I had a work trip for a few days to a trade show called IFAT in Munich. Once there, I discovered that in the summer 2022 Germany were doing a deal on public transport which meant you could travel anywhere in the country using domestic public transport for €9 an entire month. I came straight back as soon as soon as possible to take better advantage of this great deal, bringing along my partner and sister this time too.
Day One: Journey To Germany
We flew straight into Nuremberg, arriving late due to prior commitments. It was a short 15 minute tube journey from the airport to town. We stayed over in Homestay Nürnberg, which was cheap (for a Saturday night, £81 for 3) and close to the train station but it was pretty much a hostel.
Day Two: Neuschwanstein Castle
We got up early, checked out and grabbed a pretzel and a hot drink each from Backwerk (like the McDonalds of pretzels in Germany) to have for breakfast on the train. We had a smooth journey from Nuremberg to Füssen ~8-11am with a change at Augsburg Hbf. Despite not having reserved tickets, we all managed to sit together OK. On arrival at Füssen we then had to take a bus (which I was a bit nervous about) but it was actually really easy because everyone was heading in the same direction so all you do is follow the crowds! Just head to the bus stop marked castle (bus 73 or 78). The journey was only 10 minutes but the bus was packed!
We walked from the bus stop up the hill to the castle. At the top, there were storage lockage and a viewpoint. We then walked around the castle to a second viewpoint that also looked down on Hohenschwangau Castle. Continuing up and around the castle, there was a bridge with a great view point. It was definitely worth the queue to get to the bridge but the bridge itself was very ropey- with the planks of wood moving underfoot! Despite this, it’s the best view of the castle.
On the walk back down the hill, we stopped off for a coffee. In the town itself there were a lot of restaurants and tourist shops. Overall the walk took us 1h40 and was around 5.6km. Once back at the bus stop, again we followed the crowds, headed back to Füssen then took the train to Munich to stay overnight at Hotel Amba near the station (~2h).
Day Three: Zugspitze
Another early morning and pretzel breakfast as we headed on the train from Munich to Garmisch-Partenkirchen (~1h40, 8:32-10:13). This was a little more difficult- it was fine until the change in Murnau and then it was a replacement bus service. Once at Garmisch-Partenkirchen we found it quite difficult to find the Zugspitzebahn, which is a cogtrain and not a bus. To find it, cross to the far side of the train station platform and head towards the Olympic Stadium.
We intended to buy the Zugspitze Ticket (€63) but instead accidentally purchased the 2 Peak Pass Combi-ticket, which includes a Zugspitze Ticket as well as a Garmisch-Classic Ticket (€75). However, I actually really recommend getting the combined ticket, especially if it’s cloudy at Zugspitze.
We took the cogwheel and got off at Eibsee. There was a great photo opportunity here. We also hired a peddle boat for half an hour for a quick peddle around the lake, which was really beautiful. They also offered paddle boards, row boats etc., although they didn’t appear to have life vests.
Then we headed up from Eibsee to the Zugspitze summit using the cable car (Seilbahn Zugspitze). The summit was pretty cool, although it was very cloudy so we couldn’t see that much. We didn’t hike to the summit sign because it looked very unsafe but instead, there was a restaurant on top so we had a hot drink and admired the views. We also walked over into Austria (no passports required) at the summit too.
We then took the Gletscherbahn cable car from the Zugspitze summit to the “glacier”, an area which had a little church and an inflatable archway. With it being summer, although it was quite cool at the top of the mountain, there was no snow.
We then took the cogwheel train from the glacier to the Kreuzeck-Alpspitzbahn station for our second peak. From the station we took the Alpspitzbahn Cable Car to Osterfelderkopf. At this summit, there was a cool viewing point called Alpspix (although it was quite wobbly at the end). Although Zugspitze had a lot of cloud cover, the views from here were perfect!
We took another cable car (Hoehalmhahn) to Hochalm- this time a really small one and unmanned. Then we walked from there to Kreuzeck (1.37km or 20mins). The road has great views and was on a wide properly built road. Finally, taking the Kreuzeckbahn Cable Car (this one had seats!) back to Kreuzeck-Alpspitzbahn so we could take the cogwheel train back to Garmisch-Partenkirchen at around 4:30.
We had big problems with the train backs. The replacement bus service Garmisch-Partenkirchen to Murnau went OK but from then on we had a lot of cancellations! Instead of getting back to Munich at around 6, we didn’t make it back until 9. We went for food at Bavaria (we were supposed to be going to Steinheil16 but they said they couldn’t find our reservation) which was right next to central train station, the food was cheap and the portions massive. I really wanted to try kasespatzle (like German mac and cheese) while in Germany so got to give this a go. Then stayed over at Hotel Amba.
Day Four: Munich
Today we had a little bit more of a lie in then headed into Munich for the morning. I showed the others around on a little walking tour.
We walked passed Stachusbrunnen, through Karlstor and to Frauenkirche the cathedral. We looked around Marienplatz and headed inside St. Peter's Church (Peterskirche). We grabbed some pastries and ate them at Viktualienmarkt, after a wander around. We then headed over to Hofbräuhaus Münche for 1l of beer each, a giant pretzel and a bit of background music from a oompah band. Everyone really enjoyed this!
Day Five: Nuremberg
We headed to the Hauptmarkt (Nuremberg Main Market) for a wander. It was in front of the pretty Iglesia de Nuestra Señora and “The Beautiful Fountain”. Then my favourite thing I ate during the whole trip, Wicklein - Die Lebküchnerei for some beautiful lebkuchen to eat in. There was chocolate coated and plain (the plain was warm!). It was delicious (although I found the hot chocolate a little plain). I wish I had bought some to take home!
The tour was in German but we had an English audio guide. It walked us through the historic uses of the underground tunnels of Nuremberg, which was really interesting and something a little different. We finished off our tour with a little beer/whiskey tasting (not included in the cost of the tour).
We later headed to Handwerkerhof Nuremberg, which was a small picturesque maze of shops. It was cool for a visit but I imagine it gets very uncomfortably busy in peak season. We picked up some food to eat for dinner as well as for breakfast for our day of travel that was coming up and stayed over at the Leonardo Hotel.
Day Six: Journey From Germany
We grabbed the first tube in the morning (4:43-4:59). It was a little scary because the tube gates were all locked up but it was all OK and they opened on time. We got to the airport no problem. There were two terminals for departure but they were in the same building.
Overall, it was a great and adventurous holiday! Highlights for me were the beautiful views from the cable cars around the mountainside, eating fresh hot lebkuchen and the beautiful medieveal architecture of Nuremberg. In my opinion, Nuremberg was well worth a visit, above and beyond Munich. There was life there, beautiful buildings, so much to do and see. We all had a great time, although we were looking forward to not using public transport for a short while!
