Road trip from Milan to Germany

So, you want to go to Germany. That's smart. But you have to fly to Italy. Bummer! First prize was a ticket to Italy; second prize was two tickets to Italy. There is a Eurocity train direct from Milan (7:16) to Munich (14:25) with an advance purchase fare starting at €39. Bad news is you'll almost have to spend the night in Italy to use it. There is also a connection leaving Milan at 1:10 PM, going through Zurich, getting to Ulm at 8:45 PM and Munich at 10:19, for as low as €43,50.

Ooof. Lee is being a little harsh. I would amend his post to say first prize was a ticket to Milan. Second prize two tickets to Milan. But a ticket to Milan puts you close to spectacular countryside in Northern Italy and easily within reach for a number of days in Germany. If you want to spend most of them in Germany, don't fly into Rome.

Jennifer, do you have an idea of where you want to go in Germany? Sounds like you plan on driving. If you want to go as far as Munich, you'll end up doing a lot of driving and not much siteseeing. If you only want to see the castles, you could spend more time in Austria and make day trips into Germany. I find Austria to be less expensive in terms of lodging and gasoline. I like to stay in Lermoos. From there, I can take day trips to Fuessen (castles) or into Garmisch or Mittenwald (beautiful, smaller town). Here's a sample itinerary if you were going all the way to Munich. Day 1-drive Milan to Appenzell; Day 2 Appenzell; Day 3-drive to Reutte area; Day 4-see castles in Fuessen, stay in Reutte or?; Day 5-drive to Munich; Day 6-Munich; Day 7-drive to south of Innsbruck-maybe Dolomite area of Italy; Day 8-drive to Verona, Italy; Day 9-drive to Milan. Yes, it's possible. However, it's a lot of driving. Come back and tell us where in Germany you want to go.

The big question... where in Germany did you have in mind?

I am very interested in seeing castles. My husband and I are more interested in quaint villages, rather than big cities. We don't want to spend the majority of our time driving. Is the train a better option ? I like having the freedom of having a vehicle, but if the driving is as stressful as the narrow roads we traveled in Greece and Turkey I will pass.

Fly into Milan, train (I recommend the train as a first choice), up to Zurich, rent a car to the Black Forrest. Spend some time there. Still castles and lots of quaint villages to see in the Lake Constance area/Black Forest area. Drive or take the train back to Milan for serious shoe shopping.

"We don't want to spend the majority of our time driving. Is the train a better option ?" I've spent 16 weeks in the last 10 years, mostly in Germany. One time, when a storm the night before had washed out the tracks, I borrowed a friend's car to go to a neighboring town. Other than that, I have always found that I can get anywhere I want to by train or occasional bus for a lot lower cost. Here is a castle to see just north of Friedrichshafen. The oldest part of the castle, which is buried under the current building, is from the eleventh century.

Actually, Doug, someday I plan on flying into Malpensa and taking the Malpensa express directly to Como and seeing the lakes.

Jennifer, The "short answer" to your question is, Yes, it is possible to do that trip in 9-days. I'm assuming that as you're using vouchers, open-jaw flights are out of the question? Flying into Milan / MXP is definitely the best choice. I very much agree with Lee and the others that trains are the best option, especially for such a short trip. Trains are much faster, and will be a more efficient travel method. There are several different routes to consider, depending on which Castles you're most interested in. If you'd like to see Neuschwanstein, then you'll need to head towards Munich. That would also allow a visit to the "quaint" village of Rothenburg (be sure to take the Night Watchman's tour!). Another direction to consider is the Rhine / Mosel area, where there's a good concentration of Castles (ie: Burg Eltz, Rheinfells, etc.). It also has "quaint" villages such as Bacharach. It's a small town and a good "base" for touring that area, and you could hike up the hill for a Beer at Burg Stahleck, which is a beautifully restored Castle (now a Youth Hostel). Visiting Burg Eltz is a nice day trip from Bacharach and not too long. If the weather is decent, you can hike to the Castle from the station in Moselkern. If you'd rather not hike, you can take a Taxi, although that's a bit "pricey". If using a Taxi, it's best to get off the train in the next town (I'd have to check my notes for the name), as that's where the Taxi's are based. The driver's often don't speak much English, so you might want to "brush up" on your German. When you arrive at the Burg Eltz carpark, you can either take the small Shuttle down to the Castle or walk. It's a fairly steep hill, so the walk uphill on a hot day is quite an effort! Happy travels!

Hi Jennifer, You say "I am very interested in seeing castles. My husband and I are more interested in quaint villages, rather than big cities. We don't want to spend the majority of our time driving." There's no need to even leave Italy. The Dolomite region of Italy was mostly a part of Austria until the end of WWI. The atmosphere, food and language is a mix of Austrian and Italian, with an emphasis on Austrian. All the signs and names of towns and villages are in German and Italian. Very "Austrian" in feel. It's sometimes difficult to believe you're in Italy. Even the town of Tirol (which, of course, is the name of a region in Austria) is now located in northern Italy. Plenty of charming Alpine villages, dramatic Alpine scenery and so many castles. For this I would suggest a car (let's not crucify me guys). From Milan head to Bozen/Balzano and then for the most dramatic scenery, a few days in the Val Gardena/Alta Badia areas. For castles, I'd then suggest a few days in the Vinschgau/Val Venosta area, just west of Meran/Merano. All this lies about 3.5 hours from Milan. www.val-gardena.com www.altabadia.it Some of the castles include one of our favorites anywhere, Churburg castle: www.churburg.com www.schlosstirol.it www.naturns.it/reinholdmessner_schlossjuval.php?sys%5Blang%5D=en Actually, to make this easier, here's a link to a list of castles: www.suedtirolerland.it/en/highlights/castles/ Even without the castles, etc. the Dolomites are simply amazing to see. Like nothing else in the Alps. Paul

We just did one in reverse from Munich to Venice to Milan and back to Munich, 10 days, in December weather.The roads were fine, if that's a concern, and Paul's ideas of the Dolomites is spot-on. With only 9 days I'd save the castles in Germany for another trip and enjoy northern Italy. Look at your times/mileage on ViaMichelin or plan your train travel on the DB site. The train /car debate is kinda like the wheels/no wheels luggage debate; do you like roadtrips in the US? You aren't going to meet people when in your car as you do on the trains. We park the car, pay the price for parking, and take public transportation in the cities. BTW, Milan was much better than I expected from RS's description. We stayed in a small hotel the Berna, a block from the main trainstation in Milan- great people, snacks at 'happy hour", surprisingly good breakfast for Italy, very good online specials.
Next time I'll add another week exploring with the car more of the little towns of northern Italy.