Munich, Rothenburg, and the Romantic Road

Krissi, you can get to Füssen, to the castles quite easily without a car. A trip for 2 to Hohenschwangau via train and bus can cost only €27 with a Bayern-Ticket. If you make tour reservations in advance, which you really should do in June, you can get in both castles.

As for the "Romantic Road" part, if you see Füssen and Rothenburg, you have seen the best part. The RR itself is a bore. It is a slow, winding, 2-lane, road, with a low speed limit and truck and farm traffic. Michelin estimates the driving time alone at 5 hours, and that is an optimum. They tend to ignore delays. There are a few towns along the way that are worth seeing (I loved Nördlingen, but was not impressed with Dinkelsbühl), but you won't have time to stop much if you are doing it in one day.

If you take the 9:07 train out of Füssen through Augsburg and Treuchtlingen, you can get to Rothenburg by 1:49 PM, and that will also cost you €27 for a Bayern-Ticket. According to Michelin, fuel alone will be more than that.

You really can't do what you're suggesting in a day. I agree with Lee's Romantic Road comments and train suggestions, but I don't see how you could get out of Füssen by 9 a.m.! I'd actually suggest that you see a little of Munich on the morning of Day 1 and head to Rothenburg - skip Füssen. The Neuschwanstein tour itself is a time-consuming disappointment, and you'll not have much time for Munich on Day 2.

You'll find Munich an expensive overnight - might be better given your budget to look at overnighting in Augsbur, which is on the Romantic Road on your way south, then train into Munich (40-45 minutes) if that's where you must depart from, or maybe you're headed west or north anyway??? and can leave directly from Augsburg. You can get into the Ibis at the Augsburg station and a few other places for around 60 Euros double.

Krissi,

My preference would be to forget the rental car. I felt it was worthwhile to see the Castles, and used Radius Tours from Munich. They take care of all arrangements, including admission to the "official" Castle tour (visitors must keep to a pre-arranged time).

Again, use train for the trip to Rothenburg, and spend at least one night there. There are a couple of changes, but it's an easy journey.

Regarding accomodation in Munich, I suspect the only lodgings you'll find for less than Eu$60 will be Hostels. There seem to be lots of Hostels in the area. However, I believe some Hostels in Bavaria have age limits; you would have to check with them to see if they enforce these. If your budget is a bit flexible, you could check budget Hotels in Rick's book. The Hotel Uhland has a minimum of Eu$81 for a double room.

Good luck!

"I don't see how you could get out of Füssen by 9 a.m."

If you come down to Füssen on day 1 and tour the castles, then spend the night in Füssen, getting out by 9 AM on day 2 should not be a problem.

I would also suggest spending the next night in Rothenburg.

You indicated that your would be leaving Munich by train. What is your destination?

Thanks for all the suggestions!

I spent a couple of hours last night searching for a cheap hotel in Munich. The lowest I could find near the train station was 79 euro for a double room.

I'm not sure I understand the first question- about geting out of Fussen by 9am? We don't even arrive in Munich until 6:30am. As for the accomodations, I should have mentioned that my husband and I are 24 and 25 and are less picky than most travelers. We are just fine in hostels, however, we have found that in most places we are going to it is cheaper to actually stay in cheap hotels or "bed and breakfast" like places since hostels charge per person anyway. We're actually found and reserved a place in every place we're going to for 70 euros or less except in Venice. We'll be there for our 1 year anniversary and are splurging on a nicer hotel. I've actually found several places in Munich already, but thanks anyway. =) And to answer your last question, we are leaving for Switzerland the next day.

Actually, my reference to Füssen and 9 AM was not a question. My suggestion had been that instead of renting a car, on the morning you arrive from Venice, you take the train from the station to Füssen, see the castles, then spend the night in Füssen. The NEXT morning, you can catch the train from Füssen at 9:07 and be in Rothenburg by 1:49 PM. Since you want to go on to Switzerland, spend the night in Rothenburg and go from there to Switzerland in the morning. The trip to Switzerland should only take about an hour longer from Rothenburg than from Munich.

That wouldn't give you much time to enjoy Munich, but you aren't leaving much time anyway. I assume that after this trip you're planning to write a book entitled, "How to see everything in Bavaria in 48 hours".