Well that's fair - but then the question is would I need to tell anyone I HAVE BEEN somewhere...? I like passing by, I like going to a city center - have a walk around 2-3h, see the main sights, skip the museums, eat a local dish, get back into the car and drive away. Munchen short city center walk is, even by LP guide 2-3h.. it would be enough for us :-)
If you then know that about ourselves and our travel style - does the itinerary make sense?
Definitely worth a golden needle from your local automobile associaion. I just add the travelling times.
Munchen 1 day -> 2 hours from Munic to Füssen, rather more in the evening traffic jam out of Munich.
Romantische Strasse from Fussen to Rothenburg ob der Tauber (1day) -> 6 hours if you really take the romantic road, less on the parallel motorway.
Nurnberg + Bamberg (1 day) One hour from Rothenburg to Nuemberg, one hour to Bamberg.
Schwabish Hall, Maulbronn and Heldelberg (1 day)-> four hours Bamberg to Maulbronn plus two hours to Heidelberg
Through Worms to Romantic Rhine Valley - Koblenz (1 day) -> four hours
Aachen + Koln (1 day) -> three hours
Bremen + Lubeck (1 day) -> five hours
Hamburg Schleswig + Schwerin Wismar) (2 days) -> six hours
Potsdam (1 day) -> two hours
Berlin (2 days)
Leipzig + Dresden (1 day) -> four hours
Saxon Switzerland before a drive home... -> ? where is home/departure airport ?
All driving times may be reduced when driving between midnight and 6 am.
The Romantic Road - Muremberg - Bamberg - Schwäbisch Hall - Maulbronn-legs do not make sense, youre driving in circles (actually rather a cross). Skip Schwäbisch Hall (what do u want there ?) and leave Bamberg/Nuremberg for later, see below. Instead, take in Würzburg with a fabulous palace, drive to Maulbronn and follow the pretty Neckar valley to Heidelberg. If you like cathedrals, take in Speyer before heading north to Worms.
Bremen-Lübeck-Hamburg-Schleswig-Schwerin-Wismar is another circle. Skip Schleswig and do noi spend much time for Bremen , then Hamburg - Lübeck - Wismar - Schwerin (- Potsdam).
Skip Leipzig and do Wittenberg (Martin Luther sites) instead.
If you go back to Munich, the quickest driving from Saxonian Switzerland would be through the Czech Republic. Not all car rentals do allow this, keep that in mind. Staying within Germany takes a lot more time. If you have time left, you can take in Bamberg and Nuremberg on the way back.
Still ihis is a tour for six to eight weeks, running this in two weeks is somewhat a nuisance.. Hope you dont do this in winter with only eight hours of daylight.
AnhaltER thank you very much for such a detailed and full review. Much appreciated. Traveling times sound reasonable - the only part that I worry about a bit is Romantische Strasse - might be stretched drive/sightsee ratio here. About the car - we're going from Krakow (PL) with my own car, so not worrying about rentals. We're planning to leave on the 31st of August.
Ok, will skip Schwäbisch Hall then, thanks! I actually went to Nurnberg when I was a kid, so just wanted to lady to see it for herself as well, but we'll consider. Will definitely have a look at Speyer cathedral.
Wandering about Bremen? Is it not that worth to see?
The Romantic Road from Füssen to Würzburg has a length of some 400 km, I guessed the distance from Füssen with 300 km, all with a few exceptions 2 lane roads, no motorway. I assume an average of 50 km/h on these roads. Using the parallel A 7 is much faster of course, but not Romantic road.
I was not aware that you will return eastward from Dresden/Saxony and not to Munich, so Nuremberg there does not work, of course. And how about starting at Dresden, coming from Krakow via Wroclaw, then turm south to Bamberg/Nuremberg/Munich/ ... do the tour..... and returning from Berlin via Cottbus - Wrozlaw ?
Bremen: Sure it is worth it, but that applies to many places mentioned and many more not mentioned. As far as harbour is concerned, Hamburg is more impressive, as far as old Hanse city is concerned, you have Lübeck and Wismar, so Bremen is a "backup", which doubles with other places. And there does not seem the time to do this.
Edited by: AnhaltER1960
From a personal perspective i think you may be overlooking two of the main sights of the 'Romantic Road'.
We have stayed in Fussen more that once and loved the place, but it is very near to the Newchwastein castle that i urge you do a tour of, one of the great tourist desinations anywhere, and rightly so.
And the other on the RR is Wurtzurg, the Residence Palace and Tiepelo's famous fresco, and the Fortress Marieburg that over looks the town.
All from my perspective is almost mandatory to see if you are in that part of the world.
Thanks AnhaltER, that's a good piece of advice regarding Bremen vs. Lubeck and Wismar. Maybe we will slow down a bit and skip Bremen after all - go directly for a day in Lubeck for instance :)
As for the Krakow-Dresden trip and different approaches - I've already booked a place in the Alps next to Fussen, thus can't change that now. We are trying to sleep outside city center to avoid the fuss and traffic.
Thanks again for the advice, much appreciated!
I'd like to double the idea of visiting Potsdam from Berlin as day trip. The hotels in Potsdam are quiet pricey.
I don't suggest doing Leipzig and Dresden in one day. Leipzig is a great to live in and has an interesting history but it's not very picturesque or offers great buildings at every corner (imo). There are some interesting museums, but you wrote you're not that interested in that. Considering that you'll have to find your way out of Berlin and into two big towns in one day including the search for parking lots I would suggest to concentrate on Dresden.
Do you have an idea where to stay in Saxon Switzerland? If not, we could help. It's also possible to visit it from Dresden by train.
On your way to Kraków you could consider a short stopover at Bautzen or Görlitz which are lovely towns right at the motorway Dresden-Wroclaw.
jedgerandclyde guess I wasn't that precise, by Fussen I meant Neuschwanstein castle - but that's just how my mind is working... assuming that everyone would understand exactly what I wanted to write about.
Nevertheless, I am starting to think I should resign from Nurnberg and go for Wurzburg...
european83, we'll be staying in the center of Dresden for a night, since we found a good bargain. We'll be spending a whole day in Saxon Switzerland afterwards but will leave for a night drive home (love night driving... and my wife can just sleep as much as she wishes to). I believe I will follow your advice and check Bautzen and Gorlitz (been there once, slept on a market square) as well on our way back, thanks!
As for Potsdam, our plan is to leave Hamburg before the city wakes up and drive to Potsdam, then go for a night in Berlin (actually 3 consecutive nights). We already have couch surfing there.
