Teach

Someone helpfully suggested that I repost this with the countries in the message title:

I am planning a trip to take my mother on and would like to run it past anyone who would like to offer advice. I will be driving and we prefer small towns.

Here is the draft (2 to 3 nights for each stop):

Fly into Frankfurt
Mosel (maybe Beilstein)
Rothenburg (mother really wants to visit)
Alp area (Mittenwald, possibly a place I stayed before around Reutte)
Salzburg
Hallstatt
NE Italy (maybe Merano or Castelrotto)
Lake Como
Fly home out of Milan

I realize it is considerable territory to cover, but the amount of time is a bit under 3 weeks so seems okay. We'll stay out of cities for the most part, though I wish I could work Munich into the itinerary.

Any feedback?

Teach

Author: Bob1
Date: 09/09/2003, 07:27 pm
Message: Your plan looks pretty good to me with the exception of the double back from the Mosel to Rothenburg after flying into Frankfurt.

One suggestion: You may want to repost your question with the heading of Germany/Austria/Italy itinerary help needed. That way the posters will know what you want by the heading. As you have it now, people have to guess and many will just pass it by.

Teach

Bob's point of backtracking (Frankfurt > Beilstein > Rothenburg) is very well taken and I really wish it could be avoided. However, my mother really got her heart set on seeing Rothenburg after seeing my photos from a prior visit. Also, she loved Alsace and I thought that Beilstein (or another picturesque village in a wine region) would be right up her (and my) alley.

Any and all feedback is much appreciated.

Russ

I visited Beilstein a couple of years ago - It was a great town for a couple of hours, attractive and small, but really too small to merit any more time than that, IMO. I prefer Cochem - larger, much more to do, still incredibly scenic and only about 6,000 inhabitants. It's a simple matter to daytrip from there to other villages like Beilstein, Alf, and Zell.

Here's a photo of Beilstein - what you see is what you get, basically:

http://www.travelinfo.de/kreuzfahrte.../beilstein.jpg

Don't skip the Mosel, whatever you do.

RufusTFirefly

As to where to stay on the Mosel, it all depends on your personality. After a busy day of visiting places up and down the river (including Cochem which is just a few minutes drive away), we enjoyed coming back to the peace and quiet of Beilstein. No traffic, no train whistles. We'd sit outside sipping wine chatting with other hotel guests or the owners watching the river in the moonlight. One night we got pretty tipsy and trooped up the hill to Beilstein castle in the dark--I don't recommend it as we woke up the next morning with a goodly number of scrapes and sore spots.

But Cochem does have a lot more going on during the daytime.

Wayne

I like the Mosel also; and I think Cochem is the best for its nice village and great castle on the hill. Try the Hotel Triton just across the bridge with a great view of the river, the town, and the castle.

Other than previous comments on your itinerary, I would only add that you need to consider your mother's physical condition if you park in one of the hillside carparks above Hallstatt. The climb down and back up, especially with luggage, can be a bit challenging unless she is in good condition.

A better alternative for Hallstatt is to stay somewhere like the Gruner Baum hotel, right on the lake, and they will send you a magnetic card that will admit you into the town through a normally closed gate. They will also provide a reserved parking place right down the street from the hotel. I've also stayed at the Gasthaus Zauner, right on the picture-perfect little square and a lower cost; and they have a good restaurant as does Gruner Baum. Good luck.

Wayne

Now that I think about it, I think it's the "Gasthof Zauner," rather than "Gasthaus." You'd probably find it either way. It's one of the older hotels in Hallstatt and it's family-owned and operated by (who else?) members of the Zauner family.

Bob1

If you decide to stay in Cochem on the Mosel a nice sopt is the ALTE THORNDECKE. It is built into the side of the town wall and quaint. People were also nice there. We found Cochem to be a good spot to HQ as we explored the area. hard to go wrong in any of these towns. I think we prefer the Mosel area over the Rhine.

Russ

The place Bob is recommending is actually named the "Alte Thorschenke" in case you want to look it up. Never stayed there, but I've heard many positive comments; it's close in to the wonderful, cobblestoned old town, a short walk from numerous eateries and the boat docks (cruising upstream is a great way to get to Beilstein, by the way) and just a few steps from the bridge in the middle of town that crosses the Mosel.

In that region, nearby Burg Eltz is probably the best castle tour anywhere, and easier to get to if you have a car. Cochem's castle tour is good if you don't want to leave town or if you have extra time in Cochem; catch the new birds-of-prey show there if you can - very good.

Mittenwald, by the way, is a great choice.

Teach

Wow. What wonderful responses. Thank you all so much.

Rufus, your input is very helpful. That sounds like our mentality. However, Bob, I'm going to look into your suggestion, too. Lots to investigate at this point.

Right now, I'm leaning toward cutting Rotenburg out of the itinerary and replacing it with somewhere between the Mosel and Reutte (or Mittenwald). Black Forest? Any small half-timbered villages that spring to mind?

Wayne, thank you so much for the detailed information about Hallstatt. My mom is in pretty good condition, but steep inclines are tough on her. Another site had mentioned Gruner Baum and it sounds great. Is it easy to reach by car?

Bob1

Russ: Thanks for the catch on the place in Cochem. It has been since 1997 when we were there.

Small story...we stayed there on the first of our trip and then met late coming friends at Frankfurt airport. Traveled with them for 2 weeks then we went home and they went on to Cochem to end their trip. I got home and faxed them back in Cochem not to drink too much wine. The friendly staff presented the fax to them at breakfast.

Nice place to stay and Cochem nice town to use as HQ for that area. Gotta get back there soon!

RufusTFirefly

If you do decide on Beilstien, the Hotel Haus Lippman was excellent. We paid 82 euros double for room overlooking the Mosel. I would watch the early boat and barge traffic while Mrs. Fly slept in each morning.

There's at least one other Lippman with a hotel in Beilstein--they might be OK too, but the only one we can vouch for is Hotel Haus Lippman.