Fussen or Garmisch

If you don't count changing modes of transportation at the station, I've been in GaP twice. Once I went up the Zugspitze, then came down and walked around town a bit. The second time, we were coming through from the Tirol to Munich and we changed trains, had lunch, did some shopping. I'm really not that impressed with GaP. The towns in that area where I would stay (have) are Oberammergau and Pfronten.

We stayed in Garmisch for a few nights, very nice little town with colorful murals and interesting houses. VYou can almost walk to Zugspitze ski lift. Pleasant drive to Mittenwald, Oberamergau and the castles. Enjoyed the hotel. And you are in the mountains. Fussen obviously is conveneint for the castles- but then not as convenient for the mountain towns.

Hi Alex, If I had to choose one it would be Fuessen. If you said Mittenwald (20 min. from Garmisch) I'd go with Mittenwald. Not a big fan of Garmisch. Too much of a "city"... with the traffic, etc.

Alex, you're struggling with the same decision my husband and I are. We were originally going to stay in Reutte, but after hearing the advice of people here, we decided against that. Now I'm trying to decide between Füssen and Garmisch-Partenkirchen OR Mittenwald. Has anyone here been to all three? When are you traveling, Alex?

I will be there three nights starting October 4th. Obermeragau sounds like a right nightmare to me. That's why I did not consider in my post. I had not considered Mittenvald, but maybe I should. I've actualy been to Fussen before and enjoyed my walk through the old town. But that was a while ago. As I am replying to my own post, perhaps anybody could also answer the question, which is the best way to the top of zugspitze, German side or Austria side? Do they both go to the same place?

G-P is a hiker's paradise; lots of interesting hikes including the spectacular gorges and the Alpspitze. you can stay near the pedestrian zone and avoid the traffic areas if you like. As for the Zugspitze, the lifts end up near one another, and you can walk a few steps from the Aaustrian side to the Gereman side. as I recall, each one has a large deck and beer garden. the actual summit is a hike up steps, ladders and a narrow trail.

I know nothing about "Obermeragau", but I stayed two nights in Oberammergau in early October, 2007, and it certainly was not a nightmare. That late in the year the tourist were pretty much gone. Except to find restaurants, I did not spend much time in the actual town. I took the bus to Linderhof during the whole day there and left the next morning to do the Romantic Road. There are buses from the train station in Oberammergau to Hohenschwangau (about 1h20m) and to Garmisch-Partenkirchen (about 40 min) so you can avoid the expense of a car. . . . . . ¶ And don't overlook Pfronten (www.pfronten.de). Here (www.gasthof-aggenstein.de) is an example of a nice place to stay, right in town. The bus to the Pfronten-Ried Bahnhof stops across the street, and most buses to there go on to the Füssen Bahnhof (about 42 min from Aggenstein). Pfronten is just up the rail line from Reutte, but nicer, and there are more frequent buses to Füssen.

What James said about GaP... Ricks' omissions and picks in his Germany book are, quite frankly, a bit puzzling to me. That being said, GaP is my favorite town in the Alps.