16 day Backpacking trip AMS-> Innsbruck. Itinerary Critique?

I see you Really want to see old castles, nazi relics and good food so just wondering which of those you think that Heineken Experience falls into? I see the BMW Welt made it in, too. Cool. If you weren't going for the ride I would advise to skip Innsbruck. From Trier I would advise a day or so in the countryside of Luxembourg. Lots and lots and lots of WWII museums and artifacts.

Have you given any thought to Vienna instead on Innsbruck.

LaRae, Vienna is a very beautiful city that I have visited in the past. I'd love to go there again, but Innsbruck has this really cool Toboggan we want to visit. Check this out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqCkICXWdWI Apart from that, we aren't sure if Innsbruck has much other attractions. The itinerary is such that it alternates between city-town-city-countryside.

Touring Dachau takes about half a day (the guided tour only takes 2½ hours). Unfortunately, the tours start a 11:00 and 1 PM, so the half day comes out of the middle but you'll have time to do other things as well. Or you can get there at 9 and rent an audio guide. If you have most of a day, see Deutsches Museum. The aviation exhibit is particularly interesting with an F104, Germany's WWII jet fighter, a Messerschmidt, and a Fokker triplane. There is also a V-1 and a V-2 rocket. I spent most the day in the Museum without seeing everything. You have two choices for getting to Innsbruck, the faster route via Rosenheim and the Inn river valley, or south to Garmisch-Partenkirchen, then over the mountains via Mittenwald and Seefeld. The latter route is much more scenic and you can stop in Mittenwald on the way.

Looks fine to me. I assume that you're not planning to spend all of the three days you allotted for Trier in the city itself - I saw just about everything that interested me there in about 2 hours. This would be your best chance to see "old castles". The castles on the Mosel and nearby Rhine are well known, but you're also not far from the Pfälzerwald, which is positively littered with castles. Most of them are ruins, though, and many are hard to reach without a car. It's technically illegal to surf on the outlet of the Eisbach, although I don't think the ban is enforced. But its pretty dangerous. I've seen someone do a nasty face-plant on the concrete embankment. Other than Dachau, don't expect to see too many Nazi relics. Most of the Third Reich's remaining legacy in Germany is what's not there. That being said, there's at least one Nazi building that survived the war intact in Munich. I forget if it was the local Luftwaffe or Gestapo HQ, but it has that unmistakable, threatening look.

I second the Deutsches Museum suggestion, even if only a couple hours- outstanding. Also, if you are interested in BMWs the Welt is a wonderful building and has the factory tours ( which you should reserve now if interested), but the BMW museum across the side street is more interesting than the singular items in the Welt.

At this time, thank you everyone for their detailed help with the itinerary. I will definitely use your suggestions to further improve this trip. Lee: I have been to Deutsches Museum before and it was simply HUGE! Will probably make a half-day trip there just to see the other exhibits. Definitely will check out the Aviation section. Thanks for the transport info to Innsbruck. I believe the "faster" route takes about 2H from bahn.com.
May I know how to book tickets that will reach via Mittenwald and Seefeld? The scenic route sounds exciting because we like epic mountains and sights.

Tom: I haven't gone in-depth into planning with Trier. Thanks for the info on how small the town really is! We are 21 this year, and don't know whether renting a car to visit the countryside would be a good idea given the cost and insurance involved.. In fact we are looking to visit the Eagles Nest in Berchtesgaden, but don't know how feasible that is. Should we minus a night from Trier, and spend it in Salzburg instead? I am generally trying to minimize one-night stays unless absolutely worth while because we don't want to spend too much time travelling. Lastly, I think the Gespato HQ is in Cologne which we did consider but decided to spend more time in Munich/AMS. __ Nigel:
I heard the Heineken Experience is highly educational :P It'll be interesting to see how our favorite beers are made don't you think! Will definitely explore Luxembourg as a day-trip destination. The itinerary will start to look more exciting with trips to Luxembourg, Berchtesgaden, Salzburg and Dachau!

Melissa: Just had a look at the BMW Museum website and there appears to be three different tours: Welt, Museum and
Plant tour in Munich. Which tours would you recommend? We are looking at the Plant tour and museum, what do you think? __ James: The itinerary is actually part of a larger one, which includes Lake Bled, Jezera, Split, Prague, Berlin then back to Amsterdam. That would be quite a trip! I broke it into two because it would be easier to get more targeted suggestions on the trip, rather than scattering the focus on the many destinations. At present, I hope to use some very good suggestions from fellow travellers to fill in the "blanks" in my itinerary eg Modifying it to include less of Trier more of Salzburg etc. This is our very first time backpacking and we hope to take it easy and not make it a whirlwind trip around Europe, rather to enjoy and soak in the atmosphere! Thanks everyone for their suggestions! The trip is just a few months away and I appreciate your helpful replies. Thank you!

Ger, the trip from Munich to Salzburg is so fast and easy I think it's worth a "one night" exception. Or if you guys are willing to get up early you could do a tour to Ober Salzburg and that area with one of the companies RS recommends and still have a little time for seeing the city itself and heading back to Munich the same night. I've done this, it's totally feasable although you'll want more time. if I were you I'd cut the day from Trier and consider one night in Salzburg instead so you get more time there.

I would not miss Salzburg.