Romantic Road (Fussen Area)

Dachau was, as I am sure you can imagine, a very troubling, emotional but educational sight. If you have not been and do not plan to return and visit it I would suggest taking some time out of your trip to do this.
Love Wurzburg....and the castles, of course.

I found the Wies church more interesting than i had expected. Nowadys it looks very touristy from the surroundings, but I enjoyed it. However, my suggestion would be to spend the extra time in and around the Marienptatz in Munich. A lot of different things to see (including the FrauenKirke) and good places yo eat- many beer halls and the ratskeller among them

Visit Wieskirche in the morning, lunch in Oberammergau, then visit Linderhof, & you can drive by Ettal en route to Munich.

I have been to all of those places except Ettal. I went to Linderhof in 2007 with tentative plans to stop at Ettal on the way back to Oberammergau, but I really didn't know why because I hadn't found anything on their website worth stopping for. Linderhof was my first complete day in Europe that trip. by the time I finished Linderhof, I just wanted to go to my Gästehaus and take a nap. Of the other four: 1) Linderhof, by far the best of the four 2) Andechs, great place for lunch, not much more 3) Dachau, went there thinking it was an extermination camp. Relieved to find it was only a work camp, although people did die there. 4) Wieskirche, just another overly gaudy church. You could substitute the one at Andechs and save time. I spent five min there before going across the road for lunch. I think I would put Oberammergau ahead of the last three. And, there are more interesting things to see in Munich.

We did much of this area just last summer. In fact, we saw the "Wies" Church, Linderhoff, and Ettal all on the same day, then climbed up to the Ehrenburg castle ruins in nearby Austria. I would put Linderhoff on the top of the list - a very interesting look into Ludwig's crazy life - take the time to stroll outside and see the Wagner "cave". I would definitely see the church as well, as it's so easy to get to from Fussen, it's attractive (except for Lee), it's in a serene setting, and it's a great 1-hour-or-less stop (my favorite kind). Ettal wasn't interesting. Don't know if you could fit Dachau in the same day with the other two stops and I'm not sure if I would want to - too emotionally jarring of a contrast. Have a great trip!

Thanks everyone for all of your helpful suggestions. If we decide to forgo the above list of potential sites, what is there for us to see in Munich? We haven't really looked into the possibility of spending any time there. In terms of Randy's suggestion of maybe doing Dachau in the afternoon, we had been thinking about that. I understand that it will be somber and probably emotionally draining, but I can't see us spending more than a few hours there. My husband and I are both familiar with the history behind the camp and probably won't do a guided tour. I think RS has a small tour in his Germany book if I remember correctly. In terms of Wies Church, we had thought of doing this on the way to Linderhoff, but it looks like it adds about 45 minutes of extra driving. I know this area of Germany is fairly mountainous, so I'm assuming it is scenic, but if someone knows for sure and confirm, I'd appreciate it. Thanks!

Scenic, yes - but in a low-key sort of way. The driving is pleasant and pretty average in terms of speed - not particularly slow or tedious. It's just typical rural Europe roads where you'll likely average around 40MPH in 2-lane roads and much faster on motorways.

Hi Tobi, The driving between say Fuessen, Wieskirche, Andechs and Linderhof is not mountainous. As Randy stated, just your average 2 lane roads which you may average about 40MPH on. We've stopped a couple of times at Andechs on our drive from Fuessen to Munich area. As someone else said, it's perfect for an hour or so, or for a lunch stop in one of the beer gardens. While the Wieskirche is a favorite of ours, if it's out of the way, the church at Andechs is also beautiful and worth seeing. In my opinion, Linderhof's interior is much better than Neuschwanstein's. Well worth seeing. Me, I'd tour Linderhof early, stop at Andechs for an hour or two and head to Munich. I'd skip Oberammergau and Wieskirche. Paul

Tobi, There is no extra driving time to go to Linderhof via the Wiese Kirche. Go NE from Fussen on the B17 to Steingaden and then east on ST2059 which takes you right by the church entrance. Then just continue on to the B23 and down to Oberammergau, & just beyond to the turnoff to Linderhof. Even just a 30" stop at Wiese Kirche is worth it.
You can get to Linderhof via Austria, but it takes a bit longer.

Tobi, Assuming you are returning your car at the train station and taking the train to Italy on the same day as you are driving from Fussen, I'd suggest you do one of two things: 1. Visit Wieskirche, Linderhof, Ettal Monastery and Andechs Monastery as you travel from Fussen to Munich. It is possible to see all these sights in one day (if you don't spend too long exploring the grounds around Linderhof Castle) and in my opinion Linderhof is the best of Crazy King Ludwig's castles. 2. Go straight to Munich and explore the city centre. Although I highly recommend Dachau, it is an extremely powerful and moving experience, it does take a little time to get there if you are taking the train and bus. If you do decide to visit Dachau, give yourself at least a half day so you can focus on the experience and not worry about what time you have to leave. It isn't something you are going to want to rush.