germany

[bruney4]

I really think i want to spend quite a lot of time in germany how many days would you recommend in each one of these cities: Munich, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Berlin and Dresden? That is if you would recommend even going to all those cities.

I have 40 days to spend in france, germany, switzerland, italy, and spain? If you have any input on how long I should spend in each country please let me know, I would love to hear from you.

Thanks

[madamtrashheap]

Of course Germany is worht going to - and nice to see you've selected the oft-neglected northern part too! I'd would be good to know what direction you were planning on going, how much time you'd thought of spending in each country (a rough plan), time of year you're travelling and your entry and exit points (open-jaw or in-out of same city).

Frankfurt is probably the least "happening" of the cities you've selected and you probably won't want/need to spend more than 1 day there. Munich you'll probably want 3-4 days depending on your interests, plus you can take a day to go around the "Romantic Road" and visit a castle or two (Neuschwanstein, Herrenchiemsee, Lindau, etc). Hamburg is fun and funky (Bremen is nearby and besides being pretty and quaint, it's home to the Bremen Town Musicians statue! OK, I'm biased!) so 2 days is plenty. Berlin you'll want to move to as it's just one of the coolest cities on the planet, so if you can spend a week there then do it, otherwise 5 days should be fine. Dresden has practically been rebuilt after the WWII firebombing, the buildings were modelled on the originals though so it retains it's look. There are musuems, parks, bars and cafes galore and it's celebrating it's 800th birthday this year so things will be planned especially. 2 Days minimum would do you.

Other places/cities to consider are Cologne (Koeln) with its Cathedral (Dom), the Black Forest (Schwarzwald) towns of Trier or Freiburg, Koblenz (University town, Castle, river), Harz Mountains (I like them, but they aren't for everyone). Don't forget the World Cup (Football/Soccer) is on across Germany this year from 9 June to 9 July (final in Berlin) so things will be pretty crowded/booked out around then.

Can I suggest going through Austria at some point, even if it's just the Tirol region on your way to/from Italy - definitely worth the visit!

Viel Spass!

[stanncie]

Munich 3 days
Berlin 4-5 days
Frankfurt never been, haven't heard good things about it
Dresden 2 days
Hamburg did not really enjoy it i would say skip it

[me]

yeah, Hansastadt Hamburg isn't that interesting. it has Saint Pauli & Reeperbahn area, where the Beetles had some of their earliest gigs.

i was there in the daytime. it was pleasant & clean. <the port & the big Bismarck Memorial are a little interesting> but, i've read that this world known red-light-district is the "sleaziest place on the planet" at night.

[LHR02]

did you mean the Beatles David? One is the group, beetles are bugs.

Love to get cha friend of mine!

[madamtrashheap]

Hey - stop beating up on Hamburg! Oh wait, shame some of it is true.

The Reeperbahn IS quite possibly the "sleaziest place on the planet" at night, pity though as there are some great little bars scattered amongst the swill. Harbour boat tours are fun, pay hommage to the city's shipping heritage and afford good views of the city, the area btwn the station and the town hall (Rathaus) is worth a wander, as is Speicherstadt and there are some cool monuments/churches to see too.

It all boils down to seeing different regions of the country and not just the parts that everyone thinks of when they think "Germany" (ie the south). Afterall, we travel to see different things. If you have time, go to Hamburg, if not then it can be skipped (can't believe I just wrote that!!!) in favour of another town.

[herrbert]

@ dustoffmom

If you want to know more about the beatles in Hamburg, you can watch the film Backbeat. It gives you a pretty good picture about the early days of the Beatles.