Germany July/August 2020

It's a long way from Munich to Amsterdam. Going north, we'd suggest stopping at Cologne, Germany and seeing the incredible Duomo.
Bacharach is a very popular place to stay on the Rhine, and there is a train line running through there. It's just south of Koblenz, and the town is 100 yards from The Rhine.
I usually go to Booking.com for rooms. The thing about Germany is that even the cheapest rooms are very clean and adequate. I've never had a bad experience in any room there.

We loved Hotel Metropol in Munich, but you will need two rooms. They don’t have any that sleep 4.

We spent 3 nights in Munich including a day trip to Dachau and that was enough for us. But we prefer the countryside.

We spent 5 nights in June 2018 near Hallein at the Landhaus Armstorfer, it’s fabulous. I would take a night from Munich and add to Salzburg. You could do Berch. and Hallein on one day. See the lake in the morning, then salt mine in the afternoon. If you’re planning to go to Eagle’s Nest (spectacular on a clear day), you probably need to do the salt mine on a different day. There’s a sommerrodelbahn very close to the salt mine, on the same road that leads to Berch. My teens loved it - just don’t follow moms riding with small kids, they go too slow!

The fortress in Werfen (close to the ice caves) is well worth a stop. They have an interesting falconry show. The area is so gorgeous! If you’re adventurous you can go paragliding near Werfen or above Salzburg. We did the latter and it was amazing. We flew with GoTandem.

My boys liked the Red Bull hangar near the Salzburg airport. And it’s free!

Beware of high fees if you plan to return the car in Amsterdam. Maybe drop the car in Germany and take the train instead.

I think you'll achieve your objective, but you'll spend a lot of time in the car. Besides heavy highway traffic at peak season, you have to get to each of your attractions (from, say a local highway) during high season I was very sorry I tried to drop off our bags at our downtown Amsterdam hotel-the one way, narrow streets and double-parked tradesmen were worse than in New York City.

Note, as another has suggested, that the Rhine is only "scenic" from Bingen to Boppard or St. Goar. In your case, that's good, because using the train to pick up the car after a 1 to 2 hour boat ride is pretty convenient. (The train is about 10 times faster than the boat, in that area.) Search "Middle Rhine" with the Search box above for commentary on towns and castles.

What do you think? Any recs on hotels in Munich or Salzburg? Is Oberwesel good places to stay on Rhine? Should we do 3 days in Munich/3 in Salz/Bgaden instead of 4 Munich/2 salz? Thanks in advance!

Sounds like a nice trip on the whole.

Munich: 3 nights

Salzburg: Yes - at least 3 nights for your stated interests - but they're all outside Salzburg, so why stay in pricey, crowded Salzburg?? Look into an apartment rental around Berchtesgaden, or near the Eisriesenwelt (ice cave experience) and the Sound of Music Trail and Hohenwerfen Castle w/ falconry show (all are near Werfen on the Salzach river.) You can day-trip into Salzburg to for sightseeing there if you have time.

Golling is a small town in between Salzburg and Werfen on the Salzach River - we recently stayed at the Pension Cafe Maier in their "penthouse" apartment - quite a view - which included breakfast in the bakery/cafe downstairs - and wished we'd stayed a bit longer. It's bookable also at that "booking" site that begins with "B." But I suspect there are many nice places you might find just outside Salzburg in this area.

Rhine: As Tim points out, the best cruise is Bingen > St. Goar or Boppard. So I suggest you stay in one of those towns to simplify your cruise - that way you have just one train ride instead of two. The DB train ticket for St. Goar > Bingen Rhein Stadt costs only €15.20 (kids are free) from a ticket machine in St. Goar. Then you cruise back - and you're home. You can stop off in Oberwesel and/or Bacharach by train for no extra charge on your way south to Bingen before your cruise (much simpler than stopping off by boat.)

St. Goar has the best Rhine setting IMHO and several waterfront hotels (so does Boppard,) which provide a nice view of the river gorge (not so in all the towns.) Here's the a view from one of those hotels in St. Goar (right near the KD dock too - see the KD flag?) Apartments are available in St. Goar as well.

St. Goar is also convenient for a Rheinfels Castle tour (it's right there) and for crossing the Rhine to see the best Rhine Castle - Marksburg in Braubach (use the St. Goar ferry + train.)

Driving/Road tripping is a bit different in Europe - and you can have a great time if you can do it in a leisurely fashion - BUT...

What you seem to be proposing is a single major long drive (4 to 5 hours) in a crowded car with luggage for 4 for one stop (Rothenburg) on the way to the Rhine. And you can't drive/park in major cities.

All of the other stops can be as (or more) easily done by train. To me it might make more sense to take the train to Rothenburg (4-5 hours, with toilets, and lunch car), then take the train from Rothenburg to the Rhine the next day since you are staying overnight anyway.

https://www.bahn.com/en/view/index.shtml

Great tips, everyone, thank you! I really appreciate it! We will stay 3 nights in Munich and 3 in (or outside of) Salzburg. Will likely stay in St Goar as well and will look into training north instead of driving. Thanks so much!

Just outside Salzburg www.neuwirtgut.at