I like to plan. Some would say I obsess about it. I say it's just prudent to plan, especially when you're going to an unfamiliar place. So in the spirit of prudent planning, I have revised, and re-revised my itinerary for my trip to Germany. Of course, it is subject to additional revision.
Day 1: Fly out and arrive in Germany at the beginning of Day 2.
Day 2: Arrive in Stuttgart in the morning and take a train to Ingolstadt. Stay in Ingolstadt.
Day 3: Rest and recover from jet lag. If we are feeling up to it, take a train to Munich to sightsee and visit the Oktoberfest, in full swing.
Day 4: Take delivery of the Q5 in the morning. Tour the factory and museum in the afternoon. Drive to Dachau and stay there. Hotel reservations made.
Day 5: Drive to Herrenchiemsee in the morning and take a tour of the palace. Return to Dachau and visit the concentration camp in the afternoon. Stay a second night in Dachau.
Day 6: Head south and west into the Alps and visit Ludwig's other castles, Linderhof, Hohenschwangau and Neuschwanstein. Stay the night in Fussen. Hotel reservation made.
Day 7: Head south through the Alps into Austria, then head west toward Switzerland, stopping in Liechtenstein along the way. Stay the night in Bern.
Day 8: North to Germany and through the Black Forest and the Pfalz Mountains. Stay somewhere near Kaiserslautern. No reservations, because I'm not sure where we'll end up.
Day 9: Head east through Heidelberg and along the Neckar river, then up to Wertheim at the confluence of the Main and Tauber rivers.
Day 10: Spend some time in Wertheim and Wurzburg, then to Rothenburg. Stay the night in Rothenburg. Reservation made.
Day 11: South to Stuttgart. Visit the Porsche museum, if time allows. Drop the car off for shipping and stay the night at the Marriott in Sindelfingen.
Day 12: Fly home.
Day 13: Sleep all day. Dream of getting my Q5 in about eight weeks.
Sounds like a great trip!
ReplyDeleteIf I can offer a few tidbits:
I did the Stuttgart to Munich train trip this past May. It shares part of the Ingolstadt route. If you go for the cheap tickets on the 'slow train' it took awhile. 3+ hours. It was a little painful as it stopped all the time. The subway from the airport to the Stuttgart train station probably takes about an hour. (you might save money getting a 1 way car rental)
When I was stationed in Germany in 2009 I did the Audi tour and it was cool. I was very envious of the folks driving out w/ their new car!
I doubt that it will take you the entire day at Audi. I believe the tour took about an hour. We saw the A3 line. Plus 2 hours in museum. By then you will be wanting to hit the road and go play!
Consider buying the 14 day Bavarian Palace Ticket for 2. It's 40 Euro.
http://www.schloesser.bayern.de/englisch/palace/objects/jahresk.htm
It will work w/ 3 of the 4 castles (Hohenschwangau is private), Dachau and a bunch of other places you probably won't have time for.
If you want to see a cool castle while driving north from Switzerland check out Hohenzollern Castle. Even if you don't go inside (which is ok) it's truly impressive just gazing upon it from the valley below.
Sadly the Wurzburg military facilities closed in 2007 and can be kind of painful to get on the other posts as a civilian.
The nightwatchman tour in Rothenburg is fun.
The Marriott is nice.
Have fun!!
Thanks for the advice. I'm very familiar with German trains, so I was careful not to choose the "slow" train. You're right, it is a tedious way to travel. We're taking the IC train for as much as possible and I, if I remember correctly, the scheduled travel time is about two hours. It's good to know about the subway from the airport to the bahnhof in Stuttgart. I was trying to decide between taking the subway or taking a cab, and it sounds like a cab will be a better option.
ReplyDeleteGood advice all around. Most of all the military bases I lived at as a child are now back in German hands, with the exception of Kelley Barracks in Stuttgart. But there, the housing area was outside the fence, so I'm hoping I can find all the places I actually lived.