It's been about 16 years since Ray and I did a driving trip within Europe as I prefer the fun and ease of motorcoach or riverboat travel, but this year we purchased a new car and decided to experience the European Pickup program.
We start with a late night flight on Air France and thanks to strong tailwinds we actually arrive in Paris an hour early. This is to our advantage as I have yet to understand why Air France has 45 minute connections in Paris. Our attitude was hope we make the connections but if not, let AF accommodate us on the next flight. But we did with the extra hour.
Upon arrival in Stuttgart, we have a taxi voucher, a glass of bubbly and a room at the 5* Graf Zepplin, all compliments of Mercedes Benz.
The following morning after a wonderful buffet breakfast, we take a taxi to the factory in Sindelfingen about 10 KMS from Stuttgart. We get a great two hour tour of the factory and after lunch (and a very proper one, not just a buffet, also compliments of MB) we finally meet our new car that was ordered in December.
Larry, a transplant from Fort Worth and now working for MB in Germany spent at least an hour going over the car's special features and we will quickly appreciate the time spent learning the GPS system.
The time has come and we drive out the glass doors of MB. Promptly turn the opposite direction (for a second thought of a picture, we're not that stupid) and get a quiet reprimand from Tina. We decided to give the sweet talking GPS a name.
New car, Autobahn, no way, so we set for the quieter roads of the Necker Valley. Going through the small towns navigating the roundabouts and narrow streets, we already appreciate how quickly Tina can read our minds and readjust her directions, (I told you we would appreciate this GPS)
In what should have been an hours' drive, we finally find our little hotel, only to be bumped to a Gasthof about one km away. But that's okay since it turned out the original hotel was in the town of Blaustein, not Ulm like our travel agent told us. (minor detail to report). The GPS saved us again, but IF there will ever be another driving trip, we will also bring along a cell phone for the convenience. (yes, we really don't travel with one).
If you plan on embarking on a European diving trip, do yourself a favor and find out all you can on driving restrictions and laws. Fortunately we were not planning on driving to Austria as they have a new law that requires having winter tires until April 1st. This would have been a serious setback under our purchase plan but even with a rental you need to be sure your rental car is properly equipped. Second is the speck of dust sticker the major cities of Germany requires that your car be equipped with a sticker to show the amount of particulate matter emissions of the car. Red high, yellow moderate, green low. Of course ours was low as we have a new Bluetec diesel, but again you need to be aware of this with a rental. If you had a red you would not be allowed to drive into the larger cities.
Switzerland requires a road tax sticker which you can get at the border or a gas station. This is a toll tax and covers travel on the freeways. The current cost is 28 euros. Since you can't totally avoid a major highway at any point, you should get one.
We thought about traveling from Germany to Switzerland and going through Leichstein but this would require transiting Austria so we were concerned about the winter tire issue. We snuck through anyway.
Tina our dear sweet GPS is now renamed Kim Commando we had an issue but she won! She really has been a life and marriage saver!
For three days we drove and explored the southern region of Germany from Munich to Kempten to take in the famous castles of King Ludwig and all the other wonderful vistas and villages. At first I had tried to get a hotel in Garmesh-Partenkirchen but everything was full. We now realize it is because our dates coincided with spring vacations for Italians as well and Garmish P is a major ski destination. Top it off we would be in this region over a weekend and one of the last ones for the ski season. Luckily we have a hotel in delightful Kempten.
A good rule to follow if you want to save money on European hotels is to stay out of the popular cities or resorts, or stay in the outskirts. It's a little more effort to get to your major sites, and if you have a car it's not a big deal. Makes it easier to avoid driving in and out of a major city every day. And the countryside is so much more pleasant.
Germany is outstanding for how clean it is. No rusting cars or junk in yards. Everything is neat and tidy. So much so we have to wonder if the country has any poverty! It definitely does not show it, but of course it does.
One of our highlights of this trip was visiting Meersburg on lake Boggensee. The oldest castle in Germany is found here and we found a Zepplin Museum. A very interesting day even through all the rain.
It was a very simple and delightful trip from Germany to Interlaken, stopping in Vaduz, Leitchenstein for coffee and Luzern for lunch. Ouch welcome to Switzerland. Germany is actually very cost reasonable. We had great meals in small restaurants costing about 22 30 euros. That's about $$$. Lunch in Lucern was immediately $50, but that's just what traveling is all about. Suck up the cost if that's were you want to be.
To me, Interlaken is the perfect Swiss city. it's in a valley with towering mountains all around. Interlaken means between the lakes, and the city is. There is so much to see and do in the area and with rail and lake steamers, access is simple.
Because of the weather, rain and temperatures about 40F, we didn't venture around the lakes, but did take the trip to The Top of Europe, the Jungfrau. This trip is an all day event, taking 2 ½ hours each way with two changes of trains. There were lots of skiers as well so it was a very interesting day. Fortunately the rain stayed away and we had a great adventure.
The following day we drove to Bern, the Capital of Switzerland, a great medieval city but with the hassle and pace of a busy capital business center. We visited the Einstein Museum, had a delightful lunch and then traveled to Gruyeres. What a great surprise! I did not expect a medieval village on the top of a hill! The hike up is a little challenge but worth the effort. There is a castle to explore plus cozy restaurants for cheese fondues.
The hotels we stayed in:
Stuttgart Graf Zepplin 5*
Ulm Gasthop Lindermeir - 3*
Munich Imperial 3*
Kempten Landhotel 3*
Interlaken Lindner Beau Rivage 5* Junior suite
Geneva Express By Holiday Inn Airport 3*
Ray and Cecile conduct one or two "Owner's Invitational Tours" each year. We travel to destinations off the beaten path and have a limit of 15 to 20 guests. Please contract Ray or Cecile Schutter if you would like to consider this itinerary for a future experience for yourself or wish to be in the invitational list for future trips.