First time to Germany in May - please help!

Hello fellow travellers,

My partner and I will be backpacking around Western Europe in May. We are not sure about dates yet as he does not have is exam schedule yet, but it is absolutely going to be in May.

We intend on buying a Eurail Youth Pass based in Germany. Would probably visit Netherlands, Poland, Switzerland, Austrich and Czech Republic. (will probably starve to death afterwards ;))

We would like to spend about one week in Germany. I made a little research and would love to visit Berlin, Frankfurt and possibly Munich. Would love to get to see some of the undamaged countryside as well. Renting a car is not an option.

Any suggestions as how much time we should spend in each city? We%26#39;re not really into museums, so not many time spent in there. I know we probably won%26#39;t make either of them justice but budget travel has its downsides.

Cheers! :)

-Marie

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If you are going from Netherlands to Berlin a night in Cologne would be nice but i would give Frankfurt a miss. I have spent a lot of time in Frankfurt but Berlin is a lot more fun.

Trip to Cottbus/Spreewald(daytrip from Berlin)is nice countryside

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All of your choices are good and each of the German cities has something special to offer, including Frankfurt. Contrary to the poster from Amsterdam. Sorry. There is a lot to see and do here, so spending a day or two here in Frankfurt is not a waste of time.

First, try some walking tours in any of the cities you go to. Look at www.insidertours.com as they have tours in both Berlin and Frankfurt. The one if Frankfurt is called Frankfurt on Foot. Can%26#39;t recommend one in Munich, but I am sure someone on here can. This will get you oriented in the city, give you some fascinating history, show you places that you might not have found on your own, and they%26#39;re lots of fun. There are some really nice neighborhoods in Frankfurt that you can explore, my favorite of course, being Bornheim. It has a lovely Chinese garden in Bethman Park, the Berger Strasse is chock full of cool stores, pubs, cafes and the pedestrian area has a great produce market on Wed. and Sat. There are some nice little pensions to be found there along with some Apple wine gardens. If you want to go more budget, the hostel located in Sachsenhausen is a good bet. Right on the river, you get a fabulous view. May is great month to be in Germany, so you might want to go over to the Palmengarten where all will be in gorgeous full bloom. Take a trip to the top of the Main Tower for great photos. Rent a bike and ride along the Main River or the Nidda river for something different to do. The Main goes through lots of nice little towns, as does the Nidda. Based in Frankfurt you have quick access to all the trains going to wherever you want to go. Definitely pop over to Mainz, the cathedral there is awesome, and they have a great little shopping zone with restored half-timbered buildings.

If you come down from Köln, take the slow train, as you get the very best view of the Rhine, the vinyards, the castles, etc. Berlin is then just 4 hours away from Frankfurt.

Wondering about your comment, undamaged countryside. You will not see anything in Germany that looks damaged, so not sure what you mean by that.

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I would go for Bamberg. I think that it´s the only town with a population of +50k to avoid the bombs.

Try the Rauchbier,some like it,some hate it.

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As the OP only has a week in Germanyseeing everything is not possible unless she spends most of her time on trains.

Undamaged coutryside is land in its natural state ie not built upon or worked!

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I have yet to go to the country or the woods and say %26quot;ooh, look at the undamaged country side%26quot;. This is not a normal statement to use when talking about nature. It is normally used when talking about bombed out cities, or places that have been hit by hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, etc. and I wanted to assure the poster that this is not something they would see here.

I am also able to read the posters question very well, they asked for info about Berlin, Frankfurt and Munich and I answered about Frankfurt in a positive manner. Call me odd, but I do believe in the %26quot;if ya cant say something nice, don%26#39;t say nothin at all%26quot; about places people want to visit.

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A week is not long enough to see 3 major German cities and some countryside too - whether damaged or undamaged.

If you are really on a tight budget, and you don%26#39;t care much about museums, do not spend time in the major cities, which are more expensive.

If I were you, I%26#39;d visit some smaller cities where you can get around on foot easily and where you are more likely to see %26quot;old-world%26quot; Germany. Bajen666 had a good idea with the Bamberg suggestion. Bamberg is beautiful, lots of charm, not very touristy. And it%26#39;s very close to some other interesting and attractive cities and Romantic Road towns, including Würzburg, Nuremberg, and Rothenburg (a miraculously well-preserved old walled town) and there%26#39;s lots of attractive countryside in between.

I would recommend spending 4 days or so in this area. Nuremberg and Würzburg have the best train connections for seeing the other towns. Both cities have hostels, but the Nuremberg hostel is most convenient to the town and the station. Then spend 3 days in Munich before you move on to your next destination.

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If you are looking for a smaller city, I absolutely loved the day I spent in Wittenburg. The history there is phenomenal (where Martin Luther lived, taught, and preached). It was very quaint and quiet, but it still had enough to allow us to spend a full day there.

Mittenwald, which is in the deepest southern reach of Germany, is a bit touristy, but is so picturesque - I absoulutely adored that town. It is about an hour and a half south of Munich on the Germany-Austria border. This may be out of your way, but if you%26#39;re planning on going into Austria, this could be a nice stop.

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I will definitely add Wittenburg to my must-see list. Unfortunately, I am not planning to visit Austria so I don%26#39;t think I will be seeing much of Southern Germany.

Thanks for the suggestions.

Any ideas as of how much time I should spend in Berlin, Frankfurt and such? I was thinking 2 days each.

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Wow, sorry - didn%26#39;t notice all the previous posts (only looked up my I got by email)

Thanks for all this help! I really really want to go to Frankfurt so I will certainly not miss it. On the other hand my partner absolutely wants to go to Berlin, so I don%26#39;t think I can switch to countryside only. I think I will cut out Munich instead.

What I meant by undamaged, basically is just quaint old cities. War has (at least I thought so) unfortunately damaged a lot of beautiful things in larger cities, that%26#39;s why I want to get a glimpse of Old-Germany. But apparently I was wrong, thanks for letting me know. ;)

Thanks for your ideas, Bornheim Girl. I was intending on taking the slow train anyway (I believe it is cheaper) to get to see the lovely sights. Wrote down all your suggestions for Frankfurt!

I%26#39;m not sure what my itinerary will be yet - Prague, Vienne, Krakow, Berlin and Frankfurt are my top choices. Not sure where to begin !

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Krakow is a WONDERFUL city to visit. As a fellow young traveler on a budget, it was so refreshing to spend a week in Krakow after a month in Germany. I stayed at a very nice hotel (The Hotel Royal), ate great meals 3 times a day, and visited many amazing sites and spent about as much in 7 days there as I did during 3 days in Berlin or Munich.

Krakow is a city very rich in history and very well preserved (it was intended to be a Reich capital when it was under Nazi control - therefore it was spared from mass destruction during WWII.) Wawel Castle, the Market Square, and the Jewish quarter are just a couple must-see sites. An excursion to Auschwitz-Birkenau is an overwhelming experience and something everyone should experience at least once in their life.

Ok, that is my little plug for Krakow! If you need any other help or suggestions, feel free to message me!