Munich-Slazburg-Halstatt...

You can do many day trips using Munich and Salzburg as your bases. The castles in Fussen are an easy day trip via train as is Oberaummergau, Garmisch, Rothenburg, and Nurnberg from Munich. Berchtesgaden and Halstatt can be reached easily via train from Salzburg. LAX-Munich R/T would likely be the most cost effective.

Hi, Flying into/out of Munich would fit best IMO. No need to backtrack if you make a "loop" type trip... Munich to Salzburg and Hallstatt to Fuessen back to Munich. No backtracking that way. I'd stay 2 or so nights in Fuessen. Love the old town and Neuschwanstein, Hohenschwangau, Tegelberg cable car, Tegelberg luge ride are just 10 munites from town. Day trips from Salzburg could include the Berchtesgaden area of Germany (less than 30 minutes away). Mittenwald (by Garmisch) is a beautiful alpine village you may want to include. The Zugspitze is also a fantastic trip from Garmisch or... from Fuessen you could do the Zugspitze from the Austrian side (which works best with a car from Fuessen). Paul

In 2008 I did a kind of loop from Munich to Salzburg, Hallstatt, Hall, Innsbruck, Wendelstein, Schliersee, Mittenwald, Pfronten, Füssen, and back to Munich. All without a car! I did the leg from Salzburg to Hallstatt by bus so I could go to Bad Ischl by way of Mondsee and see the wedding church used in the Sound of Music and so I could come into Hallstatt at the south end, at the bus station in Lahn (I could also have taken the train from Bad Ischl past Hallstatt station to Obertraun, then the bus around the south end of the lake to Lahn or stop at the Hallstatt Bahnhof across the lake and take the boat across to the town, but then I would have had to walk about a km to Lahn) Pfronten is an excellent base for both Garmish-Partenkirchen, an hour and a half away by train (Ausserfernbahn) and Füssen, half an hour away by bus. Instead of going by way of the Wendelstein, one can take a train from Innsbruck to Mittenwald by way of Seefeld. ETA: I have great pictures of people paragliding off the Breitenberg in Pfronten. There's a gondola to the top of the Breitenberg and a landing area near the base. I also saw paragliders at Obertraun, near Hallstatt.

Toni, I also feel that flying round trip from Munich is the most realistic idea as it will have the best choices for flights. All of the places you'll be visiting are relatively close to Munich, so it shouldn't be a problem getting back to MUC for your flight home. Most of the areas you want to visit are well served by public transit, so it shouldn't be necessary to rent a car. The only location a car might be useful is from Salzburg to Hallstatt (although parking may be a problem as you're planning to stay overnight, and you may have to walk a short distance to get to your Hotel). There are Luge rides listed in the Guidebook I believe, but having a car may be best for getting to those. I don't have any details on Paragliding in that area (there may be some in Fussen, as I've seen Paragliders floating above Neuschwanstein). The trip by rail (and boat) to Hallstatt takes at least 3-4 hours (one change in Attnang-Pucheim, and then of course the trip across the lake on Stefanie). You could also consider local tour companies, as they provide all the transportation. Have a look at Radius Tours in Munich or Bob's Special Tours in Salzburg for details and prices. Happy travels!

Toni: If you have an extra couple of hours and you're driving, I would suggest stopping in St. Wolfgang on your way from Salzberg to Halstatt. There is a church (Sankt Wolfgang) worth seeing which was constructed in the year 976, well worth the stop. Yes, parking in Halstatt is a problem, but the scenery is excellent.

Oktoberfest 2011: 11 Sept - 03 Oct. If you plan to spend time in Munich during this time, you need to decide early and make reservations.