4 Days in Germany - Recommendations Needed!

Don’t mention the War.

I did but I think I got away with it.

We’re planning on going straight from Paris to Germany.

We just want a more authentic experience in a slightly smaller city than Berlin or Hamburg. We’ll be spending time in London and Paris so we’re hoping to have a more relaxed time in Germany.

Everyone that I talk to has recommended Munich but like you said, it would be a long trip from Paris.

Other cities we were looking at were Dusseldorf, Cologne, Frankfurt, Münster

Wish I had a week minimum. But 4 days should work. Older historical cities suggestions: Cologne definitely. Heidelberg if you have time.

Glad you can travel by train. That is my choice for next time. Enjoy!

We’re going to spend 1 day in Normandy but I’ve always wanted to go to Germany.

This is my first time traveling to Europe so I would like to experience as much as possible in a 2 week span.

Germany is place I’ve always been curious to visit. From researching, Düsseldorf and Münster seem like cool places to visit that are not too far from Paris

What part of Germany are you going to?

I recommend Bavaria for the traditional Germany experience. Munich is a great town, and you can step down to Garmish for skiing and/or a great German winter town.

If you're going from France, it would be easier to stay on the western side. I recommend Baden Baden (classic spa town) and/or Rudesheim. Both great German experiences.

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Strasbourg is a great suggestion. 1 hr 45 minutes from Paris on the fast train. But it’s still a larger town/small city.

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Yeah I would just go to Alsace unless it's already part of the trip. You can cross into Germany and hop to Baden Baden or somewhere similar if you want to log a day or two in Germany.

Strasbourg is one of my favorite cities. Plenty to occupy your time for several days, and obviously you've got the other Alsatian towns to tour nearby if you like, as well as the wine route.

My suggestion: spend at least 2 days in Normandy, and organize your trip so that you aren’t backtracking (or backtracking as little as possible). Why go all the way to France and then spend brief, fleeting minutes “seeing” a place, only to rush off to see the next one? So you can say you’ve been to X countries?

Again, if you’re determined to hit France and Germany on the same trip, seriously consider how much of your limited vacation time you will spend merely getting from point A to B. People are suggesting Munich because that’s where they’ve been.....but it’s 6.5 hours by train from Paris to Munich. Are you flying round trip out of Paris? Then it’s another day of daylight wasted, going back. Please consider flying into Paris and out of Munich if you are determined to combine those two cities.

Yes, I know you’ve never been to “Europe”. But you would likely not try to combine Charleston SC and Miami on the same trip, right? That’s about how far apart Paris and Munich are.

If you’re already going to Normandy, you could also visit Brittany (eat oysters on the waterfront at Calcanques, go to St Malo, see Mont St Michel) and have a deeper impression and enjoyment of France. It’s easy enough to also fit in Monets gardens at Giverny, or Reims for the champagne producers, or Chartres and the wonderful cathedral.

This is just my standard attempt to encourage people to slow down, not be a checklist or drive by tourist, and to let go of the FOMO when trip planning/traveling.

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I sometimes disagree with you on the FOMO/too much stuff, as not everyone is going to go back to Europe frequently. That said, I don't think 1 day in Normandy is enough, and I do think going deep into Germany is a lot of time used up.

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Yeah, I know I go at a much slower pace than some ppl. I'm always thinking about the number of breakfast/lunch/dinner opportunities in any given location. The faster you travel, the less you get to experience any given place's food culture.

But I also think too many Americans think of Europe as a neighborhood, rather than a continent. I merely encourage people to *actually* look at the distance between destinations, add up all the intra-city travel time in the proposed itinerary, and consider whether they want to spend the equivalent of 2-3 daytimes of a trip simply going between places. If you want to be a road warrior, go for it. But collecting stamps on your passport like you're starring in The Amazing Race is just *one* way to experience the world....there are many others

As said, strongly consider traveling in a line and flying into the first place and out of the last place. Returning back to your destination is going to cost you a lot of time and money. If you are going to London, Normandy, Paris, then Germany you are best served flying into London and out of Germany.

Munich is a great city and the airport usually has good flights and prices. So consider that.

Or get it out of your head you have to go to a city you have heard of. If you just want the experience of a country, the food, and the local culture you can get that anywhere and is a very under rated way to travel. Any town along the French boarder will due for you. Just explore the other things you want to do in order to find your best match.

I was just about to suggest Strasbourg. It's a great city that we didn't get to spend enough time in last year. Plus the Alsacian countryside should be fantastic in fall.