Thinking of adding a week to our trip and spending it in Germany.
We don’t want to take a direct train to Dresden, but instead, stop somewhere along the way for a couple nights. Then spend 2-3 in Dresden, and 1 night somewhere along the way to Heidelberg.
Mainly to see more, sit on train less, and have been to Germany multiple times.
Which cities/towns, with good train connections, would you recommend as a sort of loop, so we don’t backtrack, please?
About the shortest time from town to town is 5 hours, and it is not a route with many cities.
Erfurt is about the only city of any size. it is supposed to be a very well preserved medieval city around which would make it interesting. That is about it.
We cannot wait to get back to Dresden. It was perhaps Europe s most beautiful city with incredible museums prior to the end of WWII when Allied bombers tried to bomb into the ground.
You can see on long-distance train network map of DB that Erfurt with close Weimar and Nuremberg are obvious alternatives to look at.
I like to add Saxon Switzerland as a highlight near Dresden.
I am not seeing any direct trains, at least for the random date I picked. One connection in Frankfurt, with an ICE from there to Dresden. I notice also that Eisenach is on the way. Eisenach is the location of the Wartburg Castle, which is a restored medieval castle. Its historical significance is that Martin Luther hid out here while he was wanted by Rome and translated the New Testament into German while there. Eisenach is also the birthplace of J.S. Bach.
Bamberg in the northern part of Bavaria state is among my top-five favorite small towns in all Europe. It has a lot to offer for a small town culturally and historically: a beer-brewing museum, residence of ETA Hoffman (18th and 19th century writer who penned The Nutcracker, which, in turn, inspired the ballet); cathedral (with wood-carved altar by 15th century woodcarver Tilman Riemenschneider, Bamberg Reiter statue and only pope buried north of the Alps); beautiful Residenz (palace); and nearby Schloss Seehof (the castle owned by the von Stauffenberg family, whose most famous member, Claus, organized the almost successful assassination of Hitler).
Central Bamberg is lovely amid a confluence of rivers. It's great to rent a bicycle. There's a small performing arts center near the Hoffman haus. There are eateries aplenty. The atmosphere is pleasant.
It is not as convenient to get to, but Quedlinburg is an exceptional historic town visit. The Cathedral got back some important art stolen by American G.I.s from Texas.
I agree about Erfurt ( also a botanical garden and a very old deconsecrated Synagogue)). Gotha has an important mansion/Schloss.
We enjoyed the Warburg, but had a car that day. Leipzig is a major city, with many historic associations, including the fall of the Soviet Union. UNESCO WHS Dessau-Worlitz Gartenreich not quite on your route.
