Itinerary Help: Switzerland, Bavaria, Austria, Hungary, etc.

Even with a month, I think you're trying to do too much. Only two days for Vienna, Budapest, and Prague is too short, and means too much time traveling between cities vs. seeing the cities. If you rent a car in Switzerland and drop it in Germany, be prepared for sticker shock on the extra fee for not dropping the car in the same country you picked it up in.

"As most of the trip will be Alpine, what sort of clothing should we rely on at that time of year?" September and early October is the best time of year for Alpine hikes. Statistically, it's the driest time of year, although it could still rain. Temperatures are usually mild in September, can be slightly cool in October, and below freezing at high elevations at night. Unless you plan to spend the night on top of a mountain, a windbreaker and sweater is probably the most you'll need. Maybe pack a pair of light gloves and scarf in your daybag. If you do a lot of hiking, bring a decent, well broken-in pair of hiking boots.

Mike: I'm jealous you have the time to take on such an odyssey. But you may be trying to take on too many destination cities. I'd suggest flying into Munich and renting a car as you leave town. Go south visiting tourist sights in southern Bavaria (castles, etc.) into the Tirol section of Austria. You'll get your fill of the Alps there. Then go East to Vienna and into the balance of your itinerary. You've asked more questions here that can be easily answered. You might want to start by reading travel guides, like Rick Steves' guides. They're available @ Amazon online, book stores and in public libraries. You'll identify what tourist sights are available. All destinations listed are great cities, and worthy of many days per stop. May I also suggest you look at Mapquest.com or Googlemaps.com to see how far apart the cities on your itinerary are. It might be best to hit Munich and Southern Bavaria, Western Austria, Salzburg, Vienna, Budapest, and Prague. Save Switzerland and Poland for a future trip.
Enjoy your planning.

One of the most direct routes for you is Zurich to Munich to Prague to Vienna to Budapest to Krakow to Berlin. If you drove the entire route it would cover 2300km and take you 24 hours; somewhat longer if you use the trains for parts of the route. I agree the others it's a lot. You said 3 or 4 weeks so lets say 24 days. If you only stopped in the towns I list above then you would have 3.4 days per town. The.4 is the travel day and hence you could in theory have 3 full days per town. That's pretty much a minimum, so sure you could do it, but if I tried it I would be pooped out at the end. I would be tempted to drop Krakow for purely logistical reasons. You generally cant get to Krakow from here; any here; without a lot of time or expense. That will give you 4 days a town and you can steal or add days between them to meet your interests. Personally I would drop Krakow and Berlin and start in Zurich and end in Budapest. With that you can really see some of the cities and the towns along the way. Transportation along this route is easy and you don't need a car unless you just want one. My issue with cars on these trips is in part what to do with them in the cities. You pay to have it and then pay to park it. I would end in Budapest because it's a good city to wind down in. BUT, its all about what interests you. So maybe if you provide some feedback of your interests and expectations the group can come up with some recommendations.

September and October are great months to visit this region of Europe and cold is relative and subjective. The average lows depending on where you are will be as low as the mid-teens with the average highs reaching as high as 60. Figure 50+ in the daytime. But who knows what you will end up facing. I was in Budapest a few weeks ago and it was warm enough to sit outside in the cafes. A few days after I left they had a blizzard and it is still frightfully cold there. Going back again in a couple of weeks and I have no idea how to pack yet.

Thanks so much for the quick and useful responses. I've gotten the impression from reading on the Helpline that Munich is very much a "must visit" spot. We're also aware that the eastern end of the trip is ambitious and will take into consideration your warnings about to little time. ping Krakow would be tough as the purpose there is to visit Auschwitz. One possibility is to Berlin and maybe Budapest, and do a loop that begins in Zurich, to Vienna, Krakow, Prague, Munich. I defer to your experience about which cities to add and which to . BTW, what would be your recommendations for the airports on either end of the trip? We haven't booked yet so we're not married to Zurich or any other one. When we're in a new country, particularly one where language may be a bit of a barrier, we like to start out in smaller cities and towns, finishing up with the major city. On a recent trip to France, we began in Provence, worked our way west and north, and finished with a week in Paris, by which time we were very comfortable with France and the French. We're old-time "followers" of Rick Steves, so we travel light, and tend to avoid the 5-star accommodations in favor of immersing ourselves more in the local feel. We're comfortable with the trains and buses in Europe, and, with the exception of Ireland and England, with renting cars. Again, thanks for your advice and help. Please keep it coming. It is much appreciated.

Luzern, Bern, and Lauterbrunnen or Grindelwald in Switz. Reutte and Salzburg on the way to Vienna. Munich is close to Salz and makes a great hub from which to see Bavaria easily by train. I rented apartments in Berlin, Salz, and Munich last summer. Had a week in the first two and ten days in the last. A week was fine in Berlin (could do in less) and too long in Salz; ten days weren't enough time in Munich--loved my time there and around.

Zurich airport is great. The new Berlin airport's still not finished, I think. But open jaw flights make the most sense for a trip like this.

I'm not going to tell you the best places to go because everyone's taste an interests are different. I started to go to Krakow about 10 years ago and called it off after seeing a documentary that described how the town was building a bustling tourist industry around the Jewish experience. The trouble was, the documentary pointed out, that there weren't any Jews left, and when you think about non-Jews giving tours describing how non-Jews persecuted the Jews it's a little creepy. In recent years there has been a growing Jewish presence in the town so maybe I need to rethink it. As for Auschwitz, well I couldn't handle it so I think I will skip it. Not knowing your interests here are some more impressions. Prague Best: Outstanding preserved Jewish quarter. Preserved because Hitler wanted to make it a museum to a dead race. Prague Worst: Too many tourists and drunk Englishmen for my taste. Vienna Best: Magnificent Imperial Architecture. Vienna Worst: Overly restored and marketed as tourist attractions. Budapest Best: Authentic experience Budapest Worst: Authentic experience (all things are relative) Well, I am biased about Budapest. I bought a vacation apartment in the center of town and rent it to tourists when I am not there. Anyplace in Germany: Never been there.
Anyplace in Switzerland: Never been there for the same reason have never been to Germany.

Thanks to the good advice you're giving us (and from the Helpline), we're thinking of an native route. We'd begin by flying into Milan then taking the train up to Lake Como, which we love anyway, and "decompressing" for a day or two. From there we'd head up to Lugano, Lucerne and then Zurich, adding perhaps the loop to Bern and Basel. From there we'd go into Bavaria, to Munich, to Salzburg, perhaps to Vienna, and maybe Prague. In this scenario, we'd likely fly home from the farthest city east. Any comments? I would still like to get to Krakow. We'll have to think about that a little more. I do know it has become commercialized. But that's inevitable I suppose.

Maybe lake Como.and unwinding at the end of the trip. That's how we generally arrange our trips. You could also get creative whit your flight over. In two weeks we return to Budapest with a lover in London that we stretched a few days to fish the chalk streams near Winchester. We've gotten creative with the London lover to see London and Paris on a number of occasions. Then after a few days in Bpest a brief side trip to the High Tatras for a little more fishing, then back to Bpest to just relax with good wine and food before returning to reality.

Yes, Lake Como at the end is a fine idea as well. Switzerland, Bavaria and the western end of Austria remain the main part of the trip with the more eastern end of the plan -- Budapest, Krakow, Prague, maybe even Vienna -- looking more and more disposable at this time. Right now the ends of the "open jaw" look to be Munich, Milan or Vienna. Keep the suggestions coming. They've been very helpful.

Krakow and Prague are a little off the beaten path in the context of the rest of your trip unless you travel on one particular day in July when the Hungarian railroad is running a special train direct to Krakow from Budapest. Budapest (and you must understand that I am heavily biased here), Budapest is still pretty much on course for your path of travel. It's actually the town I would fly into at the start of the trip and then work your way north and west.

Well, we're getting closer to a final decision, and based on some of the suggestions here, and which we thank you for, we're eliminating the entire eastern end of the trip. We'll do that another time (Budapest, Prague, Krakow). At the moment, we're leaning towards arrival in Frankfurt, 2 or 3 days in the Rhine/Mosel area, then heading south (maybe veering over to Rothenburg) towards Zurich, to Lucern, down the mountains to Munich, to Salzburg to Vienna then home. The one fly in the ointment that's hovering over all is Oktoberfest. We've been trying to plan around it (it ends on October 6 this year I believe).

Hi, As for "tossing in" opinions and views, this is my two bits: I think it's a pity you're keeping Luzern over Berlin and Krakow. Berlin is more understandable logistically, but Krakow can still be done if you drop Switzerland. That's my "Don't Bother With" advice. But good that you're already entertaining the idea of the next trip in which the eastern end, ie., Berlin and Krakow can be included in that itnerary.

Going to Switzerland is the reason for the trip; everything else could be regarded as "add ons." In fact, the file I keep is named "The Swiss Trip." Northern Germany & countries to the east seem to make more sense as a separate trip. We could of course do it this year & Switzerland next year. We're mulling it over so keep the suggestions coming.

Hi, Got it, very logical and makes logistical sense, since Switzerland is the primary reason for this trip...all the more reason to focus on Krakow and North Germany on the next trip.