travel for 7 in germany/austria

Lisa... I stayed in a condo/apartment (not sure what it was called in Germany) in a little town in Bavaria called Mittersfel... it was very small but charming. It was about 5 years ago, so details escape me, but it was a week long rental through RCI. From there we ended up taking the train to Prague for an overnite, and saw the surrounding area in Bavaria. I always drive most places, but I do know there was a train station close, because that's where we went to go to Prague. I got the condo from a friend who is a member of RCI, I am not, but I do know that she has about 7 weeks in this exchange, and is going through some personal job changes and has some weeks for sale. I don't know if they are gone yet, but if you PM me I will give you her info. We had a lot of room and a kitchen, and it seemed like there were pull out beds everywhere. Very efficient. There was a little breakfast truck that came daily with fresh pastry and bread and also a restaurant that has the most wonderful spatzel.

You may need a van but I think it will compare favorably with purchasing seven train tickets. We leased a seven passenger car for five, wife, me, 8, 11 and 16 (with one carry-on each). It worked fine. If we had been more, bigger or had more luggage, it would have been cramped. In Germany, there are great (cheap) regional options for up to five (I believe you can add people for a few Euro). If your travel legs are short, it may pay to use those, then pick up a car for Austria and Switzerland.

I'm a huge fan of farmhouse stays in Germany and Austria (I think the people here are getting sick of me talking about them). There's a website that's actually in English, it's http://english.bauernhof-urlaub.com/. That's just for Germany. For Austria, I'd go on the Salzkammergut website and search for farmhouses. You can get an apartment for 7 at a farmhouse, but you'll have to do some digging. But it's a great experience. Most have bikes and pedal cars to ride around the farm, playgrounds, and, of course, lots of animals and other kids to play with. The language barrier will be less than an issue than you think.

Train travel in Germany is perfect for large families. Each state has its own regional pass that covers 2 parents and all their kids. Each day of travel in a given state - Bavaria for example - will cost you 30 Euros or so. http://www.bahn.de/i/view/GBR/en/prices/germany/laender-ticket.shtml Bavaria covers a huge geographic area from the north near Coburg south to the border with Austria. Some popular destinations you can visit on the Bayern ticket: Rothenburg, Salzburg, Nuremberg, Bamberg, Würzburg, Munich, Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Mittenwald, Berchtesgaden 4-5 days in Berlin and 9-10 days in Bavaria would make for an excellent experience. Do look into apartments (Ferienwohnungen) and choose locations close to the train stations. You're more likely to find such apartments in smaller villages than in bigger cities like Nuremberg. Try this commercial site for starters: www.accommodation.de The most complete lists of apartments can be found at the tourist info webpages of individual towns and cities. ( www.rothenburg.de , for example.)

I'm a big fan of traveling by train in Europe, and had great experiences traveling around Germany this way But I do understand when people point out that car/mini van travel also has its advantages; you are on your own schedule, can stop whenever you wish, and there ARE def some destinations/stops that are only accesible with a car. But train travel, especially in Germany and Switzerland is so easy and efficient. It's 1 less item to worry about, you don't have to concern yourself with studying maps, getting lost, etc. I started out in Berlin, and then pretty much did a "loop" around Germany. After a few days in Berlin, took over-night train west to Dusseldorf, from where picked up train to Koblenz, where I picked up KD Line boat to travel on the Rhine to St Goar and Bacarach. After the Rhine, continued by train to Baden Baden (very easy, just involved a transfer in Karlruhe), then Rothenburg, Munich and Salzburg (including detour even further South from Munich into Bavaria; Garmish Partenkirschen to go to the Zugpitze and Fussen for Neuschwanstein.) The Deutsche Bahn (DB) site is very helpful and has all of the schedules. Traveling to these destinations on train was fun and relaxing, and I LOVED all of the scenery just out the window. Was also great to meet locals, other tourists, etc. The overnight train was especially fun; had a sleeping cabin all to myself; made for a memorable exprerience/not something you do all of the time. I see you'll have kids w/ you; as long as you have games, books, maybe laptop/DVD w/ some movies, they should be entertained, and the adults will enjoy the experience. I know I did!