Munich question

Munich is not a good base town for seeing Rothenburg and Füssen anyway, if those are your objecives. The hours you will spend doing day trips to these places from Munich would just be too long. If you wish to see those places and only those places, just stay in them.

It's not clear how many days you have altogether, or what your airports will be, so if you'd like suggestions for Rhine/Rothenburg/Füssen, pleas provide those details.

We're taking an overnight train from Berlin to Munich October 3 or 4-- or, that was the original plan prior to finding everything sold out in Munich! We would like to stay 3-4 nights in Bavaria before traveling to Budapest, though nothing is set in stone -- except a 2-day birding trip from Budapest October 11-12. I have been to all of these spots before, but loved them all and would like to share with daughter. I did the trip 50 years ago with a back-pack, Eurailpass and a year to explore! It's a little different when limited by time AND money, this trip! It's way more expensive than those hostels years ago!!!!!

So October 3 or 4 for 3 or 4 nights. Would like to revisit Munich, but not a deal-breaker. Would like to see the Fuessen castles, Rhine River trip (KD lines, I presume?) and would like to revisit Rothenberg, though that might mess up the original plan. Obviously, may have to stay in Rothenburg for a night or two, which limits the others!

But that's why I suggested a city near but outside of Munich. I still wouldn't mind seeing it again! And we could stay in each of the cities separately, but were hoping to have a "Base" so we didn't have to pack and unpack and carry our luggage everywhere. But, we certainly can consider that...

Thanks.

Mid October is after Oktoberfest - it ends in early October.

But Munich is a big busy city, and if there is a big show on at the Messe, the huge convention and conference complex east of the centre, hotel rooms will peak again. https://messe-muenchen.de/

I tend to stay in the little town of Feldkirchen northeast of the Messe, have stayed many times at the Bauer. Reasonable prices, good included breakfast, a short walk or bus to the Feldkirchen S-Bahn station and just a few minutes into the centre of Munich. Easy parking too.

No a/c but big windows onto little balconies, no need for a/c especially in October... https://www.bauerhotel.de/en/home/

Oktoberfest closes October 4th, the day after Unity Day, and is a National holiday. Probably even by the 5th (Monday) you should see relief from crowds and prices in Munich. The closing days, which this year is a weekend, is almost as popular as opening weekend.

Otherwise, you could look at Augsburg as a base, Bamberg or Regensburg would be nice cities as well...Or head to Wurzburg and venture to Rothenburg from there.

ah, thanks for the exact dates.

3rd and 4th of October (you originally said mid October) are the last two days of Oktoberfest. The last Saturday night is that 3rd.

Saturday nights are often busy and for the last Oktoberfest Saturday likely even more.

The Sunday night should be quieter, folks going home, etc., and Sunday nights are often the quietest night of the week.

By the way, I have found that booking direct, or picking up the phone (everybody speaks some English there) to the Bauer is best. If calling from overseas remember German business hours.

S-Bahn number 2 is every 20 minutes, takes 17 minutes to Marienplatz, 20 to Hbf.

Ah, Nigel. Thanks for the info, but the Hotel Bauer has "checkout only" on the 5th and the 6th is sold out! But, we'll figure it out...

We would like to stay 3-4 nights in Bavaria before traveling to
Budapest, October 3 or 4 for 3 or 4 nights... Would like to revisit
Munich, but not a deal-breaker. Would like to see the Fuessen castles,
Rhine River trip (KD lines, I presume?) and would like to revisit
Rothenberg...

It's very helpful to have the travel context you provided.

Sounds like you and I were taking our first eurail journeys around the continent at the same time.

While the Rhine Valley and the nearby Mosel Valley together constitute the very best part of Germany, IMHO of course, this area is not in Bavaria and is nowhere near Munich, Rothenburg or Füssen.

This map shows the location of the Rhine & Mosel rivers (look for Koblenz) and the scenic train rides (and cruises) that are available there. Castles - real medieval castles like Burg Eltz & Marksburg - are found in this area and offer great 1-hour tours. Stunningly handsome old-world villages like Bacharach and Cochem are easy to access by local train, full of half-timbered buildings like Rothenburg's, and dotted with wineries as well. Some towns have chairlifts or gondola rides that take you to the clifftops for awesome views. The natural scenery is quite stunning. We have based ourselves for 3-4 nights in the small riverfront towns, where views like this one in St Goar can be enjoyed over a few days instead of for the few minutes your cruise lasts (This was taken from the Rheinhotel St Goar, where a "double room large with Rhein view and balcony" includes breakfast and goes for €140/night. Lesser rooms are available at lower prices. See the KD cruise flag in that photo? You are close to the cruise dock without question here - and close to the rail station as well. https://www.rheinhotel-st-goar.de/en/prices/ ) Hotel Rheinfels, next door, enjoys a similar location. Other hotels in these towns go for lower prices and can be quite nice.

If you go to the Rhine - where the castles really are real and really have been there for close to 1,000 years... you will probably not have time for the Füssen-area "castles" (Neuschwanstein is a much more modern building with a fake castle exterior) although you might have time to stop in Munich on the way to Budapest. There's plenty to keep you busy on the Rhine for that short amount of time. I sense however that this is more of a "nostalgia" trip and that you are less interested in visiting new places and more interested in returning to places you have already been. And in this case, I suggest you consider Augsburg. The Hotel Ost am Kö is a wonderful little hotel with good prices. I spent just a night there this summer. Augsburg is a nice enough town and is close enough to Munich, but only slightly closer to Füssen

Stay in Ansbach. It's 2 hours from Munich by train, 30 minutes from Rothenberg by bus, and 4 hours, more or less, from Fussen or Bingen on the Rhine. But it's a nice city, small, easily walked, and not tourist infested. it's also very easy to get to places like Nuremberg, Wurzburg, Nordlingen, Ingolstadt, etc. from this hub. And it should be much less expensive.

For someplace closer, and also a very nice place to stay, consider Starnberg, which is a 20 minute ride on the regional trains from Munich's main bahnhof.

Susan,
We lived in Augsburg, which is 50 miles west of Munich. It is a great city to stay and trains run every hour, sometimes sooner.
Lodging is far cheaper and the city is worth spending at least a day tour. The city is over 2000 years old, founded by Emperor Augustus (the city was named after him).

The downtown area is great. The cathedral has the oldest stain glass in the world. The Rathaus is amazing and the Fuggeri (400 year old settlement for the poor) are the key sites there.

Further it is on the Romantic Road, which runs from Fussen to Wurzburg. Rothenburg ob der Tauber is on the road.
https://www.romanticroadgermany.com

In 2007, while doing the Romanic Road (by public transportation), I stayed at Augsburger Hof in Landsberg am Lech. It was the last night of Oktoberfest in Munich, but the rates out there were pretty normal. Landsberg is about an hour by train from Munich Hbf (change in Kaufering).

I think todays prices are about 70€ for single, 110€ for a double, 10€/P for breakfast.