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Itinerary Help Munich to Berlin

UPDATED ITINERARY BASED ON FEEDBACK I RECEIVED HERE AND ON OTHER FORUMS

Day 1: Munich Arrival PM
Day 2: Munich to Berlin via ICE train early AM or late flight/train Day 1
Day 3: Berlin
Day 4: Berlin
Day 5: Berlin to Nuremberg via train (Possible Erfurt Stopover)
Day 6: Nuremberg
Day 7: Nuremberg (Bamberg Daytrip)
Day 8: Nuremberg to Mittenwald via train
Day 9: Mittenwald
Day 10: Mittenwald to Munich via train
Day 11: Munich
Day 12: Munich
DAY 13: AM Departure Munich

Biggest changes:
- Decided to switch to Mittenwald for two nights instead of staying near and focusing on Neuschwanstein Castle.

- Get to Berlin as quickly as possible from Munich to begin our trip (unable to adjust flight with airline to still get a business class flight so our current options include intentionally skipping our flight to Munich from Paris and booking a separate flight to Berlin which I believe is possible because our return flight is with a different airline, taking a flight or late train day 1, or taking an early train day 2 which is most likely what we will do)
- Skip Dresden as it was slightly out of the way and another larger city in an itinerary with a lot of larger cities
- Added a possible stopover in Erfurt
- Hoping I have added a little variety to the types of cities/towns we will be visiting and lessened the pace of travel a bit from the first itinerary.

Remaining Concerns:
- Still might be too fast of a pace and too many locations. Would take additional suggestions on what to cut or skip to slow down if recommended.

ORIGINAL POST
I am planning an anniversary trip for my husband and I during late August/Early September. We are 39 and live in Portland, OR and have never been to Germany. Our main goals in visiting Germany are to experience the culture, food, beer, history, and architecture. At first all I knew is I wanted to visit Munich and Berlin so I pieced together an itinerary that connected the two but would really like feedback.

Day 1 Arrival Munich PM
Day 2 Munich
Day 3 Munich to Hohenschwangau PM
Day 4 Hohenschwangau (Neuschwanstein Castle) Day to Nuremberg PM
Day 5 Nuremberg
Day 6 Nuremberg (Daytrip to Bamberg)
Day 7 Nuremberg Day to Dresden PM
Day 8 Dresden
Day 9 Dresden Day to Berlin PM
Day 10 Berlin
Day 11 Berlin
Day 12 Berlin Day to Munich PM
Day 13 AM Flight from Munch

Cities that nearly made the itinerary: Salzburg Daytrip from Munich, Rothenburg de Tauber, Potsdam Daytrip from Berlin

Concerns:
1) Is the overall itinerary too rushed in chosen locations or have I chosen too many locations for the length of the trip? What to cut if it would be better to spend more time in fewer cities?

2) Does a car rental make sense for any portion (I was considering car rental for Munich to Hohenschwangau to Nuremberg)?
3) Am I overlooking any better locations or have I chosen locations that are redundant or don’t give enough variety to the overall trip?

Thanks in advance!

Posted by
6589 posts

Am I overlooking any better locations...

Better is incredibly subjective but one thing's for sure - you're overlooking some very nice, smaller historical places and architectural delights with your somewhat uncreative itinerary. You'll be in larger cities 90% of the time, places dominated by the powerful and the wealthy for many centuries and then largely annihilated in WW II.

My "better" introduction to Germany would include some places where you might better see how the "little folks" lived over the past several centuries, places that were less bomb-worthy 75+ years ago. Towns on the "German Half-timbered House Road" (Fachwerkstrasse) and the "Fairytale Road" would be examples of the sorts of places that might achieve some kind of balance. Another option would be to visit a "Freilichtmuseum" (open-air museum that evokes rural/agrarian life.) There's a good one in Bad Windsheim, not too far from Nuremberg. A lot of visitors enjoy their time in one of Germany's wine regions, an important industry today in this part of Europe that Ancient Rome helped usher in . While Franconia is one of those regions, Nuremberg and Bamberg aren't exactly in the vineyards. Farm stays are common in Bavaria too. Then there's the Black Forest. It's not a backwards place, but you certainly notice a cling to traditional ways and culture there.

Another "road" option which includes some smaller towns/regions less altered by modernity is the "German Castle Road;" then there's the Upper Middle Rhine Valley, (a dense cluster of real medieval castles and old-world towns.) The Neckar River Valley and the Main River Valley are similarly blessed in spots; Miltenberg on the Main River not too far from Würzburg is quite a nice place.

As it is now, the time you've allocated outside the big cities (half of day 3 and half of day 4) will be spent with the tourist super-throng. Neuschwanstein btw is neither a castle nor is it particularly representative of German architecture. Like Hohenschwangau, it's a royal palace - but with a deceptive exterior that only simulates a real castle. Have a look at the UNESCO World Heritage site list in Germany for alternatives. It's very helpful in identifying important palaces and historical buildings in Germany.

Posted by
2274 posts

I think you're on the right track for your 1st visit to Germany, the problem I see is that you're on the move. It looks like you want to settle in for a few days, then you're off on a day trip and there goes your time away from the "host" city. In the end, yeah, you'll have been to Germany, I'm just not sure how much you'll actually have seen of Germany.

With all due respect to the above poster, I think you're asking a 1st time visitor to drill too far below the surface - those kinds of trips come much, much later in the process.

Posted by
6589 posts

periscope writes, "I think you're asking a 1st time visitor to drill too far below the surface - those kinds of trips come much, much later in the process."

I'm not aware of the "process" periscope refers to. Rick Steves suggests the same sort of drilling; his recommendations for independent travelers with 14 days in Germany also include more time in rural Germany (more in the Alps + the Rhine Valley + the Mosel Valley.) Not that he's the last word. But it's hardly revolutionary for first-time visitors to include such places.

https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/germany/itinerary

3 days: Munich, Bavarian Alps
5 days, add: Rhine Valley, Rothenburg
7 days, add: More of Bavarian Alps, side-trip to Salzburg
10 days, add: Berlin
14 days, add: Nürnberg, Mosel Valley

Posted by
746 posts

Way too rushed. Doesn’t sound like fun. The transfer from paper plan to real life would not come out well. Not only do you have travel between cities but you have day trips from those places. Do yourself a favor and slow down.

Posted by
7 posts

Unfortunately flights are booked so adding more time isn't an option. I had hoped to fly into Munich and out of Berlin to save travel time but frequent flyer mile limitations required a round trip out of Munich. If I am going to slow down I need to drop some locations. My main interest in Germany began with visiting Berlin so I am hesitant to drop it even though it is the furthest away. Any suggestions on which cities to skip?

Posted by
6589 posts

I suggest starting with what you know for sure - Berlin.

You'll probably be pretty tired on Day 1 and probably awake pretty early on Day 2. I would take the 7:55 - 11:51 train to Berlin on Day 2. You had too little time there previously; spend at least 4 nights there, which means 3.5 days of sightseeing (pretty minimal for a city like this) and you wake up on Day 6 in Berlin. That leaves you Days 6-12 to replan.

Suggest: drop Dresden...

Day 6: Morning train to Nuremberg with a break of maybe 6 hours in Bamberg (stow bags in locker) and late arrival in Nuremberg for a 3-night stay.

Days 7,8,9:
N'berg is a very good base for outings. Day trips or half-day trips on Days 7 & 8 to smaller places. Bad Windsheim? Iphofen? Würzburg? Bayreuth?

Day 9 for Nuremberg alone. LEAVE Nuremberg around 17:00 for the Alps. (17:13 - 20:45 for Füssen area? Better options IMHO include the Mittenwald/Garmisch area but it's your trip.)

Days 10-12: Split time between Alps and Munich.

Posted by
7595 posts

I think you could reduce your travel somewhat.
Consider eliminating Neuschwanstein Castle, since it is in the opposite direction of Nuremberg. Also, while the design is interesting since Disney pickup up on it later, the castle has little history. I was underwhelmed by it. You eliminated Salzburg, which would have been much better.

Also, instead of a day trip to Bamberg from Nuremberg, how about just going to Bamberg after you leave Nuremberg, on your way to Dresden?

Car rental might be good for the Nuremberg-Bamberg-Dresden portion if you do as I suggested.

Posted by
7 posts

UPDATED ITINERARY BASED ON FEEDBACK I RECEIVED HERE AND ON OTHER FORUMS

Day 1: Munich Arrival PM
Day 2: Munich to Berlin via ICE train early AM or late flight/train Day 1
Day 3: Berlin
Day 4: Berlin
Day 5: Berlin to Nuremberg via train (Possible Erfurt Stopover)
Day 6: Nuremberg
Day 7: Nuremberg (Bamberg Daytrip)
Day 8: Nuremberg to Mittenwald via train
Day 9: Mittenwald
Day 10: Mittenwald to Munich via train
Day 11: Munich
Day 12: Munich
DAY 13: AM Departure Munich

Biggest changes:
- Decided to switch to Mittenwald for two nights instead of staying near and focusing on Neuschwanstein Castle.

- Get to Berlin as quickly as possible from Munich to begin our trip (unable to adjust flight with airline to still get a business class flight so our current options include intentionally skipping our flight to Munich from Paris and booking a separate flight to Berlin which I believe is possible since our return flight is with a different airline, taking a flight or late train day 1, or taking an early train day 2 which is most likely what we will do)
- Skip Dresden as it was slightly out of the way and another larger city in an itinerary with a lot of larger cities
- Added a possible stopover in Erfurt
- Hoping I have added a little variety to the types of cities/towns we will be visiting and lessened the pace of travel a bit from the first itinerary.

Remaining Concerns:
- Still might be too fast of a pace and too many locations. Would take additional suggestions on what to cut or skip to slow down if recommended.

Posted by
2274 posts

Because Berlin is my favourite city in all of Europe (Torino runs a close 2nd), I always think travellers never set aside enough time for a full visit, but it is what it is.

I also think a stop in Erfurt would be highly rewarding - heck even the entrance to the Hauptbahnhof is an attraction on it's own.

Posted by
6589 posts

Day 5: I would plan on more hours for your abbreviated Berlin visit. Leave in the late afternoon for Nuremberg, bypass Erfurt.

Day 8: Don't lock in your train times to Mittenwald with restrictive saver-fare tickets for the high-speed train segments. You may want to spend some morning time in Nuremberg rather than racing off, and the €9-Ticket for the regional trains lets you travel at any hour.

Day 10: Garmisch-Partenkirchen is on your route to Munich and has station lockers and nice things to see and do as well. Mittenwald > Munich is a €9-ticket regional train ride, so you can stow bags in G-P and head out to see what interests you in/around G-P on this day. Because you have 2 full days in Munich on the 11th and 12th days, you could in fact spend all day here, maybe visit the Partnachklamm or the Zugspitze, maybe even catch the Bavarian Evening at the Fraundorfer Inn before returning to Munich.

Posted by
28 posts

As you are admittedly into beer, I would suggest purchasing "The beer drinkers guide to Munich". I call it the beer drinkers bible to Munich. If the new addition has coupons, use them, they really do work. Do not miss the Hirschgarten or Augustiner Keller.

Posted by
2274 posts

Upping the ante for Erfurt:

https://www.erfurt-tourismus.de/en/all-about-erfurt/places-of-interest/cathedral-of-st-mary

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kr%C3%A4merbr%C3%BCcke

"The Krämerbrücke (Merchants' bridge) is a medieval arch bridge in the city of Erfurt, in Thuringia, central Germany, which is lined with half-timbered shops and houses on both sides of a cobblestone street. It is one of the few remaining bridges in the world that have inhabited buildings. It has been continuously inhabited for over 500 years, longer than any other bridge in Europe. The stone, pedestrian bridge, which dates from 1325, is one of the oldest secular structures in Erfurt."