Itinerary Help - Bravaria and Munich

Why don't you start by spending 4 days in Munich? There are incredible palaces to see, Dachau and the Deutches Museum--not to mention great beer halls and the English Gardens.
If mountains are your thing, consider renting a car as the roads are great in the region. You could go over to Salzburg, then drop south to Innsbruck and go essentially in a circle before going back to Munich. You could hit Fuessen for a short stay and see the incredible Alps. You could also drop down into Italy at the Brenner Pass and see some of the Dolomites.
We just love driving up on the mountains from village to village throughout this region.

If you want to see mountain without hitting sites that are tourist traps, try spending a few days in Oberstdorf in the Oberallgäu (western end of the Bavarian Alps).

Munich to Oberstdorf takes about 2½ hours by train, and it's a regional train, so you can use a Bayern-Ticket to get there.

Oberstdorf is Germany's second largest ski area after Ga-Pa and a very nice town in it's own right. It's cute and looks naturally like Vail was contrived to look. Right outside of Oberstdorf is the beautiful Austrian alpine valley of Kleinwalsertal. Kleinwalsertal is worth a day trip by itself. There is a bus that goes from the Oberstdorf Bhf to the top end of Kleinwalsertal.

From Oberstdorf, you can make day trips to Oberstaufen and the island city of Lindau. There are also day trips by bus to Hohenschwangau and the castles. The bus mostly follows the Alpenstrasse, with a heart-stopping climb up the face of a mountain outside of Bad Hindelang.

I love the idea of hitting sites that aren't tourist traps (why I will dump Fussen), but we do want to see the alps, etc. Then avoid Rothenburg. Few other towns in Germany are so completely dominated by the tourist trade.

Oberstdorf was suggested to me by Lee when I lived in Germany and I absolutely love it. I wouldn't say that it's "untouristy", because it certainly has the infrastructure to host thousands of guests and keep them well fed and pampered. But it doesn't emenate the sort of tour-bus and souvenir stand type of culture that can sometimes make Füssen and Rothenburg seem like almost Disney-like. The majority of visitors come from other parts of Germany (it's the closest Alpine resort to Stuttgart and the Rhine-Ruhr industrial corridor, the most densely populated region of the counrty), Belgium and the Netherlands. As such, the visitors are there for the physical experience of skiing down and hiking up the Alps, not some Rick Steves fairy-tale version of a time gone by. Makes it all the more enjoyable to me.

If it were me, I'd do Munich-Garmisch-Salzburg-Munich - that makes a good tight loop. Munich, Rothenburg, Nürnberg, and Regensburg are nowhere near the Alps (your stated priority). Füssen only if you insist on seeing those castles. Nürnberg and Regensburg are fine cities, but unless you have a specific thing to see there, they are too similar to each other and to Munich to visit all three. You don't have enough time on the ground to see that much.

Thanks for all the feedback! You've given me a lot to think about. I did want to clarify, the Alps aren't our main priority. I want to at least have a day somewhere where they are visible (and maybe do a summer luge), but this is my husband's trip and he studied history and has much more interest in sites of that nature.

I want to at least have a day somewhere where they are visible (and maybe do a summer luge),

On a clear day, you can see them from Munich. The hills around Olympic Park provide a high vantage point that allows you to see the peaks in the distance.

I know of at least one Sommerrodelbahn near Nürnberg and Bamberg, by the small town of Pottenstein. You find these all over Germany where the elevation allows it, not just in the Alps.

I know of at least Sommerrodelbahn near Nürnberg and Bamberg, by the small town of Pottenstein. You find these all over Germany where the elevation allows it, not just in the Alps.

This is great to know.

Your problem is too many great options! haha!

We are doing all the spots you mentioned, but it will have taken us two 2wk trips to do it. Our first trip we did: Munich, Passau, Vienna (stop in Melk), Salzburg (with day trips to lake and mountains including Hallstat), Garmisch, Legoland, then back to Munich. This trip we are doing Frankfurt, Bamberg area (including Regensburg, Nurerberg, Rothenburg), Prague, Dresden and Berlin.

Salzburg was lovely, but we only spent a day and a half touring because it was so touristy and so busy. The rest of our time in that area was spent going to Hallstat, Jenner Mountain, Konigsee and the lake region (In a circular route, stop in Strobl, St. Wolfgang, Bad Ischl, Ebensee, and Gmunden before returning to Salzburg.)

Garmisch area we really didn't do much in Garmisch itself. We used it more for a hub for day trips. We had a car, so not sure how feasible it is for you to do by train. From Garmisch we did: Neuschwanstein & Hohenschwangau, Liderhof, Mittenwald, Oberammergau, Ettal.

The thing is, no matter where you choose to go, if you do a little research, you will have a wonderful time. There is so much to see and do, you can't really make a bad choice.

We really enjoyed our time in Munich. I wouldn't hesitate to spend the 4 nights there. There is so much to see and do. The Deutsches Museum alone can take a full day...and is worth it.

Oh and I wanted to add....sometimes the most touristy thing can give you the best memory. Back in 2012, my youngest was only 9 when we took the kids to Germany for the first time. In Salzburg, right in the middle of the crowds, there is a giant chess board. My oldest (who was 14 at the time) and my youngest were playing a game of chess. Two local old men (who spoke no English) were sitting on a bench nearby. They began coaching my youngest. He made the final move (at their direction) to win the game. The old men cheered. My kiddo went over, shook hands with the men, got a grandfatherly pat on the back. It was the most precious thing. To this day, he will tell you that was his favorite memory of our entire trip.....even better than Legoland.

Have fun!!!

Here are some suggestions for great day trips from Munich without throngs of tourists.

My favorite is to take the S8 southwestbound to the end of the line at Herrsching. Walk a couple hundred meters to the lakefront and board one of the stately paddlewheel ships which cross the Ammersee to my favorite untouristed Bavarian village, Dießen am Ammersee. Dießen is a popular destination for German weekenders, but it's not on the international tourist grid at all. Walk through Dießen up to the baroque-rococo Marienmünster Abbey (1730). Return to Herrsching by ship and take a taxi or bus, or walk three miles up a forested trail, to Kloster Andechs, where Benedictine monks have been brewing great beer since the 15th Century. (Photos of Herrsching, Dießen and Andechs here)

Or take S2 about 20 minutes from Hauptbahnhof to Oberschleißheim, and visit the magnificent, colorful Schleißheim Palaces, summer home of the Bavarian royal family. Aviation history buffs will enjoy Flugwerft Schleißheim (aviation branch of the Deutsches Museum), a short walk from the Schleißheim Palaces.

If you have a free Sunday, go to the spa town of Bad Wörishofen, birthplace of naturopathy. Therme Bad Wörishofen is a wonderful spa/sauna/waterpark complex. Then go to the open-air cafe on the small grass-runway airfield on the north side of town and watch skydivers do their thing, while you wait for your 45-minute ride in a classic 11-seat, Soviet-built Antonov An-2 biplane (advance reservation required; photos here).

Tourists have yet to discover Ingolstadt, a charming, friendly town about halfway between Munich and Nürnberg. There are many historic buildings in the old center, including the former Anatomy Building of the University of Ingolstadt, now the German Museum of Medical History. Gardens in the courtyard are made up of medicinal herbs and plants. The building was the setting for Mary Shelley's original 1818 novel Frankenstein. Tours are available of the Audi factory, just outside the old center. Ingolstadt self-guided walking tour available here.

In Munich itself, the self-guided walking tour in Rick's Germany guidebook is excellent. It can take anywhere from two hours to two days, depending on your level of interest and curiosity.

For insight into Munich's dramatic role in the rise and fall of the Third Reich, visit the new NS Doku-Zentrum, which just opened last May. It's on Briennerstraße, on the site of the Third-Reich-era Nazi headquarters building. Führerbau (Hitler's office building, where the 1938 Munich Accord was signed) is next door, repurposed as a High School for Music and Theater. Historic Königsplatz is across the street. The City's website offers free downloadable maps and audioguides for self-guided walks tracing the history of National Socialism in Munich.

It's unfortunate that you didn't book return from Berlin or Frankfurt since a northward trek from Munich could include 2 or 3 Franconian cities like Bamberg or Würzburg and then you could go on to a new experience without having to backtrack to Munich.
If you want to avoid tourist bus mobs I'd trust your instincts. Whenever I see the cruise ship hordes I shudder and will not succumb to "you should take a cruise we love them" pressures.
I've never understood why so many Americans feel the need to see the Alps-- they are unremarkable-- when there are similar snowy peaks a home, like going to Europe to eat at McDonald's, but to each his own.It's unfortunate that you didn't book return from Berlin or Frankfurt since a northward trek from Munich could include 2 or 3 Franconian cities like Bamberg or Würzburg and then you could go on to a new experience without having to backtrack to Munich.
If you want to avoid tourist bus mobs I'd trust your instincts. Whenever I see the cruise ship hordes I shudder and will not succumb to "you should take a cruise we love them" pressures.
I've never understood why so many Americans feel the need to see the Alps-- they are unremarkable-- when there are similar snowy peaks a home, like going to Europe to eat at McDonald's, but to each his own.

We didn't have much choice in where to fly into. Munich was direct, and most others had so many connections that ground travel would be more time saving. As for the mountains, we live by the Atlantic, so it's a bit of a haul (about a 5 hour flight) to get to Alp-ish mountains.

We still plan to hit Bamberg, but Wurzburg is a harder sell for my husband.

Mama bear, Jeff, and everyone, thanks so much for the tips. I am going to look into a lot of those day trips.

After lots of consulting, we are currently thinking of heading straight from the airport to Nuremberg spend 3 nights there, (day tripping to Bamberg), head to Oberstdorf for 3 more nights and another day trip to the castles (if I can figure out renting a car), then ending with 3 nights in Munich.

One thing I'm noticing is it is difficult to find English speaking webpages for hotels in Oberstdorf. Neither of us speak great German. Is this an area where that would be an issue?

THANKS!!!

One thing I'm noticing is it is difficult to find English speaking webpages for hotels in Oberstdorf. Neither of us speak great German. Is this an area where that would be an issue?

No, not at all. English is the language of the hospitality industry in Europe, and even though Oberstdorf isn't well known in the Anglosphere, it hosts a considerable number of Dutch, Belgian and French guests in addition to Germans.

I've stayed at Hotel Filser a few times and would easily recommend it. If you drive, a GPS would help. Oberstdorf is a little tricky to navigate by auto.

If your husband enjoys history, check out the new Nazi Documentation Center in Munich. We also really enjoyed the "Hitler's Munich" walking tour offered by Munich Walks. Our guide, Levi, was outstanding.

"Mama bear, Jeff, and everyone, thanks so much for the tips. I am going to look into a lot of those day trips."
I'd like to second Jeff's suggestion for Dießen and Andechs if you can squeeze it in on a day trip from Munich. From Andechs (south of Munich) the Alps are often visible in the distance.

"After lots of consulting, we are currently thinking of heading straight from the airport to Nuremberg spend 3 nights there, (day tripping to Bamberg), head to Oberstdorf for 3 more nights and another day trip to the castles (if I can figure out renting a car), then ending with 3 nights in Munich."

3 nights sounds like a LOT for Oberstdorf, especially if the Alps aren't your main priority. And by "the castles" you mean N'stein, H'schwangau, etc? I thought you intended to avoid the tourist horde.

"I did want to clarify, the Alps aren't our main priority. I want to at least have a day somewhere where they are visible..."

There's a Ludwig II Palace closer to Munich with good views of the Alps (the two buildings above are both late-19th-century palaces, not castles) called HERRENCHIEMSEE which is on the large island you see in the photo in Lake Chiemsee in the town of Prien (which is only one hour from Munich by direct train.) H'chiemsee info: http://www.herrenchiemsee.de/englisch/n_palace/

Aschau is a small town near Prien and easy to reach by train. There is a lift there that takes you to the "Kampenwand" peaks, where you can hike around a bit and enjoy views of the Alps and also of the Chiemsee.

http://kampenwand.de/index.php?rex_resize=835h__panoramakarte_sommer.jpg
http://www.chiemgauresort.de/medien/kampenwandbahn.jpg

Herrenchiemsee is not tourist-free but it has escaped the tourist invasion you'll find near Füssen.

In 2013 my family stayed for 2 weeks in Munich at the same hotel and made day trips to the places you first mentioned. We originally did this because we were traveling with an older adult but it worked out beautifully. It was great not having to pack and unpack plus we lived like a local which was a treat. Salzburg and Fussen were worth the side trips. Just wished we would of toured Rothenburg, there is a tour bus that makes the trip a few times a week from the train station area.