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3 weeks Road trip by Train in Germany: Itinerary & Budget

Because of the coronavirus, it is possible that our only vacation destinations this summer will be in France (without the cat). But keeping our fingers crossed, we might be able to push to the neighboring countries. I was criss-crossing Germany when the coronavirus hit.

I present below my 3 weeks itinerary planned for this wonderful country that I knew very little about. I was able to carry out the planned itinerary until the 8th day. From the 9th, well, you have the version “I planned but…”. I hope to be able to update the actual expenses very quickly from day 9, because Germany will be our 1st destination as soon as the conditions of the de-confinement will be relaxed.

Itinerary

You can make a copy of this custom map by going to the following link

Practical advice

  • Coming from Belgium, I chose Cologne as my first destination in Germany to finish the road trip in beauty in Berlin. You can visit in the other direction, by following the opposite itinerary
  • This itinerary is more or less based on a one-month itinerary recommended by Lonely Planet.
    • I added Bonn , which speaks to me a lot (Beethoven’s birthplace, it speaks to me a lot because I did 10 years at the conservatory).
    • I removed Dresden from my program because I was traveling alone and a German friend warned me about racist attacks on non-European people. So I made a big detour via Kassel
  • I chose to travel only by train to better enjoy the numerous schedules and the landscape. Also, I don’t know how to drive !
  • I don’t speak German at all, I learned 2 words before coming : Danke & Hallo. I communicate only in English and with Google Translate if needed.
  • I travel with my international map Boursorama Ultim but as we are in the € zone, you can use a normal map without any worries. Contactless payment worked 1 time out of 3, I don’t know why. Germans like cash very much so plan to withdraw money from time to time. They will never sulk in front of a 50€ bill.
  • For the moment, there are 2 travel diaries in Germany, I hope there will be more soon :

German trains

  • Rates do not vary much according to the schedule. The routes I take are served up to 25 times a day. The distances are quite short (1h to 2h with a train running at the speed of a TER).
  • Contrary to what one might think, German trains are mostly late. Therefore, it is necessary to allow a little time for connections, especially on long distances.
  • I bought a BahnCard 50 Probe card valid for 3 months to have -50% on long distance trains, -25% on local trains and some advantages on local public transports (I can’t always understand which transports are covered by this ahaha card).
  • All my tickets are booked via the BahnCard DE app or simply at the station. For most trains, the seats aren’t numbered
  • Download the BahnCard DE app, it is very useful because it displays delays as well as the platform number
  • If a city has several train stations, choose the station ending with HPF, it will be the central station, in the city center.
  • Interrail also offers train tickets from/to and within Germany, but with a commission

Detailed Itinerary

Note: from day 9, I took pictures available on Wikimedia. I will replace them with mine when I can go back to Germany

Budget

Transport

I do not take into account trips to / from Germany. I will just detail the travel expenses within the country.

I bought my BahnCard Probe 50 for €71.90, valid for 3 months

DepartureDestinationDurationFull priceReduced fare with BahnCard 50
Cologne24h public transportation8,8€no discount
CologneBonn38mn7,38€5,4€
BonnKönigswinter (streetcar)valid 24 hours11,1€no discount
Bonn Bacharach1h3925€13,1€
BacharachMainz37mn10,15€7,6€
MainzWorms56mn11,4€8,63€
WormsHeidelberg1h0711,5€8,63€
HeidelbergPublic transportation to downtown10mn2,5€no discount
HeidelbergPublic transportation to the train station10mn2,5€no discount
HeidelbergFüssen4h45 with 1 change23,9€17,9€
FüssenCastle (bus)3,25€ * 2 (round trip) = 6,5€no discount
FüssenGarmisch-Partenkirchen2h2216,2€12,15€
Garmisch-PartenkirchenZugspitze (bus)???
Garmisch-PartenkirchenMunich2h0323€17€
MunichPublic transport 48h???
MunichNuremberg1h0419,9€9,95€
NurembergRothenburg ob der Tauber1h4212,3€9,23€
Rothenburg ob der TauberKassel2h2833,9€16,95€
KasselPublic transport to the castle??
KasselPotsdam3h3135,9€17,95€
PotsdamBerlin24mn3,6€2,7€
BerlinPublic transport 48h??
TOTAL266€ ++
(some expenses are missing)
178,09+71,9(Bahncard 50) = 250€++++++++

Visit

  • Perfume Museum in Cologne: 5€
  • Drachenburg Castle + the train: 17€
  • Beethoven’s House : 10€
  • Castle in Heidelberg: 8€ + 6€ for a guided tour
  • Gutenberg Printing Museum: 10€ + 5€ if you want to make your own printing
  • Neuschwanstein Castle : 13€
  • Nymphenburg Palace in Munich: 5€
  • Documentation center of the Nazi Party congress site in Nuremberg: 6€
  • Löwenburg Castle in Kassel: 6€ for a day ticket to visit: Schloss Wilhelmshöhe, the Weißenstein Wing, Löwenburg Castle
  • Palace & park Sans Souci in Postdam : 12€
  • Free walking tour: doesn’t cost anything but people leave about 10€/person as a tip

TOTAL : 113€

Recommended hotels

  • in Bacharach: Rhein Hotel Bacharach(link Expedia) 57€ delicious restaurant on the spot, old hotel with a lot of charm, close to the train station
  • in Mainz: The Niu Mood(link Booking) 41,7€, close to the train station, very well decorated
  • in Worms: Hotel-Restaurant Kriemhilde(Booking link) 55€, close to the train station and overlooking the cathedral, simple but very consistent breakfast. Adorable owner
  • in Füssen: Old Kings Fuessen Design Hostel (link Booking) 42,5€. Very close to the train station, this hotel is particularly fair play, I had to cancel a non-cancellable reservation because of the coronavirus, and they have accepted

Total

ExpensesTotal
France – Germany and Germany – Franceat least 100€ / person
Transport250€ ++ / person (some expenses are missing)
Housing45€ on average per night for one person = 900€ or
60€ on average per night for two people = 1200€
Food10€ to 15€/meal = 525€
Visits113€ / person
TOTAL ALL INCLUSIVE FOR 20 NIGHTS 21 DAYS1 888€++ if you travel alone for 3 weeks3
176€++ if you travel together and share a double room
Estimated global budget in 2020

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