My daughter and I are taking a trip to Europe in June. We are flying into London and out of Munich. So far we are planning on spending 5 nights in London, 1 night in Paris (we will hopefully have another opportunity to spend more time in France), 2 nights in the Rhine area, 2 nights in the Oberammergau area, 2 nights near Regensburg and/or Bamberg, 2 nights near Meissen and/or Dresden. Then we will go to Prague (3), Budapest (3), Vienna (3), Salzburg (2) and Munich (1 night). We already have our plane tickets. We want to be in Vienna the Sunday before we fly out of Munich, so that is part of the reason for the order of our itinerary. We will take a day trip from Salzburg to Lake Hallstatt and also a day trip from Vienna to the Melk Abbey and short cruise on the Danube. We are renting a car for the Germany portion of the trip because we want to spend an afternoon exploring several towns around Regensburg for family history purposes and go to Grossenhain which is near Meissen for the same reason. Taking a short Rhine river cruise is for the same purpose as my ancestors were sailors on the Rhine River. We thought we would stay one night in Paris on our way to Germany. We also contemplated staying one night in Strasbourg, but think we will need that night in Germany. We thought we would go to Colditz Castle on our way to Grossenhain. Has anyone been there? We are also debating between Terezin and Dachau. We are not sure of the best place to pick up a car and the best route from Paris to the Rhine River area. We thought about going to Trier to pick up the car and exploring that area for a few hours before driving on to Mainz or somewhere along the Rhine River or Heidelberg. Neither of us have been to Germany. We enjoy culture, hikes, and scenery. The family history portion will just be brief stops, but we would like to get a feel for these different parts of Germany. We would appreciate advice on places we should not miss in Germany and the best way to get from Paris to Germany. Thank you
Posted by
Germany
868 posts
We thought we would go to Colditz Castle on our way to Grossenhain.
Has anyone been there?
Colditz is just one of many castles in this region. For Brits it's the most famous one because of the TV series, but IMHO there are better ones in this area. Colditz is big and impressive from the outside, but it was used as a prison for a long time and most of the interiors are gone. My favorite is Kriebstein castle, which is a spectacular, truly medieval castle and often billed as "Saxonys most beautiful castle". It's also closer to the Autobahn.
Posted by
San Francisco
14521 posts
Hi,
On going to Colditz castle: If you are going by public transportation, take the train to Leipzig Hbf. When you exit the station, there is a small bus depot on the left. One of those buses goes to Colditz. I heartily recommend Meissen, wasn't damaged much in 1945, spent a day trip there, is known as the "cradle of Saxony." (Die Wiege Sachsens)
Going from Paris to Germany: which route do you prefer? The one I prefer is going Paris Est to Frankfurt Hbf on the ICE direct.
Posted by
Tel Aviv
15589 posts
I count 26 nights and 10 hotel changes. That's a lot of moving around. You will use up about 1/2 day going from town to town, whether you are driving or taking trains/planes. 2 nights in a place leaves you with one full day there. Prague to Budapest is nearly 7 hours on the train (plus time to get to/from the stations), unless you're planning to take the night train? or fly? Then it's half a day to go back to Vienna from Budapest.
Use bahn.de to see train schedules and viamichelin.com for driving routes, including times (add for traffic, pit stops, etc) and estimated costs.
I don't think it's worth what will probably be extra costs to stop for a night in Paris, when you'll only have an evening there before heading for Germany. I really think you are underestimating how long it will take you to get from place to place. Take into account the time for packing/unpacking, finding your lodgings (and parking), checking in/out.
Dachau and Terezin are very different experiences. From what I've read, a visit to Dachau is 2-3 hours at the site. Terezin is an all-day visit, very interesting with lots of exhibits on what life was like for the prisoners, and it was not a death camp, although political prisoners were executed, it wasn't en masse.
Posted by
California USA
3958 posts
I wouldn't plan to go from London to Paris for one night (where?) if your real destination is the German Rhine area. For $11 (from Stansted) or $70 (Heathrow) each you can fly from London to Cologne. I'd do this and begin my Rhine adventure here and add the 1 night somewhere else. If you choose Dachau over Terezin, I'd add the one night to Munich. If you choose Terezin over Dachau you might add the extra night to the city where you'll base yourself for family history research or Prague or Budapest. You have some great areas you'll be visiting!
I guess no matter where you add your 1 extra night I think it would be more desirable than going from London to Paris just to spend the night when your destination is Germany and beyond.
Posted by
OP
3 posts
Thank you for your responses. They have been very helpful. Flights are often suggested as a cheaper alternative but they add on quite a bit for luggage, even a carry on. Is there a good website to use for flights within Europe?
Posted by
OP
3 posts
I answered my own question about flights.
Posted by
California USA
3958 posts
We use www.skyscanner.com. If we need to check a bag we do it when we initially book our flight to get the lowest rate. You just have to do the time, cost and convenience analysis.