My wife and I are taking a one week tour that includes the Passion Play at Oberammergau. We are going to spend an additional week in Germany on our own after the tour ends. We have already reserved 3 nights in Dresden to visit German relatives Sept. 15-17, but will need to stay somewhere Sept. 13-14 before going to Dresden. I thought we may just spend those nights in Munich and look around but also wondered if there are other places in Bavaria that would be good to visit instead before going on to Dresden. I tried to make a reservation around Lake Tegernsee at a hotel in Rottach-Egern only to be told there were no vacancies. I am open to suggestions for a village or area that would be a nice place to visit for a couple of days. Thanks.
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19274 posts
I've spent 2-3 months worth of nights in Bavaria in the last 20 years. So many favorites it's hard to say.
I've spent weeks in a little village in the Illertal (between Immenstadt i.A. and Oberstdorf). It's a beautiful Alpine valley and the only access to the even more beautiful Kleinwalsertal. It's a little over 2 hours from Munich and 4 hours to Oberammergau by train.
Another favorite of mine is Pfronten, which is actually not a single town but a collection of villages that grew into one. It's in Germany, just over the border from Reutte, in the Austrian Tyrol. Takes about 2½ hours from Munich and is a little less than that from Oberammergau. It's about an hour by bus, which is free with a guest card from most lodging in the area, to Hohenschwangau (and Neuschwanstein).
There are a number of nice towns in the area south of Munich, around Tegernsee, all tied together by a private train system that recognizes most Bahn passes. Schliersee is a lake east of Tegernsee, with, I understand, a lot of condos. I stayed farther east, near the town of Bayrischzell, at the foot of the Wendelstein.
Posted by
OP
Tyler, TX, USA
169 posts
Thanks, Lee. Great suggestions. I will need to do some research and see what these may look like. I appreciate your help.
Posted by
53 posts
I would stay in Munich at the Hotel Alfa.
It is a small family owned hotel one block from the Hauptbahnhof. This gives you easy access to all sorts of options; S-Bahn, U-Bah, regular trains. Anything you would want to visit could be accessed in less than an hour by train.
Posted by
Niagara, Ontario
1678 posts
Stay in or very close to Munich, seeing as you are going to Dresden afterwards. You only have two full days and Munich can eat up all your time. If you want to dip into the alps, make a day trip to Garmisch-Partenkirchen. There are more attractive small towns and villages further afield but GP is a nice enough place, easy to get to, has a couple of gorges and cable cars, easy access to the Eibsee and Zugspitz. If you are more interested in town walkabouts than nature, leave early and combine GP with Mittenwald.
Tegernsee is a lovely spot, very popular with Bavarian tourists and weekenders from Munich. Bad Wiessee has a longish, very pleasant promenade. You can try there, if you just want to relax, although it adds to your Dresden travel time.
Lee's Illertal and Kleinwalsertal are little visited by North Americans. A top area but a bit out of the way for you, I think, but worth considering if you ever return and have more time.
Posted by
Paradise
7072 posts
"...other places in Bavaria that would be good to visit...
You don't say what places the initial 1-week tour will have taken you (other than Oberammergau.)
If you're unsure about Munich and you've already had time in the Alps, I suggest you visit the "other" Bavaria... Bamberg is a Bavarian gem that you're going to pass right through on a train trip anyway.
Bamberg scene
Bamberg, UNESCO World Heritage site
Bamberg, things to see/do
Bamberg pubs and brewery restaurants
