zzcett

I'm planning about a week's stay in Germany after taking delivery in Ingolstadt. I'll be with my 7-year old daughter, so am thinking of castles and other good scenery for her to enjoy. I'm converging on the Alpine Road (vs. Castle Road - they both include Ludwig's famous castle, so we're pretty good there either way) and possibly the Hochstrasse in the Black Forest if there's time, taking part of the Romantic Road to Frankfurt for drop-off and departure.

If it were just me, I'd drive all day and cover as many fun roads as I could. With a 7-year old, I'm going to have to get out of the car a bit more and enjoy some local culture directly. Should I concentrate on just one road and take it leisurely? (I'm also hoping to get through the break-in period before I leave as I won't have as many chances to really open the car up once it gets back home with me.)

I considered the Nurburgring, but with my daughter in the back seat and it seems like accidents every day there, that might be a risk I should avoid.

Any other suggestions?

Thanks.

scot

chicagoA6

With a 7 year old Nurburgring might be a bit much. While you might be really careful you have to consider that not everyone is as considerate. If Nurburgring is really on your bucket list look into the Ring Taxi and have them take your around the track.

Depending on the route you are taking see if you can swing down to Grossglockner in Austria. About and hour south of Salzburg and one of the best drives in Western Europe for fun and scenery. We've done it twice and never disappoints.

https://www.grossglockner.at/gg/en/index

In our past travels in Germany and Austria just getting off the main highways and taking backroads is always a treat

zzcett

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll look into it. We're going the second week of October, luckily after Oktoberfest, so I am hoping we can be flexible on the road and arrange accommodations while there as we figure out where we're going rather than planning all routes and accommodations in advance. In your experience, will that likely work?

The 'ring is on the wish list, but it's hard to be satisfied with a taxi ride when I actually will have my own car ready to go! I guess that's just an excuse for another ED purchase some time in the future....

-scot

a.i.

For a 7 year old, I'd definitely do Ludwig's castles. The glockenspiel at the Munich Marienplatz is kinda neat. The Black Forest is really nice too. Great place to get out of doors.

aurik

Have you considered the Alpen Strasse? My wife and I did a drive from one end (Lindau, on Lake Constance), stopped for 2 days in Fussen to see Ludwig's castles (Hohenschwangau and Neuschwanstein), and then continued on to Salzburg. I found it to be a phenomenally beautiful drive. You have some segments that have you doing 15kph switchbacks up and down wooded mountains, and then you have other segments that will take you along long sweeping drives with fantastic views of the alps. I loved it. My wife managed to throw her back out the night before... well, she could have done without the switchbacks.

You can read a little more about it here: The German Alpine Road

zzcett

Thanks for the suggestion and link. I've got several options now, but I'm thinking I'll head to Alpen Strasse first.

scot

chicagoA6

I'll echo Alpen Strasse. Also Lindau is a great place to relax for a couple days. We stayed at the Hotel Bayerischer Hof when doing delivery last time and it was great. I would ask them to reserve a parking spot in the covered garage

zzcett

Thanks for the tips! Lindau does look like a beautiful city.

scot

zzcett

OK - so here's how the itinerary is shaping up. I've got it set up so I can pretty much bale on any given day and not be too far off schedule the next if we need to spend some more time somewhere unplanned.

Day 1: Pick up car in Ingolstadt - drive to Salzburg, or nearby for the night
Day 2: Alpenstrasse to Fussen, stopping at Schloss Linderhof and Partnach Gorge
Day 3: Schloss Neuschwantstein and Hohenschwangau; Drive to Swiss Chocolate (Maestrani) Factory town (~4hr) for the night
Day 4: Chocolate Factory tour - drive to Castle Hotel in Colmberg via Romantic Road
Day 5: Drive to Neckarsulm for afternoon tour; Drive to Frankfurt for the night (via as much of Castle Road as makes sense)
Day 6: Wash and drop off car
Day 7: Depart Frankfurt

What do you all think?

chicagoA6

Looks great. In Salzburg take a look at the Schloss Monchstein Hotel. We will be staying their next week and it's our treat for Salzburg. Its a little hard to find, but it overlooks Salzburg and the views are outstanding. 10 min walk to the old Salzburg area.

Oh... They have very safe parking also

Hotel Schloss Mönchstein*****s - Hotel Schloss Mönchstein*****s