Good evening fellow Europe enthusiasts!
I am in search of a quaint, family run pension for me, my husband and two young children. Do any of you have good recommendations. I honestly don't like just searching the random internet sites and know that all of you have a wealth of information to share :) We will have a rental car and will spend 2 nights in order to tour all of the castles and any Christmas markets we can find.
Thank you!
Gasthof Fraundorfer. Rooms facing the street have a view of the Zugspitze. The restaurant has live music most nights, and some children perform a little dance every few hours.
An alternative to staying in Garmisch, would be to stay closer to the castles in the town of Pfronten. I have not stayed in this town, however, it is often mentioned on this forum. To check for lodging, use this website: www.pfronten.de Fuessen and Kempten both have Christmas markets worth going to.
I've stayed twice in Pfronten, the last time here. Gasthof Aggenstein is family run and right on the road between Garmisch-Partenkirchen and Kempten, a little west of Reutte (and a lot nicer town).
Incidently, I discovered Pfronten on a bus trip from Fischen im Allgäu (another back door) to Füssen. Had I been in a car, the main road bypasses Pfronten, and I never would have found it. I didn't have time to stop that day, as we were planning a full day at the castles, but I noted the name and looked it up on the Internet when I got home. I've come back twice for three nights. It's a much nicer town than Reutte to use as a base for a visit to the castles, and you can find some reasonably priced accommodations there. We had a nice double room at Aggenstein, with breakfast and our own bathroom, for less than 60€. When you stay there you get a bus pass for free transportation in town and to Hohenschwangau.
Looks like Pfronten has a one-day Christmas market on Sunday, December 15.
Gasthof Fraundorfer is my recommendation. We stayed in the detached back unit. The place has a good restaurant with an entertaining traditional "slap" dance show. I'd recommend it. It was also family friendly- like you, we had 2 small boys when we went. The unit we stayed in had a neat bedroom for them with a car bed that they enjoyed. The town is a great place. Make sure to visit Zugspitze while you're there.
If you don't mind staying in Ehrwald, about 20 minutes south in Austria, I highly recommend Haus Karls Ruh. It is one of the best places and values in Europe. If you want more details, check out the reviews on Tripadvisor (mine is from "GerneGeht").
This isn't exactly what you are looking for (not a small family-run pension) but I stayed in Hotel Mercure and loved it. Very nice, wonderful breakfast. And a great walk into the main part of the city. I found a great deal that made it very affordable (especially with the quality of the breakfast).
Haus Karl's Ruh looks like a really nice place, but if you are thinking about staying there, contact them directly from their website, www.hauskarlsruh.co.uk. I found much better prices on their website than from Booking.com (TripAdvisor).
