Germany, Switzerland & Italy

Another trip around the sun for Sam, we decided we finally wanted to make Germany & Switzerland happen for his 31st birthday! Oktoberfest in Germany has always been on the bucket list for us & seeing Neusweinstein Castle has always been a dream of mine. We didn’t get to see some of the WWII history in Germany like we wanted, but it was a short trip & we definitely plan to go back. We want to go back to Oktoberfest again & would love to make a trip during Christmas time to go to the Christmas markets!!

Some of the things we were able to do in Germany include road tripping through Germany’s Black Forest, Oktoberfest & visiting Neuschweinstein Castle.

In Switzerland, we went to Auescher, rode on some amazing panoramic train rides including The Glacier Express & The Bernina Express, see the Swiss Alps… Including Schilthorn – Piz Gloria; which had the best views of Eiger, Mönch & Jungfrau Mountains & last but not least, Zermatt Mountain & the town of St. Moritz.

Then we took The Bernina Express which crossed over our trip from Switzerland to Italy & ended our trip going to Milan & Venice.

2 week breakdown 

September 25th, 2018 – October 9th, 2018 

1 night Frankfurt, 1 night Freiburg, 3 nights Munich, 2 nights Zurich, 2 nights Lauterbrunnen, 1 night Zermatt, 1 night St. Moritz, 1 night Milan, 1 night Venice 

FRANKFURT

Day 1 - Wednesday

Since it was Oktoberfest we knew it could be kinda tricky flying standby to Germany, so we ended up taking the first flight we could to Frankfurt. Frankfurt was not our first choice for sure, but it ended up being a decent way to start the trip. We flew on United Airlines from ORD-FAK direct leaving on Tuesday night.

Once we landed we weren’t able to check in to the hotel yet, so we dropped our luggage off at the front desk & decided to walk around a little bit & grab some lunch. We walked along the riverfront which was pretty. We ended up finding going to Klosterhof, where we had our first taste of German cuisine! It was soo good! 

We finally checked into the hotel & rested up for a bit. As with all of our trips we plan as we go, so we mapped out our next few days. We decided we were going to rent a car the next day & drive through the Black Forrest & end up in the town of Freiburg.

BLACK FOREST

Day 2 - Thursday

First on the agenda was making sure we took the route that would take us through the town of Heidelberg (which I had read about it in Rick Steves book). We visited the castle, Schloss Heidelberg that overlooked the city. The town was beautiful! It’s a cute college town. Totally worth going a little off course to stop by.

We were heading towards Baden-Baden when we made our first pit stop at Geroldsau Waterfall!

We finally arrived to Baden Baden! We stopped at Cafe Koening to try the famous Black Forest cake & grab a coffee.

Finally arrived in Freiburg & stayed at the Schiller Hotel. Once we checked in we walked over to an outdoor Beer Garden & had dinner across the street then called it a night.

MUNICH

Day 3 - Friday

Oktoberfest here we come!! We drive from Freiburg to Munich. This drive was pretty… even though it was about a 4 hour drive. One of my favorite parts was driving through a sunflower field.

We check into our hotel, Hotel Monaco… then head out immediately to shop for our drindls & leiderhosen! You can buy them ahead in advance, but I knew I wanted to get them authentic in Germany. Hehe

The hotel was right in the heart of the city & walking distance to everything, so it worked out especially when a lot of places can sell out during Oktoberfest! We went to a local beer garden & then called it a night!

NEUSCHWEINSTEIN CASTLE  

Day 4 - Saturday

I booked us a tour of Neuschweinstein Castle. This was one of my favorite days of the whole trip! I have been wanting to visit this castle forever! It is the castle that inspired Disney’s Sleeping Beauty. It was truly breathtaking. The tour we did was one of these two either from Viator or Get Your Guide.

This tour is based on visiting the castles of King Ludgwig, which is about 2 hours south of Munich. We start off stopping in the cute town of Obermmagergau! So many of the houses were uniquely painted & it really is what you picture the smaller German towns to look like. So beautiful!

We actually went to his main living quarters first, Linderhof Palace! The grounds were beautiful! Even though it isn't as grand on the outside as Neuschweinstein… it was so ritzy & amazing on in the inside! (They don’t let you take pictures on the inside).

Neuschweinstein Castle is more grand & beautiful on the outside, but on the inside it wasn’t as lavish. It was still a castle don’t get me wrong, but as far as how it was decorated & everything it was completely different than his main living quarters. I will point out that part of the reason for this was that it was still under construction when he died. Also, the bridge overlook is a MUST!!!! Not going to lie it was a little terrifying, but so worth it!

OKTOBERFEST

Day 5 - Sunday

Yayyy! The day we have been waiting for! We ended up going to three different tents during Oktoberfest! Most people I have talked to only visit one or two because a lot of times once they fill up they are at capacity & they stop letting people in. Also, it is hard to get seats, so if you are able to get a good spot you don’t want to leave. This is also moreso for people with a group of friends… Since it was just the two of us, it made it a little easier to get in & out of places & find a spot.

I actually liked being able to hop around though since it was our first time & since we ended up only being able to go for one day!

Hofbräu-Festzelt

Each tent has its own vibe. I knew I wanted to go to Hofbräu-Festzelt first since it is one of the more popular tents. It was fun, we saw a guy drinking out of a boot which is a tradition & had our first “pork knuckle” which was interesting to try. It reminded me of a turkey leg to be honest haha

Augustiner Festhalle

The second one we tried was Augestiner Festhalle. We didn’t like this one as much since it was harder to find a seat. So we pretty much went in, got some souveniers had a beer & stayed for a few songs then moved on to the next.

Bräurosl

The last one we went to was Bräurosl. I would have to say this one ended up being my favorite. We were able to get a seat at a reserved table (for the nighttime) on the second level overlooking the whole place, so it was prime seating & they played the best music there!!!

My favorite song was the Fliegerlied… it is a classic & it is super catchy. It also talks about flying a plane, so of course I would like it! Haha

On this day we actually found out Sam’s grandma was sick & not doing well in the hospital, so it ended up turning into a somber day. This was after we had been drinking all day at Oktoberfest, which didn’t help things. After that we walked around a little bit & decided to ride just one ride, then called it a day.

We will definitely go back to Oktoberfest for longer next time! I would like to go at least 2 days.

SWITZERLAND

Switzerland, here we come!!!

ZURICH

Day 6 - Monday

We take the train from Munich to Zurich. We stayed at hotel Leoneck, which was just a short walk over from the train station. We didn’t really get to explore Munich itself, but I knew I wanted to go there since it is a good hub to visit Aescher which was a must.

AESCHER

Day 7 - Tuesday

Hidden Gem 💎

We go to Aescher. I had seen another flight attendant post about going there & it caught my eye! It is also on the cover of National Geographics Most Amazing Places in the World! It ended up being so amazing, it was one of those places that truly takes your breath away.

We had the famous “Rosti”, it was so good! It was nice to just hang out on the patio to soak up the views… it was a beautiful fall day.

LAUTERBRUNNEN

Day 8 - Wednesday

We take the train to Lauterbrunnen. Lauterbrunnen is such a cute town! Highly recommend. We knew it was the perfect town to stay in for visiting Schilthorn. We stayed at the Silberhorn hotel.

I had read about Lauterbrunnen from Rick Steves as being a good area to stay for visiting the Piz Gloria. It was really easy to get there on the train as well. The town is so cute where you are able to walk around to everything.  

We walked around to get a closer view of the waterfall that you see in a lot of the pictures. We were able to hike up close to it all while getting some birds eye views of the town! 

We also found a little coffee shop we liked where we would go & get a drink & brownie! We would just chill out & people watch.. We ended up going both days. This town truly was the epitome of what I pictured from how Rick Steves described Switzerland.

“Wedged neatly between Germany, Austria, France & Italy, Switzerland melds the best of all worlds – & adds a healthy dose of chocolate, cowbells & cable cars.” – Rick Steves 

We could see the cows & hear the cowbells outside of our windows in the hotel room (pictured below).

SCHLITHORN

Day 9 - Thursday

We go up to Schlithorn - Piz Gloria. 

The Piz Gloria is made out to be James Bond themed since the movie from James Bond 007 - On Her Majesty’s Service was filmed there. Personally, I really like places like this especially since it is from a Bond movie which is classic. But I know Sam thought it was a little cheesy. 

They have a whole exibit to walk through that talks about the movie & the history there as well as a little clip from the movie.

My favorite part was actually the revolving rooftop restaurant. We ended up getting a table by the window & having a drink there long enough to rotate the whole views which took about an hour.

You are able to walk around essentially the top of the mountains to get 360 degree mountain views of the Schilthorn – one of the largest mountain tops in Switzerland. It was so refreshing being up there.

If you are feeling a little dare devilish Lauterbrunnen has some amazing Paragliding options! We kept seeing people doing it & it was tempting, but I was still not 100% sold! Haha I do think it would be a cool experience though.

ZERMATT

Day 10 - Friday

We take the train to from Lauterbrunnen to Zermatt. We stayed at hotel Phoenix.

This is the day we got the horrible news that Sam’s grandma had passed away. This was the hardest thing we have ever experienced on a trip, I wouldn’t wish it on anyone. To find out this news on vacation was absolutely devastating being hundreds of miles away, feeling hopeless & away from family. My heart broke for him. RIP Sandy, we love & miss you! 

So of course that day we took it pretty easy & mainly just walked around to get some fresh air. You could see views of the Matterhorn all throughout town. We ended up going to walk around at Gorner Gorge. It was a pretty little pretty hike you could walk around & see that had crystal clear blue waters. 

After that we decided to go grab some dinner with a view. We had our first taste of Swiss Fondue! We ate at Alpenrose Restaurant & basically had the patio to ourselves. We couldn’t have asked for a better meal or view.

ST. MORITZ

Day 11 - Saturday

We take the train to St Moritz.  This particular route is called the “Glacier Express”, which is the slowest fast train ride in the world. This was an 8 hour train ride. Let me repeat that, 8 hour train ride. Lol we love taking trains in Europe though so we were excited to experience this! I would do it again.

We stay at hotel Languard. Zermatt & St. Moritz are mainly known as popular ski towns, so when we went in October the towns themselves were pretty dead since it is not the high season. But they were still cool to visit as they are famous towns in Switzerland. 

After Sams grandma passed, we ended up cutting our trip short & changing around our original itinerary. We were supposed to going to Lake Como, staying for the rest of our trip there & then leaving out of Milan. I am bummed about not getting to go to Lake Como, but we will go there eventually!! We actually did get to pass it on the train too from St. Moritz to Milan so technically we at least saw it!!

We ended up going to Milan instead for a night & then on to Venice for our last night to fly home to Chicago from there.

MILAN

Day 12 - Sunday

We take the train to Milan. This was on the Bernina Express, which is another famous panoramic train ride. We had a pit stop with the prettiest view of a glacier!

We stayed right by the train station in Milan at the Glam Hotel Milano. We didn’t really have time to do anything major besides walking around & seeing the city.  

VENICE

Day 13 - Monday

We take the train to Venice. This was our second trip to Venice, so we were just happy to go back & chill out there as well. Of course walking around that city never gets old. (See my Italy post for more things to do in Venice)!

We stayed at Hotel Bellini Venezia. I will point out I liked staying at this location way better for convenience. We were able to walk to the hotel from the train station instead of taking a water taxi, which is better for hauling luggage around. Then once we were settled we were free to walk around wherever no big deal & everything is still close to each other… You really don’t need to stay in the square to get the full experience! 

We ended up going to St. Mark’s for a drink at Cafe Lavena then to Sommariva Restaurant for dinner by the water for our last night of our trip. Sam’s tradition is to get the squid ink pasta any time in Venice lol mine is all the Carbonara & Aperol Spritz drinks of course!!

Day 14 - Tuesday

Goodbye Venice! We flew on American Airlines from VCE to ORD. At the airport we were able to chill out in the lounge a little bit before takeoff (shoutout to my fellow Chase card holders!).

We actually ended up getting decent seats together in the very back row right next to the Flight Attendants, so they attended to us the entire flight which was a bonus. :) Longest direct flight we have ever taken… 9 1/2 hours!

I hope with countries opening back up soon that things will get back to normal as this trip was pre-Covid19.

With that said…

Life is short, book the flight!!

xoxo, Tarah