Germany would be amazing but I am not sure I will make it to Europe again in my life so I would really like to take the opportunity to see as much as possible during our time.

When I say "bike in tow" I just mean that we will be having to take it from Schwabach to Roth and back, while it is unpacked and assembled. Also the times and logistics of the race and having to get back and forth with bike and gear between Schwaback and Roth would make trying to use trains impossible. So we will have a car rental for at leas the first 5 days. From what I see online we could rent a car for 2 weeks for about $400-$600.

Would it be feasible to have a car rental and drive to a hotel in Paris (where we could store the bike) then leave the car parked during our stay and sightsee the city on foot/train etc. then drive back to Germany for our return flight?

Our Canadian dollar is not worth much compared to the Euro so we are having to add another 30% to all prices when we consider the exchange rate.

Thanks again for all replies. I am a bit at a loss of where to start for planning this. Travelling with triathlon race gear (bike, helmet, shoes, wetsuits, etc) makes everything alot more complicated!

Rail Europe is a reseller for the USA, with a mark-up. I would use the DB (German Railways) website http://bahn.de or use https://www.capitainetrain.com/ which is a French based website.
I just did a check on DB for Nürnberg to Paris, for a random day in April. This is quoting between €128 and €304 per person return. The cheaper fares sell out first. Capitainetrain is quoting from €78 to €304 return.

By road, according to http://www.viamichelin.com/ Nürnberg to Paris:
Costs 111.94 €, Toll 25.00 € | Petrol 86.94 €
Time 07h41 with 07h13 on motorways (assuming NO stops)
Distance 760 km
You have to add this to the cost of hiring a car.

Re driving to a hotel in Paris. Driving in Paris is usually not a good idea. Paking in Paris is very limited. Most hotels do not have a car park, so you would probably end up in a public car park some distance away. While you are in Paris you would be paying for the hire car, and paying to park it, but not using it. The same would apply to Amsterdam.

I've converted the size of your box: 119 x 76 x 28 cm, weight ~25 Kg. Where are you planning to carrying this, on the roof of the car? I am afraid your bike will be something of a millstone.

It seems to me that your best option would be to negotiate with your hotel in Nurnberg to store your bikes and then return there for your last night. I did that several times with my big suitcase while I was traveling light around the country. If I stayed in the hotel at the beginning and then just before my departure they stored it for free. In your case I would even offer some fee for that service (if they are not willing to store it for free).

That's a pretty big hard suitcase for the bike. Have you checked that the car you intend to hire has a storage compartment big enough for that colossal bag plus all your other luggage?

Most cars don't come with a roof rack, and would you want to leave the bike on the car even just for a quick run inside at the roadside services?

And as mentioned above on the trains it is you brung it you tote it.

I agree that the easiest answer is to rent an apartment with plenty of storage and leave the bike there, then visit the neighboring area.

If you want a few trips further afield you may be looking at double rent.

Or, you might be able to leave the bike at a large station in their (manned) left luggage facility. Or at the airport. Then the millstone is safely put away. Surely you have theft and damage insurance? The fact that there will be various staff there shouldn't be a concern. It is unlikely that travelers will be beyond the security screening machine at these facilities.

I do wonder if such a large bag would fit through the security x-ray machines at the facility....

Good luck in the race.

Oh, does the race organiser provide any sort of facility? Or have any suggestions?

I'm just thinking out loud here... I'd be reluctant to leave a bike at some hotel. I would inquire at a reputable bike shop in Nuremberg about storage. They may do it for a fee or maybe keep your bike for a while if you request a minor service of some sort. I would imagine a bike shop carries insurance to cover loss or damage on bikes it has in custody. Looks like there are a lot of bike shops in the Nuremberg area. I would have no idea who exactly to contact though.

http://www.tomsbikecorner.de/haendler/n%FCrnberg-1.html

Thanks for the further information. I am going to have to do much research to make this work it seems...

We have travelled with this bike case many times. Usually we can fit it in the backseat of a 4 door car or in the back of a hatchback, along with our other luggage. But I will be sure to check the size of car when we reserve a car. We would not use a roof rack. Airports have oversize areas where the box is opened and checked prior to it being loaded in the plane.

Thanks for the insight into parking in Paris. I didnt realize how challenging that would be.

I will check with the hotel we stay at during the race and see if secure storage is an option. That would seem to be the easiest.

I don't "race"...I'm a completer not a competer. My husband is very high level though. He will be the one with the bike. I will only be running, which is easy...shoes only ;)

Another factor to keep in mind, if you want to use a bike rack on a rental car. At least in Germany (and probably several other countries), if the bicycles or the rack obscures the rear license plate, the rack must come equipped with a secondary license plate that matches the one on the car. I doubt a rental agency could provide this. Of course, this would not be a factor if you stored the bicycle on top of the car.

Have you contacted the race organizers? They may have some suggestions or know of reputable places where you could store the bike. Or maybe find out if other competitors have been in the same situation?

Some major stations have Gepäck Aufbewahrung (luggage check rooms), where they store items too big for the lockers. Munich is one; I don't know about Nürnberg. Here is the layout of the Nürnberg station. It shows Schließfächer (lockers) in the west end of the basement level, but no Gepäck Aufbewahrung. In the adjacent room is the lost and found and the baggage courier service. Those should be manned, but probably not usable for storage.

Maybe someone more familiar with the Nürnberg station can tell us more. I was only in the station once (2007) and left my bag in a locker elsewhere in the station, where the map no longer shows lockers.

In your case, I'd also suggest to rent apartments wherever you travel to so you have more room to keep your bike. And renting a car might be the best option if you have the bike along. Do request a station wagon. They are very common in Europe, not more expensive to rent than other cars, and should give you enough storage room for the bike and your luggage.