Traveling in Munich-Nuremberg-Rothenburg-Italy

One night on your first day in Europe won't be enough to visit Nuremberg. Plan on two.

Two adults can get from MUC to Nuremberg for about €30. The trip to Rothenburg for two will cost less than €20 for two.

To save time changing rooms etc. you can do a round-trip day trip to Rothenburg from Nuremberg for the same price. Book 3 nights in Nuremberg in this case.

I suggest you look into flights from Nuremberg to Rome or Venice. I know Ryanair flies to Rome from Nuremberg.

Alternatively, book a point-to-point train trip from Nuremberg to Venice at DB for your date - a glance at a sample date in May turned up a price of €60 each for pre-purchased saver fare tickets.

Then look into a point-to-point ticket for your journey to the other Italian city at http://www.trenitalia.com/tcom-en

Munich airport to Nuremberg: Bayern Ticket for 2 people, 31 EUR.
Nuremberg to Rotheburg: VGN Tages Ticket Plus, 19.70 EUR.
Rothenburg to Munich: Bayern Ticket for 2 people, 31 EUR.
Munich to Venice: Sparpreis ticket for 2 people, 119.80 EUR.

That is for a random date in May, Train specific for the direct EC train from Munich to Venice. Price may vary by date, and you must buy now to get that price, as discounts phase out as time passes. These tickets can be refunded paying a 19 EUR fee.

Italy tickets are similar. The earlier you buy, the better the price. These are completely nonrefundable, like airline tickets and include seat reservations. For instance: Venice to Florence late May, 49.80 EUR for 2 people. Walk up price is 100 EUR.

I am not conversant with train travel but I am familiar with Rothenburg. The suggestion to eliminate the overnight stay in Rothenburg is the worst decision you could make. In just a single day, you can see what is there but the experience is just like going to another tourist trap. The town is overcrowded with day trippers and about 6:00, when they start to leave, the place takes on a whole new aura and seems to slide back in time losing the tourist trap feeling that so many complain about. Also, if you do not stay over night you will miss the Night Watchman's tour which is the best and most enjoyable history class you will ever have.

I know checking in and out of hotels is a chore but missing a night in Rothenburg is a high price to pay.

What IRV said. The Nightwatchman tour was really good and if you miss that you miss one of the best things about Rothenburg.

"The suggestion to eliminate the overnight stay in Rothenburg is the worst decision you could make."

As the perpetrator of this suggestion and as a visitor to Rothenburg and environs on multiple occasions over 4 decades, I offer a response...

When you stay overnight in Rothenburg, you are asleep most of the time, of course. Still, it's true that evening hours, once all the sourvenir, shops have closed, can be pleasant there.

"In just a single day, you can see what is there but the experience is just like going to another tourist trap. The town is overcrowded with day trippers..."

I completely agree. Rick Steves himself has called it a "medieval theme park." 2.5 million annual visitors (half of them international tourists) completely trample the town of 11,000. Selling stuff to tourists 24/7/365 really does change a place. Georg has a good thing going and many visitors find his 1-hr evening walk, and the company of the other international tourists who join them, entertaining. And indeed Rothenburg is pretty at night. Rothenburg CAN be a day trip from Nuremberg, Würzburg, or other Franconian towns if you don't mind all the tourist stuff. But it could also be just a late afternoon/evening trip if you want to avoid the tourists. Most days the final train to Nuremberg leaves Rothenburg a little after 22:00.

But it's worth asking... is it not possible that it's the daytime tourist mayhem that makes Rothenburg appear especially special? How does Rothenburg compare in the evening (and during the day) to other places nearby?

Though most visitors, sadly, do not bother with the rest of the neighborhood, there is all kinds of romantic, old-world atmosphere in dozens of other places not far from Rothenburg. AND you can actually enjoy these places without all the tourist stuff during the day as well! A few examples that are NOT Rothenburg:

https://www.golfjournal.de/fileadmin/_processed_/csm_Bamberg-4182760-Weltkulturerbe-Bamberg-01-abends_Bamberg_Tourismus___Kongress_Service_Hub_dd5d9d73ce.jpg

https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2761/4104619871_78a4858c85_b.jpg

https://s-ec.bstatic.com/images/hotel/max1024x768/884/88402972.jpg

https://www.europeanbeerguide.net/germany/nurnberg/town1.jpg

http://img.fotocommunity.com/heilig-geist-spital-bei-nacht-nuernberg-df4f951b-dc62-4411-bf18-c1847b0fdc63.jpg?width=1000

http://img.fotocommunity.com/festung-marienberg-wuerzburg-5931e8ce-8590-4a4b-9c59-4e729e741bf2.jpg?width=1000

http://kunstdirekt.net/bildarchiv/orte/wuerzburg/einkehr/stachel-01/stachel-01-xl.jpg

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3e/Marktbreit_BW_6.JPG

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7c/Stadtmauer_Ochsenfurt_02.JPG

http://www.staedte-fotos.de/1024/die-stadt-noerdlingen-donau-ries-bayern-21898.jpg

https://www.schulz-gaestehaus.de/images/umgebung/Bad_Windsheim_Altstadt.jpg

There's probably NOT an English-language Nightwatchman tour in these places (but then again, you aren't hearing the same canned humor that Georg has to revisit every night and that you can check out on You-Tube.)

IMHO it's a bit of a shame that the guidebooks uniformly steer visitors to Rothenburg when those who have been and who love it often can only recommend it in the evenings.

Thank you all so much for your replies! I appreciate them soo much! We have a lot to think about for sure :)

The German Rail Pass with Twin discount will take you as far as Venice on one specific train, the direct Munich-Venice departure at about 11:30 in early May or 11:10 in later May. That leaves only a few Italian train rides that are cheap to buy locally or whenever you're ready to lock in dates and times.

You can do a round-trip day trip to Rothenburg from Nuremberg to save time. Try also checking flights online