Spring Break in Germany! Frankfurt to Munich...ideas/help!

Frankfurt: how about staying in a small town such as Eltville at river Rhine or in Taunus area, e. g. Kronberg?

I think 1 night in Rothenburg is enough, after this you could travel on to Füssen or Augsburg. On the way to Munich you will find monastery Andechs, famous for beer.

Two cents from my side.

Hi Linda,

Unfortunately I can't help you with the hotel in Munich.

But April is a good time if the weather cooperates, because Munich comes to life, you could say. When it's warm, you'll actually find people sitting in the beer gardens and life outside is picking up.

Maybe you can find an event that interests you under this link:
https://www.munich.travel/en/topics/event-calendar/april-fruehlingsfest-flea-market

Munich may not be famous for its craft beer scene, but there is more than the same old Hofbräuhaus and beer halls in the city center. For example, there is the still young 'Giesinger Bräu' brewery. They are also reviving a very old Munich tradition, namely the 'Stehausschank'. This means nothing other than that you buy a beer and stand on the sidewalk with many other people and drink your beer and have a great conversation. Especially if this happens near the two large universities (Giesinger Bräu, Schellingstraße 27), you will certainly find enough others with whom you can come into contact.
https://www.instagram.com/giesingerbraeu/
https://www.munich.travel/en/categories/discover/eat-drink/beer-in-munich

Maybe the Franken Wine region along/around the Main River? Iphofen, Volkach, Prichsenstadt etc. Some train some bus. This is a pleasant area with many stone and timber frame small wine towns. Spring is a great time, though you'll be a little early. Middle of April the Spargel (white asparagus) season begins. Nice area for bike riding. See a little of the not so touristic Bavaria other than the German tourists.

If you like art, you might want to visit the Städel when you are in Frankfurt. When in April? Will you be here over Easter?

Some events in this region that might be of interest to you, plus there is the Pealing of the Bells in Frankfurt on the day before Easter at 16:30. This is 50 bells in downtown Frankfurt from 10 churches, ringing for 30 minutes.
Easter Market, Wiesbaden – 4-6.04
Spring Market, Seligenstadt – 5-6.04 (Sunday Shopping)
Easter Market, Burg Ronnerburg – 5-6.04 & 12-13.04
Easter Market, Hessen Park – 12-13.04
Spring Festival, Marburg – 12-13.04
Spring Dippemess, Frankfurt – 11.04-4.05
Rhein Frühling, Mainz – 12-27.04
Spring Festival, Eltville – 1-4.05
Frog Parade, Büdingen – 4.05 (with Sunday Shopping)

You might consider going from Frankfurt directly to Nuremberg, which is the center of a good hub/spoke system to get to some of the towns around it by train. For example, Bamberg (which is not similar to Rothenburg), Regensburg and Wurzburg are all easily accessible from Nuremberg. As is Rothenburg, although not quite as easily reached by public transportation as it usually involves a train and a bus. But it is still doable as a day trip.

You really don't need more than one night in Rothenburg, though, so if you decide to stop there directly after Frankfurt, you could still head to Nuremberg after that for 2-3 nites. Personally, I would spend 3 nights in Nuremberg and shorten Munich to 3 nights. But that's me. :-) And if you are planning to attend a performance with the Bavarian State Opera, you might want more time in Munich.

...then 3 nights in Rothenburg...a day trip from there to maybe Nuremberg or Bamberg (too similar to Rothenburg and/or too difficult to get there?)?...and then 4 nights in Munich?

Your enthusiasm for small towns, art/opera and his interest in beer will be better served with some re-organization of your current plan.

Nuremberg and Bamberg are completely distinct from one another and from Rothenburg as well. Rothenburg is a tiny backwater, nearly half destroyed in WW II and rebuilt in the most cutesy/touristy fashion thereafter. It is the smallest of small towns, definitely the smallest of the places you have mentioned. Half a day here is enough for the interesting stuff. The people on the streets are almost exclusively international tourists with some German tourists mixed in, along with the locals who serve them; the town is easily overrun by Easter-time tourists from all over the planet, which is a good thing for the only industry in Rothenburg (tourism.)

tourist map: https://mochilerosdospuntocero.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Rothenburg-Tourist-Map-987x1024.jpg

Nuremberg by comparison is a real city. It has a population of half a million, but since most stuff to see is within the attractive old-town zone, it seems smaller than that and is easy to get around on foot; that said, it's much larger than Rothenburg and offers much, much more to see and do. It is a multifaceted place that feels very different from Rothenburg, very "German" by comparision. Rebuilt after the war, it still evokes the past, despite the fact that it suffered a lot of damage. A couple of days in Nuremberg would not be too long. MANY good pubs in Nuremberg too.

tourist map: https://inuremberg.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/nuremberg-city_map-1.jpg

Bamberg (pop. 80,000, only 45 minutes from Nuremberg by direct train) is a UNESCO World Heritage site on the basis of its well-preserved old town, a delightful place for wandering, and maybe the best town for Franconian food/beer/culture. You need close to a full day here.

https://en.bamberg.info/
https://smspostcard3.blogspot.com/2009/07/missing-germany-town-of-bamberg.html

With your interest in the arts, you should not miss out on BAYREUTH (only 55 minutes from Nuremberg.) The Margravial Opera House is outstanding - and also a UNESCO World Heritage site. Maisel's Brewery tour is fun.

Guide for a one-day visit: https://www.bayreuth-tourismus.de/en/discover/the-bayreuth-guide/one-day-in-bayreuth/

The best way to see these places is to spend as many nights as possible in Nuremberg and day trip to the others. Even Munich can be a day trip from Nuremberg if you wish. Regensburg and Würzburg are also a worthwhile day trips from there.

This railway map shows Nuremberg (Nürnberg) to be one of Germany's best railway hubs; Rothenburg, Bamberg, Bayreuth are shown; the other towns mentioned are just a little further out:

https://images.gutefrage.net/media/fragen-antworten/bilder/459443150/0_full.jpg?v=1655930239000

That Rothenburg would make a horrible travel base for these day trips should be obvious from the map - but you can confirm this weakness with a look at the DB train schedules.

We have visited Germany over twenty times in the last 18 years and this is our favorite route. Everyone will have some towns that they like better than others. We prefer small to moderate sized towns. Würzburg, Rothenburg ob Der Tauber and Regensburg are our favorite stops. We like two days in each.

Würzburg is an easy trip from the Frankfurt Airport. We best like two walks in Würzburg. One walk is up to the Marienburg Festung (fortress) with views back at the city. A good museum (Mainfränkisches Museum) is in the Fortress devoted to art and artifacts of the area. The other walk is across the river and up to the Käppelle through the "Stages of the Cross". The Käppelle is a baroque pilgrimage church.

Rothenburg is small but walks outside the wall will fill a second day. One walk is to visit the smaller town or Detwang with the Peter and Paul Church (Riemenschneider Altar) down in the Tauber Valley. We also like a walk through vineyards from the Kobolzeller Tor (Gate) to the Burggarten. The evenings are the best time to walk inside the walls as they are quieter.

Regensburg is our last favorite. Visit many of the city's churches. Walk the plazas and narrow alleyways. Cross the Steinerne Brücke over the Donau (Danube). Kneitinger Brauerei is good for Bier (beer) and food.

München (Munich) has been a stop for us 4 times. My wife went to college there in the 1970s. We also knew a friend-of-a-friend there who made our visits special. I liked the Augustiner and Paulaner Biers. It is a large city and learning to use the transportation system is critical.

Everyone likes different things (obviously). I’ve been to Rothenburg for two nights and really enjoyed it, although we could have possibly cut down the time there to just one night. If you can, I would highly recommend going on the Night Watchman tour in Rothenburg. It is educational and very entertaining. I believe he starts the tours up again in April.

I like Mardee’s idea of going straight from Frankfurt to Nuremberg. It would make a good base for side trips and a few nights in Nuremberg would be a better use of your time, in my opinion.

I was also going to recommend Bayreuth and Bamberg - Bamberg for the smoked beer and Bayreuth for the Opera House and the Eremitage. We visited these two on our last trip and really enjoyed both.