Munich area itinerary question

In general, you need 2 hotel nights to have 1 full day of sightseeing in a location.
Technically, you can do one night per location, but the time to travel to the next destination, get from the hotel to the train station, from the train station to the next hotel, check in, unpack, repack, etc--will seriously reduce the amount of time you have at a location, if you are doing back-to-back one night hotel stands.

The travel time it takes to get from one destination to another needs to be carefully considered.

"I will get a car on arrival..."
If you're getting it in Prague, count on an exorbitant drop-off fee in Germany.
More comments:
1.) There are some trains but the IC bus is the faster way to travel between Prague and Germany. By train it's about 6 hours to Munich - 3.75 by bus.
2.) It makes more sense to hit Rothenburg from Prague before traveling south to Munich. Use the bus (<4 hours) to Nuremberg; get car there or take the train to R'burg from there.
3.) You don't really have enough time to do all this marathon traveling around. Rothenburg deserves some time. Driving the Romantic Road and stopping at the other towns along the way uses up more than a day; there's really no point in driving it since you don't have enough time; the road isn't romantic - it's the towns that are interesting. Neuschwanstein alone isn't worth the very long drive to get there and back north to Munich - it's a 30-minute tour, and it's not a real castle but a late 19th century palatial residence with a lot of tricks to make it look like a castle.

I would suggest this streamlined trip or something like it. It will save you some time and you'll still see a lot as well. Since I'm suggesting a 3-night stay in Munich, where a car will be mostly pointless, I suggest you use the train instead. the train will get you to MUC airport on Day 6 too.

Day 1: Lv. Prague early by bus - Nuremberg, catch train - Rothenburg for afternoon and evening.
Day 2: Brkfst, Lv. Rothenburg 9:00 by train - Nördlingen (another very cool walled RR town; ar. 11:30 for a couple of hours, catch train - Harburg and/or Donauwörth and/or Augsburg, all RR towns. Take train to Munich, arriving late.
Day 3, 4, 5 using Munich as a base: Do a day trip to Dachau. Give Munich the time and attention it deserves. If you want to see a palace, check out either the Residenz or Nymphenburg, both in Munich. A trip out to N'stein would require - and possibly waste - nearly a whole day.

I am not clear on whether you will have a car in Germany or in Italy. Do you mean that you will have a car for 2 days for the purpose of visiting parts of the Romantic Road, Rothenburg, and Fuessen-area castles? That will give you the most schedule flexibility, although it sounds like you're only visiting destinations which are also served by train.

If Rothenburg ob der Taurber is a priority, then you can save travel time by taking train/bus connections from Prague to Rothenburg, before working your way south. Or just take the direct Prague-Nuernburg bus and pick up your car there; you can return the car to Munich without much price difference.

For driving routes and times, see www.viamichelin.com. How to Look Up Train Schedules and Routes Online gives you the DB train schedule link and tips for using it.

P.S. Looks like Russ types faster than me.

I have the same questions as Laura. You state that you're taking a train from Prague to Munich, but also say that you plan to "get a car on arrival". Could you clarify this?

I have "mixed feelings" about the "Romantic Road and Rothenburg". It will take some time to get there and back, which won't leave much time for sightseeing there. It's a beautiful town, but I'm not sure that will be worth the effort.

Also, where in Italy will you be flying to on Day 6?

I think Russ' itinerary is better, but if N'stein is a must, you could rent a car in N'burg and drive to R'burg ( be sure to see the Night Watchman's tour in the evening). Early in the mornng, drive to Fussen and see the castle (make reservation in advance), then drive to Munich.

I guess I do need to clarify! My idea was to spend the 5 nights and Munich, and do all the side trips from there. I see it makes more sense to start in Rothenburg and stay overnight before going to Munich.

We wanted the car so we could get to the little towns out in the country, and my husband wants to drive on the autobahn! I thought it would be more convenient to drive ourselves to the airport. Plan to fly into Verona since it is 1 hr. flight vs 5 hr train.

Since learning more about Neuschwanstein Castle, it does seem like a long distance for a short visit, unless it is a pretty drive or has little towns on the way.

Thanks for all the suggestions!

If the hubbie wants to drive on the freeway, then you must let him.

"We wanted the car so we could get to the little towns out in the country..."

Rothenburg is one such town. If you get the car in Nuremberg, there are some nice small towns before and after Rothenburg. Before, I'd suggest Iphofen, Ochsenfurt, and/or Bad Windsheim (must-see Freilandmuseum there):
Photos of Iphofen

After Rothenburg you can visit others on the way to Munich. But you should probably use the A7 and A8 Autobahn routes and plan to see towns that aren't far off that route. Plan your stops in advance and be selective, as your time really is pretty short.

"I thought it would be more convenient to drive ourselves to the airport."

If you're staying in Munich I don't think street traffic and dropping off the car at the rental yard and catching a shuttle to the terminal will be more convenient than one train from station to terminal. I don't think driving to Dachau from central Munich or paying rental fees for a car that goes unused in central Munich is very advantageous either. If you end up with a car, I'd drop it when you first arrive in Munich.

Despite what all the tourist literature says, Rothenburg is not indispensable. It's an attractive town, no doubt, but not nearly as unique as touted. See it if you absolutely must, but realize how many other great towns you're by-passing just to follow the tourist hordes to a bunch of trinket shops. If you wanted to spend the day touring an attractive old town, I would go for Landshut, much closer to Munich. Lee from Colorado usually has something to say about Landsberg am Lech, although I don't know the town well.

Also, the Romantic Road is just a normal series of secondary roads that link some interesting towns together. It's one of about 100 such themed routes in Germany. The scenery along the road is nothing special for the regions of Bavaria through which it passes. Drive it if you must, but it's neither a very efficient nor scenic method of stringing together sites.

Finally, I would not recommend dealing with a rental car in Munich, if possible. Driving in most German cities is fairly easy. Munich is a big exception. It's difficult to navigate, even with a GPS and following the usually well-marked road signs. And parking in the Altstadt can be next to impossible to find. Only the most expensive hotels can guarantee it.

"and my husband wants to drive on the autobahn!" Around Munich, it's like driving on a highway in any country in the world. Most of the Autobahn network around the city and feeding in and out of it have rather slow speed limits, mostly 100 km/hr or less (about 60 mph), and the overall heavy traffic usually prevents you from driving even that fast. He would have to drive far to the north on A9, far to the west on A7, or A95 south of Starnberg to experience anything like the speed he's probably imagining.