Munich or Prague? Or somewhere else?

I see you're double posted. Like I said in the other post, Prague has better agriculture, and is a very lively place for a young person.

Thanks David! Sorry about the double post. I noticed that Prague and Munich would technically be under different boards here so I asked the question twice. I appreciate your input. Originally our son wanted to fly into Amsterdam but that just seems to far north with the rest of our trip really being in the south. So many options...

I haven't been to Munich yet, but I was in Prague in October and it was amazing. It made my need-to-go-back list on architecture alone, which was interesting, because it was one of my low expectation stops on this last trip. It had so much to offer - gorgeous buildings, reasonable food and lodging prices, a well-laid out grid for walking. We stayed in an incredible apartment. PM me if you want more details - I am right across the Narrows:)

Valerie I would love details! I know exactly what you mean when a place blows your expectations away. That happened to us with Croatia. I had low expectations for our trip there 3 yrs ago to visit my husband's ancetorial home. But it WOW'd us all and now we can't wait to include it in this trip. It was actually a "must" on our son's list for his graduation trip. If you haven't been to Croatia yet, add it to your list :) I think we might be leaning towards Prague for this visit. It just seems like it would fit nicely with tailoring the trip around our son.
Deb

You are right, Prague will appeal more to your son's "architectural nature". Prague is completely preserved and offers lots of Baroque architecture, quite a few important Renaissance buildings (the most important is Wallensteins palace; don't miss it) and also some Gothic and Romanesque architecture... although the cathedral is mostly neo-Gothic. Munich offers all this too, but not on the same scale. And if your son is a real architecture aficionado Ludwigs castles will not impress him anyway. Karlstejn near Prague is much better than Neuschwanstein, and much more important too. BUT: for me the architecturally most interesting city in this region is Vienna, which also offers many important (and beautiful) buildings from the 19th and 20th century, like the ones of the Vienna Secession (Art Nouveau) or from Adolf Loos.

Debbie, I suspect which city to choose will be based more on the logistics of transportation to your next destination, rather than whether they will be "architecturally interesting". I'd suggest Munich, as it offers LOTS of interesting options for sightseeing in a four day time frame. Prague is also a very beautiful city with much to offer, but doesn't seem to "fit" as well into the overall plan. One interesting aspect of Munich is that it was re-constructed in a more "original" way after WW-II, rather than in a more modern fashion with large skyscrapers as with other cities in Germany. One example in Munich is the City Hall which is constructed in a Gothic Revival architecture style. The Glockenspiel is another interesting feature. Munich also provides somewhat easier transportation from the airport to city centre via the S-Bahn. Happy travels!

Prague is pretty crowded in June, but yes the younger people like it because of the night life, bars, etc. Still a popular place for the British Stag parties.

I would say Prague. It is indeed more picturesque. It also still has little cheaper accommodation and quite cheaper food and especially beer. IMHO Munich and Prague have best beers anywhere. Getting to the downtown from the airport takes about the same time in both cities. In Munich you go by S - Bahn, in Prague by bus and Metro. To make decision easier I would find out which city has better and cheaper connection to Split. Being from Gig Harbor I assume you will fly from Seattle. You will have to change planes to both cities. Most of the time I get the best prices either via Amsterdam or Frankfurt. To Munich there is also connection by Iceland Air via Reykjavik (Keflavik). Sometimes they have really good prices. Two other options are to fly via London or Paris. These two options I usually try to avoid. Their airports seem to me to be quite disorganized.

Thanks for the great suggestions. Yes last night I was playing with a multitude of airline possibilities. There is a really cheap flight from Prague to Split that I could snatch up. I'm a little nervous about the stability of these little airlines over there and have read some of them cancel a lot of trips. We will be doing an open jaw flight. Prague is coming out cheaper and less time. If that cheap cheap flight to Split is still available, I'd say Prague it is for this trip. We'll do Germany & Switzerland as a future trip :)