Germany, the head of the European Union, has grown in popularity in terms of tourism so now that the climate is friendlier and the cold is a memory it may be time to travel to this country and discover its best tourist destinations.
Germany has many attractions And a possible itinerary may include some of the best: Berlin, Potsdam, Hamburg, Munich y Neuschwanstein. How about? You can calculate about ten days or less if you shorten your stay in the capital. Let's see then what to see in each of these destinations and how to unite them all.
Berlin
Berlin is the gateway to Germany more common so you can turn it into a departure and arrival point. It has geographical and historical attractions: The Brandenburg Gate, Checkpoint Charlie, the Berlin Wall with the Memorial and the East Side Gallery and some of its museums, depending on your tastes. You can also stroll along the boulevards of Prenzlauer Berg, through the Tiergarten Park and when the sun goes down, go out to bars in Neukölln, Friedrichshain or Kreuzberg.
On the weekends there are many flea markets to explore so if you happen to be on a Saturday or Sunday, take advantage. The Berlin Wall Memorial It is close to the S-Nordbahnhof and at the exit of the station you begin to know the history of the place, the Wall and the ghost stations whose tunnels served to escape from East to West. There are guided tours of the Wall and you can rent an audiogy for 10 euros for the day or 8 for four hours. If the subject of unification interests you, you can take a tour of the German Historical Museum It is open from 10 am to 6 pm every day.
You can't do all of this in one day so I would estimate between two and three days in Berlin.
Potsdam
Then you can travel and make a day trip to elegant Potsdam, the former residence of the Prussian kings. It is less than an hour's train ride from Berlin so it is not an expensive trip. Here you can visit the Castle of Frederick the Great built in the eighteenth century, go through the Orangerie Palace and its gardens, by the Sanssouci Park and through the Dutch neighborhood with its cute little houses.
You arrive early and you have time to do everything.
Hamburg
Hamburg is a huge and important port city. You can get there by bus from Berlin in a three-hour trip. The buses are regular both day and night and the price is less than 10 euros. You can also arrive by high-speed train, the ICE, in less than two hours but with prices from 20 euros if you buy in advance. What is there to see in Hamburg?
Well you have to stroll through the coastal area with its picturesque red brick buildings, almost all old warehouses, if it's hot you can eat and rest in the Elbstrand square on the Elbe river or take the ferry and go around, up and down the blakenese stairs, walk through the districts of Schanze and Karo, very fashionable, and if you stay to sleep the Red Light District is the Reeperbahn. St. Pauli has its own thing too.
In Hamburg you can stay a day alone, which excursion, but really two or three days is ideal. Two at least. From there you jump to Munich.
Munich
Is in bavaria. In summer it fills with beer gardens, beer gardens, so that's great. Munich is a different city than Berlin and Hamburg, a city with village mix. Or a large village. If you went to Hamburg before, from there you can take a bus (it is a trip is eight hours), or the train that takes six hours.
In munich you can walk through the English Garden, huge, beautiful and elegant, meet the Michaelskirche, a pretty Renaissance church, rest on the banks of the Isar river, visit the Nymphenburg palace and of course, climb to the top floor of Neues Rathaus. The climb is cheap and the views it returns are great. Museums? If you like art you can visit the Pinakothek museums, five institutions in total.
Neuschwantein Castle
It is a magic castle, which looks like something out of a fairy tale. It is located about a two hour drive from Munich in Schwangau. Being in Munich you are very close so it is an excellent destination. You can go back and forth or stay in one of the villages in the area. Also you can get there by train from Munich to the village of Füssen in a journey of two and a half hours.
From there you take bus 73 to Steingaden Feuerwehrhaus or 78 to Tegelbergbahn Schwangau. Train and bus, together, cost around 60 euros. Reaching the castle is easy: o you walk up in a 40 minute walk uphill through the middle of a beautiful forest Or you take the bus that goes up and down. The entrance to the castle costs 12 euros and if you visit both, there is another castle nearby, 23 euros. When you buy the ticket you have the time of entry so do not be late because if you miss the tour, you pay again.
Is it worth visiting inside? The truth is that its interior rooms are nothing spectacular and the tour is very fast and you are not allowed to take photos… So you should think about it. On the other hand, in summer it is a very tourist destination and has thousands of visitors so if you can get there early. Opens at 8 am
Having known the best of Berlin, the best of Potsdam, the best of Hamburg and the best of Munich, plus the best castle in the world, I think you can say that you visited Germany. The proposed itinerary is fluid, it does not involve traveling long distances or taking airplanes between cities. They are linked like beads on a necklace. Ten days is a good period of time to do this trip, although as I told you above, if you like a topic more than another, the itinerary can always be altered.