Ravensburg - Munich - Leipzig scenic route ideas

I will have my first ED sometime in August 2012. I have relatives in Ravensburg near the lake Constance (Bodensee) whom I've visited over the years. I just found out about a relative I have who lives in Leipzig. So I'm debating what to do...

Should I land in Munich and pick up the car to do this entire trip or land in Leipzig and then take a train down to Munich and then get the car. I guess I'm unsure if its worth the drive to see Leipzig with the car. Any advice would be great. Especially if day trips from Ravensburg to interesting destinations near by are recommended or possible. Being that we can stay with relatives I'd like to keep hotel costs at bay. My GF will be coming along and we like hiking, castles, scenic routes, museums of fine art, etc... No need to race around the autobahn for us. Thanks for your input.
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I love Leipzig... I think it has a lot of character, and I definitely plan on visiting again. However, I wouldn't feel safe parking a brand new BMW on the street there. Awhile ago, Berlin had some trouble with arsonists burning luxury cars.

If you were staying at a hotel that had underground parking (there is a nice 5 star one near the Hauptbahnhof) I would say drive otherwise not.

Originally Posted by neve1064

I will have my first ED sometime in August 2012. I have relatives in Ravensburg near the lake Constance (Bodensee) whom I've visited over the years. I just found out about a relative I have who lives in Leipzig. So I'm debating what to do...

Should I land in Munich and pick up the car to do this entire trip or land in Leipzig and then take a train down to Munich and then get the car. I guess I'm unsure if its worth the drive to see Leipzig with the car. Any advice would be great. Especially if day trips from Ravensburg to interesting destinations near by are recommended or possible. Being that we can stay with relatives I'd like to keep hotel costs at bay. My GF will be coming along and we like hiking, castles, scenic routes, museums of fine art, etc... No need to race around the autobahn for us. Thanks for your input.
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It really depends on how long your trip will be but both regions are nice and there are places you can drive to from both.

If time is short, visit one or the other on your next trip.

Thanks for your input. I hear Berlin is the New York of Europe. Is it work going to if I'm.already in Leipzig?

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Here are highly personal opinions, starting with the easiest (becuase I know it least well) first. The drive around Lake Constance (the Bodensee) is quite nice. We did this in 2010. You can stop at the Zeppelin museum in Frederickschafen, see old castles, visit the city of Konstanz itself, take ferries to Minau and the other islands, etc.

I was a guest lecturer in Sachsen-Anhalt for five years. About half the time I spent a couple of weeks there, with day trips to Leipzig, Dessau, etc. and longer trips to Dresden, etc.. I did most of the traveling by train--which was quite easy. The other half of the trips I stayed in the Grunewald section of Berlin and took the train to the university, about a 90-minute ride.

You could use your car to get around Leipzig, the "Saxon Switzerland" and nearby regions. (See the Wiki.) There is also a new BMW plant you could visit. But a car is a definite liability in central Berlin. Most hotels have secure parking, but with typical central city prices.

I just looked at the DB website to get an idea about the Leipzig-Munich trains and was somewhat surprised by the result. I compared three trains departing Leipzig at about 7 am. I thought all would involve a change (at Nuremberg or Naumberg), but one is an ICE that does not require a connection. OTOH, it has the highest elapsed travel time, 5:26 vs 5:00 and 4:55.

I have flown in and out of LEJ, the Leipzig-Halle airport. It is quite nice. I was there in the an early winter snow squall, and the plane de-icing was highly efficient. (Probably not a concern for August.)

Jonathan's advice to go in one direction or the other is probably the best. But if you fly into Berlin or LEJ and then pick up the car in Munich, you could have the best of both worlds.

P.s.: Leipzig HBf to Berlin HBf via ICE (no transfers) is 1:15 min with many trains in both directlions each day.