Germany 2 Weeks in 2023 What?How?

[KsTeveM]

Hey my fellow travelers!! I need to work on some itinerary stuff for a Germany trip for summer 2023. Of course my brain immediately tried to make a motorcycle be involved somehow/some way, but I probably need to shy away from that for my marriage’s sake …….and simplicity of the trip. But if anyone happened to have two bikes in Germany and needed a riding partner for a day or two……or a bike over there in storage, that needs to be started and rode a little bit…..hit me up!!!! And if you are German, I can reciprocate if you come to the US. For now, I’m just going to force myself not to research adventure/rental riding companies or side trips to Greece etc. This trip is a couples trip, not a Stevo trip dominated with riding as the focus.

The general plan, we have German friends that live in Feucht Germany, just outside of Nuremberg, pretty central to Germany. Having spent some time googling and getting a rudimentary lay of the land, I think we are going to spend our time in the southern areas of Germany compared to northern/coast lines etc., Bavaria seems to capture my interest again and again. Looking for input leaning on the nature/mountains/history/architecture side while avoiding the complete tourist traps and largest crowds, when possible. The latter part of the trip, spend more time with our German friends in and around Nuremburg taking advantage of their local knowledge and access to their car.

For the southern stuff, I don’t know if I will rent a car or just use public transportation/train/bus etc. for my other exploits. Again, all ears for anyone that has firsthand experience/knowledge over there. Here is brainstorming that I started to write down while keeping in mind the flow of travel.

1. Thinking of flying in to Salzburg Austria off the rip to see some of the obvious sites in that area, Sound of Music kind of stuff, Festung Hohensazlburg etc. And…..Mettighofen….KTM Museum in Austria! Then make our way into the Alps, Berchtesgaden Germany, Lake Konigssee boat ride St Bartholomew Church, Eagle’s Nest, Watzmann Mtn, Ramsau Church, Maria Gern Church, Zugspitze, Wagenbruchsee. Spend several days in this zone?
2. Linderhof Palace, Ettal Abbey? Neuschwanstein Castle looks pretty special. Not sure it is worth going that far west along the southern Germany border? Travel costs? Sure seems like renting a little car would make my nomadic tendencies easier but train or bus might be easy? Hit up Hohenschwangau Castle, St. Coloman Church, High Castle of Fuseen? Couple days in this zone?
3. Go through Augsburg, Heidelberg and Rothenburg type places making way to Nuremberg? Take a day or two to get north?
4. Nuremberg area. After we take in the southern Germany stuff, this is my obvious home base with having a free place to stay in Feucht. Now what…..Nuremberg Castle seems obvious. Weibgerbergasse Street. Bamberg. Veste Coburg. Albrecht Durer Museum. Hangman’s Bridge. Zeppelin Grandstand. Historiches Kuntsbunker. Three or four days?
5. I like the idea of visiting Saxon Switzerland National Park, but that Dresden area is a bit out of the way/200+ miles northeast of Nuremberg area. But I really like some of the nature stuff here that I’m seeing. And Dresden architecture looks amazing. Take a day or two?
6. Kind of the opposite direction is the Cologne area, north/west of Nuremberg, but might be worth a side trip? Or maybe best to fly back to Texas from here/Dusseldorf for larger airport?

So you can see I have some rough thoughts but I would love input for the more obscure cool spots, pubs, restaurants, hostels, old villages/towns that have neat places to visit/stay. Or advise in general to help with this trip. I am posting in another forum that will possibly attract input from locals across the pond. For now, I think I am going to start by making myself a map in Basecamp and dotting it with waypoints like I do when planning a big ride. Might not see them all, but gives me options on the fly when traveling through an area. Please help me with this, I want to have an adventure even if not on 2 wheels!!!!

 

[DFW_Warrior]

I just got back from Munich, Lugano, Milan, and Zurich this past Sunday. We spent two weeks over there exploring.

 

[DFW_Warrior]

For the southern stuff, I don’t know if I will rent a car or just use public transportation/train/bus etc. for my other exploits. Again, all ears for anyone that has firsthand experience/knowledge over there.

For larger towns and cities I would opt for no rental car. If you had a rental car and decided to go to Munich (which I highly recommend going to Munich), if you could even find a place to park it, it would probably cost you $50-100 a day to park it and you would still have to park well outside of the city center and still take public transit to where you need to go. And in Munich the public transit is VERY good. We went all over the city for 3 days and never had a car and were very grateful for it.

But... despite public transit being pretty darn good over there, if you want to get off the beaten path then it will start to become more difficult to do that without a car. That being said, there are plenty of car rental places all over so you could always rent/return cars a few different times around large cities that you want to spend a few days in. Then you could just pick up another rental when you are ready to head out again.

It sounds like you have done quite a bit of research so far. You have listed a LOT of places to go see. This is certainly a very personal thing but if it were me, I would opt for seeing fewer things and being able to take more time to better experience the things that I am seeing. That way you don't end up just doing a drive by or run by photo op and moving on because you have 4 other things to see/do that afternoon.

 

[JMZ]

OP, I know someone you know that has a Super Tenere in Germany.

 

[KsTeveM]

OP, I know someone you know that has a Super Tenere in Germany.

I knew you knew that cause I sort of know that but don't know how I know and don't know if it's feasible to get to know it better while over there.

 

[LicketySplit]

For a couples trip, you cannot do much better than Salzburg and the Salzkammergut (Lake District). On the map, From Salzburg east to Hallstatt.

On the way the to Salzburg from Munich, I highly recommend visiting the Eagles Nest in Berchtesgaden. Castle Neuschwanstein is definitely worth it. Especially, if you take the road over the mountain into Innsbruck.

 

[DM164450]

Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland. You can hike from the valley all the way up to the snow line. Then take the cable car from the Eiger (IIRC where it was) back down. You can hike to Wengen and sit in the cafe where they filmed part of the Eiger Sanction.

Munich. The German museum there is fantastic.

City walls of Nuremberg. Very cool.

Mullerthan...Lux's Little Switzerland. Excellent hiking and MTBing. Might be good on a MC.

Vianden Castel in Vianden Lux.

 

[SilverBullet]

I knew you knew that cause I sort of know that but don't know how I know and don't know if it's feasible to get to know it better while over there.

LOL honestly with your short stay, being a couples trip and long list of tourist attractions I think a bike would slow you down. Also figure nearly a day off at each end of ride for taking bike out of storage and then putting it back in. Bike is in storage at Heidelberg though so general area of your interest and your friend's house in Nuremberg. By summer I will have paid the year's storage and put new tires on. My last ride ended a day short when rear rubber evaporated overnight. 50/50 tires going on next as there are more dirt forestry roads there then I was lead to believe.

Summer is the peak tourist and holiday season so expect crowds especially on the weekends. Also note some forests and national park roads are closed to motorcycles on the weekends. That is why I like to ride there off season during the week.

 

[SilverBullet]

Oh and bike is setup tall and I mean very tall. My Tenere in Texas has been modified to a 36-1/2" seat height. My Tenere in Germany is even higher, with seat in lowest position, at least 37" or more.

 

[DM164450]

Obviously check with your friends, and things may have changed but:
I was in Frankfurt main train station numerous times from 78-80 and it was safe, clean, etc.

I took the wife there in 1995 and it was horrendous. People were doing drugs right there on the train platforms, the red light district was directly in front of the train station when years ago it was out of sight off somewhere else, the train station was filthy dirty, etc. Not cool at all.

Wife was mad as all get out that I brought her there and we barely got out of the train station before abandoning the trip. HAHA

 

[KsTeveM]

Thanks for the info guys. As far as riding, I want nothing more than to swing my leg over a bike for a few days. I was in full on adv planning mode a few months back and inundated my wife with my research, plans of sites, cities, routes, maps......you know, well thought out detailed stuff, links etc. But, I'm getting subliminal messaging that is unclear, not specific, blank looks, no replies, non committal etc. This appears to be a different kind of trip. I decided to slow my roll and change my role .

 

[SilverBullet]

...I took the wife there in 1995 and it was horrendous. People were doing drugs right there on the train platforms, the red light district was directly in front of the train station when years ago it was out of sight off somewhere else, the train station was filthy dirty, etc. Not cool at all...

That's almost 30 years ago!!

Two months ago I found the large Frankfurt train station at the airport clean, safe and modern.

 

[DM164450]

You mentioned the "Frankfurt train station at the airport."

I was talking about the Frankfurt train station in downtown Frankfurt.

Yeah it's been many years, hopefully things have changed for the better.

 

[SilverBullet]

You mentioned the "Frankfurt train station at the airport."
I was talking about the Frankfurt train station in downtown Frankfurt...

Yes that is why I specifically identified it as the airport station.

My point was more for current info from 2 months ago versus 30 years ago.

 

[DM164450]

My time between visits to that train station was about 15 yrs, and the difference shocked me. But here's hoping things changed for the better.

Yeah the airport train station was always super clean.

I first saw Apocalypse Now in the theatre there.

 

[G-Mans-World]

If you make it close to Cologne Koeln than make it to the old part of town and walk over the Kopfsteinplaster road that the Romans build over 2000 years ago and let me know how it feels when you back.
Than stop by just a short walk away at the Frueh and drink a good beer for me the Koepes will ensure you not running out as long you leave the glass not covered.
You can than check out the big Dome the Church an impressive building for sure.

Enjoy your trip to my home country it's been a long time that I was there the last time.

 

[KsTeveM]

Cool man, thanks for posting. I will look those places up!! Not far off now, we fly out late July!

 

[Drunk_Uncle]

I always used SIXT to rent cars. Not many places have unlimited kilometers on rentals. Also try to get a VW Polo or similar size. Not exciting at all until you hit the gas pumps at $8 a gallon.

 

[DFW_Warrior]

I always used SIXT to rent cars. Not many places have unlimited kilometers on rentals. Also try to get a VW Polo or similar size. Not exciting at all until you hit the gas pumps at $8 a gallon.

Good to know about SIXT. I’ve seen them around but never wanted to try an unknown.

 

[LaserDave]

Sadly my dear friend doing WW2 tours out of the Eifel region has been radio silent for 2 years now, and I no longer have fb. Not that you want to jeopardize your life doing WW2 tours with the wife in tow, but I could have gleaned a few good suggestions. Prost!

 

[LaserDave]

Don't know if he's active on his page or not.

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Douglas A Mitchell St.Vith - Schnee Eifel - 106 Infantry Division - Vielsalm - Kampfgruppe Peiper - Siegfried Line Contact Doug Born in Seattle, Washington on 29 August 1966, Doug is a full-time American expat and former U.S. Marine married to Anita Reusch, a German girl from

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