My husband and I will be spening 2 weeks in Germany last week of june and first week in July. Mainly in the Bavarian region. Considering its summer, will we bend a lot of time tied up in traffic if we have a car. I just don't know. Any input would be helpful. We are staying 6 days in the Garmisch area.
Posted by
Danville, VT
12040 posts
Bavaria is an ideal region for a car, particularly daytrips from Garmisch (although you won't need a car in the town itself). I can't tell you what the traffic will be like in the summer, but I know its not as bad as Italy.
Posted by
Minneapolis, MN, USA
8700 posts
If you're going to spend your time in Bavaria, you can travel all day anywhere in the region after 09:00 on weekdays and anytime on weekends using a Bayern-Ticket. It is good for 2-5 people traveling together and costs a total of 27€. You can only use it on regional trains, not fast trains. See here: http://tinyurl.com/29mh69.
Posted by
Mansfield, GA
850 posts
Germany has the cheapest car rentals and you will be in a good area for car travel. The trains are fine but the car is ready when you are so no waiting. Also you can stop anytime you wish for a picnic, photo ops etc. If you plan on going into a big city you could park the car in a small town close by and take public transportation into the city.
If you do rent a car I would recommend that you get a gps if you don't already have one. Just make sure it includes Europe maps. For a car rental you can check with gemut.com and/or auto europe. I have used gemut and their service and rates are great. Heard good things about Auto Europe but have not used them. I think those two brokers have an affiliation with one another so their rates should be about the same.
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19274 posts
Germany might be good for car rentals and driving, but it is even better for public transportation (train and bus). I know. I have spent 12 weeks traveling in So. Germany this century, and we saw everything we wanted to see, all by train and bus. Getting where I wanted to go was no problem. If you do your research, you don't need a car. Yes, it did take a little planning, but I saved enough on my first four trips to pay for the ground part (accom & food) of my fifth trip.
There is good bus transportation in the Garmish area; look for it on the bahn website, or, if you can understand some German, on www.rvo-bus.de. For instance, there are regular buses from GaP to Oberammergau, Linderhof, and the castles at Füssen.
With the trains or bus, there is no need for a GPS. The drivers know where you are going. You can relax and enjoy the scenery.