We are flying to Frankfurt, staying with our military kids in Ramstein for a week and then driving to the Garmisch area. We rented a place in Garmish for two weeks and plan to visit outlying towns. Does anyone have any advice about driving in the Garmish area? Is it congested, difficult, etc? Also, we want to drive to Munich for Oktoberfest. Are we even going to be able to get in there with our car or should we use public transportation from Garmish? Thanks for any advice you can give.
Patty

Hi Patty,

You will absolutely love Garmsich! Ofcourse I am totally biased because I lived there for 18 months . I was fortunate enough to return for a visit last year with my family. Please take a look at my trip report Through Bavaria, Tuscany & Umbria: Piatti Misti. The first part describes our return to Bavaria.

Driving is not too difficult at all. Towns in the immediate surrounding area are Mittenwald and of course Partenkirchen (town is officially Garmisch-Partenkirchen. A day-trip to Innsbruck Austria is a highlight as is a trip to Salzburg. You could also go into Northern Italy.. Bressanone and Vipitano come to mind and there are a ton more possibilities.

Regarding Octoberfest, I would highly recommend taking the train. Munich will be really congested and the train is an ideal option.

Please feel free to email me personally if you would like additional information.

All The Best,

Patty,

Are you staying in that lodge for military personnel and their families? I think it is called Edelweiss Lodge?? I am so envious if you are. It looks so nice.

My son is in the Air Force at Ramstein as well. We will be heading their for Christmas this year and driving leisurely down to Bavaria for awhile. We tried making reservations at that lodge in January for this December and it was all booked. Consequently, we found an nice little apartment in Oberammergau.

Another person on this board that is so knowledgeable about Germany is Kaydee. Do a search or check out her trip reports. They are fantastic. Everyone is helpful though!

Janel

Thanks, Leslie!
I'll read your trip review when I return home. I'm in Corpus right now. I liked your idea about about going to Innsbruck, etc. We are definitely going to add that to our itinerary.

Patty

Hi, Janel!
Thanks for your reply. I'm excited for you. Our kids are doing exactly what you're doing . . .flying to Germany for Christmas. They are also going to drive to Garmisch with their brother who is stationed in Ramstein (Air Force), and they will spend Christmas in that area. No, they couldn't get into the Lodge either. So many of the military from Ramstein stay at a place in Ramstein owned by a German family. The rate is about $70 a day. That's for a one bedroom/living room, small kitchen, and a balcony overlooking the mountains. We are staying there. I'm in Corpus right now so I'll look for the name of the place when I return and let you know for future reference. Also, we'll return from Germany Nov 2 so I'll let you know about any neat places I find, i.e., restaurants, markets, etc.
Chat soon!
Patty

Patty,

I would love to hear some ideas that worked for you - restaurants, do's or don'ts, etc. when you return.

In the meantime, I can't help wondering if our kids know each other. Afterall, this world is so small. Send me a private message and we can chat about names and what they do there. Christian doesn't live on base though - he has his own place about half hour from Ramstein.

Talk to you soon I hope.

Janel

Definitely take public transportation to Munich from Garmisch. Parking and finding your way around can be very difficult then. If you are staying in Garmisch during Oktoberfest, and your military kids are with you, there will likely be a tour bus organized through the Tours and Travel office that will do a daytrip to the Oktoberfest that they can get you on. Also, if you are going with a group, especially at the weekend, you may want to inquire about a booking for a beer tent for your group, as popular tents/times fill up quickly with reservations. Hope you have a wonderful time!

Janel,

I stayed at the Edelweiss lodge last year. It is a nice facility and very convenient to everything. The only complaint I have is that all the people that I met while staying there are fellow americans. While there is nothing wrong with that, I would have loved to meet more Germans and people from other countries. You would encounter this by staying in a hotel/guesthouse/apartment that was not run by the US military. Just a thought! I have also noticed that their rates have gone up quick a bit since last year, which was another deciding factor for staying there last year.....

All The Best,

Janel,
I sent you an e-mail.
Yes, I'll let everyone know about any good "finds" after we return from Europe. We went last year for 3 weeks. One of the highlights of that trip was visiting Normandy and the battlefields. We're going back again for a week to finish up.
Chat soon!
Patty

Kim, thanks so much! We're calling our son in Germany right now to see about the possibility of a military tour from Garmish-Partenkirchen to Munich for Octoberfest.

My husband and I are driving down by ourselves since we're staying two weeks.Our kids will drive down the following weekend and we'll all go to Octoberfest together. Thanks again!
Patty

Leslie,

That thought did occur to me and when all is said and done, I am very happy with where we are going to be staying for Christmas. I have to admit though, I am alittle nervous about the fact that the locals that own this apartment wouldn't accept any deposit to hold it for us. Kaydee assured me that is pretty much standard when dealing wit the locals. Sure hope so!

Janel

Janel,
The same thing happened with our reservation in Garmisch-Partenkirchen at Haus Bader. We didn't have to put a deposit down or hold our reservation with a credit card. Our kids have stayed there several times and it's kind of like being on the honor system. They hold your reservation but expect you to cancel if need be. The system apparently works!
Patty

My husband and I know quite a bit about the Garmisch area as well. We love going down there. In fact, we'll be down there for 2 nights (at the Edelweiss lodge) next weekend, en route to Italy.

The Partnach Gorge is a beautiful, fairly easy "hike" you can do at that time of year. The Eibsee is also very beautiful and is a graet place to get some scenic photos.

The Edelweiss lodge runs a ton of trips. I'm certain that there will be some organized runs to Oktoberfest while you are there. I wouldn't drive the car there.

Did you mean you wouldn't drive the car there because of the tours the Lodge runs or the terrain?? I am headed there at Christmas time and am curious why you wouldn't drive.

Janel

That's good to know! I felt better when Kaydee said it would be okay but your confirmation really puts me at ease about it.

I was feeling alittle obsessive compulsive about it like I needed to email them once a month to remind them about us coming but I will refrain now!

Janel