Itinerary · Find The Few

Etappe

12 Sep

Saturday · arrival + big night

NachtBerlin · ABION Spreebogen ✓

Fahrt0 km · no rental today

Berlin — arrival.

Afternoon arrivals at BER. Train in, drop bags at the ABION Spreebogen (Alt-Moabit 99), group dinner in Mitte. Berghain Klubnacht runs Sat midnight → Mon 08:00.

ArrivalsWaves land at BER

Afternoon waves into BER: RDU 1:10 PM · SEA Icelandair 1:10 PM · SEA SAS 1:55 PM · SEA Finnair 5:20 PM.

TransferTrain in, drop bags at the ABION

FEX (Flughafenexpress) train BER → Berlin Hbf (~30 min, €4.40) or a pre-booked Berlkönig van for the crew. From Hbf it's 1.6 km / ~13 min on foot to ABION Spreebogen Waterside, Alt-Moabit 99 — or one S-Bahn stop to Bellevue, then 5 min. (S9 also runs BER → Bellevue direct if you'd rather skip the FEX change.)

EveningGroup dinner, Mitte

Group dinner in Mitte — pick a classic German spot: Zur letzten Instanz, Lutter & Wegner, or Augustiner am Gendarmenmarkt.

LateBig Berlin night out

Sisyphos open-air sprawl · Tresor techno basement (Sat only) · Watergate Spree views (Sat only) · Berghain dress code + stamina. Core group ends 02:00.

ICE 506 · Sun 17:37

Berlin→Hamburg 17:37 → 19:25 · 1h 48m direct Booked ✓ · Super Sparpreis Gruppe · Gruppenreservierung, 7 seats 2nd class

Etappe

13 Sep

Sun · train + big Reeperbahn night

NachtHamburg · Pyjama Park ✓ (1 of 2)

Fahrt0 km · walk + ICE train

Berlin walk → ICE to Hamburg.

Brunch, then the Berlin walk loop — Brandenburg Gate, Tiergarten, East Side Gallery, Currywurst. Evening ICE 506 to Hamburg, check in ~20:00, dinner on the Kiez — then the big Reeperbahn night. Doing it tonight keeps Tuesday's 08:30 car pickup clean.

10:30Slow wake

Slow wake, hydrate.

11:30Recovery brunch

Recovery brunch — Katz Orange (Mitte), Café Berio (Nollendorfplatz), or Anna Blume (Prenzlauer Berg).

13:00Check out, stash bags

Check out of the ABION and carry bags the 1.6 km to Berlin Hbf lockers (Gepäckaufbewahrung, €6/day). Stash them there, not at the hotel — the walk loop ends back at Hbf and the ICE leaves from Hbf, so hotel storage means a 26-min round-trip detour to collect.

14:00Brandenburg Gate

Brandenburg Gate — photos, 15 min.

14:20Tiergarten walk

Walk through Tiergarten — Reichstag with Norman Foster glass dome visible.

14:45Siegessäule

Siegessäule (Victory Column) quick photo.

15:10U-Bahn east

U-Bahn from Zoologischer Garten → Warschauer Straße (~20 min).

15:35East Side Gallery

East Side Gallery — 1.3 km painted Berlin Wall (Kissing Brezhnev/Honecker, Trabant crash).

16:15Currywurst break

Currywurst at Curry 36 near Warschauer Straße.

16:40Back to Hbf, grab bags

U-Bahn back to Berlin Hbf. Collect bags.

17:37ICE 506 to Hamburg

ICE 506 Berlin → Hamburg Hbf · 1h 48m direct · group reservation, 7 seats together.

19:25Into Hamburg → Pyjama Park

Arrive Hamburg Hbf. S-Bahn / U-Bahn to Reeperbahn 36 (~12 min). Be checked in before 21:00 — after that the hotel needs a call or the booking can be cancelled.

20:00Check in, freshen up

Check in. Freshen up.

20:45Dinner on the Kiez

Dinner St. Pauli — Old Commercial Room, Bullerei, or Salt & Silver.

LateBig Reeperbahn night

BIG REEPERBAHN NIGHT · Indra Club (Beatles 1960 basement) · Mojo Club (jazz/funk, book table) · Molotow (indie/rock) · Hamburger Berg pub crawl · 04:00 Davidwache curry sausage closer. The hotel is a 10-min walk / short cab from the Kiez.

Etappe

14 Sep

Mon · boats + bungee

NachtHamburg · Pyjama Park ✓ (2 of 2)

Fahrt0 km · full Hamburg day

Hamburg — late start, then the city.

Sleep off the Kiez. Late brunch, two hours on the Isebekkanal in the boats, then bungee off the harbour crane if the wind behaves. Speicherstadt and the Elbphilharmonie Plaza at sunset. Early night — the wagons get picked up at 08:30 tomorrow.

11:00Slow wake

Sleep in. Nobody is driving today.

12:00Late brunch

Late brunch in St. Pauli or the Schanze — both on the doorstep.

13:15U-Bahn north to the Isebekkanal

U3 up to Hoheluftbrücke / Eppendorfer Baum, ~20 min from the Kiez.

14:00Boating the canals · 2h

SUPPER CLUB Bootsverleih, Isekai 13 — on the Isebekkanal. Canoes take up to 10 and pedal boats 4–5, so two boats covers the seven of us. €14–26 per boat per hour, one-hour minimum then billed in 15-minute blocks. No licence needed.
No reservation possible — they only take bookings for groups of 20+, so it is walk-up. Go straight after brunch; a fine Monday afternoon is the one thing that could thin the racks.

16:15South to the harbour

Back down to the Elbe, ~30 min. Bags stay at the hotel — you are coming back past it either way.

16:45Bungee off the harbour crane

Jochen Schweizer bungee — ~50 m off a 250-tonne harbour crane, straight down over the Elbe. Allow ~1h30 all in.
Book ahead and check the date first: it runs May–October on selected dates only, so Mon 14 Sep has to be one of them. 16+, and 50–118 kg including clothes and shoes.
Weather: it goes ahead in rain — only strong wind or thunderstorms stop it, and that call is the operator's. Hamburg drizzle will not save anyone.

18:30Speicherstadt + Elbphilharmonie Plaza

You land right where you want to be. Walk the Speicherstadt UNESCO warehouse district, then up to the Elbphilharmonie Plaza deck for the harbour — sunset is about 19:45. Note: the paid interior tour is off the plan; two activities and a concert-hall slot do not fit in one afternoon.

19:30Dinner

Dinner Salt & Silver, Bullerei, or Old Commercial Room.

22:30Early bed — driving day tomorrow

Early night. Sixt pickup is 08:30 and Tuesday runs ~600 km via Autostadt to Köln. Sober DDs decided tonight, not in the morning.

Transfer · Autostadt

Hamburg→Köln ~600 km · 6h Sixt Stresemannstr. 364 08:30 pickup · east to Wolfsburg for Autostadt · then the long run southwest on the A2 → A44/A1

Etappe

15 Sep

Tue · Autostadt + autobahn

NachtKöln · KONCEPT Hotel International ✓

Fahrt~600 km · 6h behind the wheel

Hamburg → Autostadt → Köln.

Sixt pickup at Stresemannstr. 364, 08:30 — booked Audi A6 Estate; 2nd wagon from Hamburg City Centre at 09:00. Both booked ✓. East to Wolfsburg, 222 km, for Autostadt: VW's car city, €21 a head, the ZeitHaus museum and the glass delivery towers. Then the long run southwest to Cologne, 379 km. One sober DD per wagon. Into the Altstadt around 19:00 — an actual evening, not a midnight collapse.

07:45Early wake, split into two teams

Wake at the Pyjama Park, quick breakfast, load out. The two wagons are at different Sixt branches — sort the teams, references and driver IDPs the night before, not on the pavement.

08:30Pick up the wagons

Team A takes the Audi A6 Estate at Sixt Stresemannstr. 364 (~4 km west of the Reeperbahn). Team B takes the second wagon at Hamburg City Centre, 09:00. Both drop at Munich Hbf, Thu 17 by 21:00. Meet on the A7 northbound rather than trying to convoy out of St. Pauli.

09:00East to Wolfsburg

A7 → A39 east to Wolfsburg — 222 km, ~2h20. One sober DD per wagon.

11:30–15:00Autostadt

Autostadt, Wolfsburg — Volkswagen's car city beside the plant. The ZeitHaus automotive museum, the two 48 m glass delivery towers, and the brand pavilions (Porsche, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Audi). €21 adult — book online ahead for a party of 7. Allow 3–4h including lunch on site.

15:00Southwest to Cologne

Depart Wolfsburg — A2 → A44/A1 southwest, 379 km, ~3h50. One fuel + coffee stop. DDs stay dry.

~19:00Into Köln

Arrive Cologne. Drop bags at KONCEPT Hotel International, 13 Blaubach — booked ✓, self check-in, window closes 00:00. Wagons into the Waidmarkt garage 300 m away, entrance at Blaubach 1.

20:00Brauhaus dinner

Kölsch in 0.2L stangen, and they keep coming until you put the beer mat on the glass. Früh am Dom, Päffgen, or Gaffel am Dom.

Transfer · straight south

Köln→Baden-Baden ~340 km · 3h20 A3 → A5 direct · no detour · Hotel Rebstock, Neuweier ✓

Etappe

16 Sep

Wed · Dom · baths · casino

NachtNeuweier · Hotel Rebstock ✓

Fahrt~340 km · one run south

Kölner Dom — then Baden-Baden.

Brunch in Cologne, climb the Dom as the tower opens, then finally see the inside of it. One clean run south, check into the Rebstock, and spend the afternoon in the thermal baths. Early dinner at the hotel, then a taxi back into town for the casino — poker runs Wednesdays.

08:15Check out, load up

Check out of the KONCEPT, bring the wagons up from the Waidmarkt garage, bags in.

08:30Brunch in the Altstadt

Brunch near the Dom or over in the Belgian Quarter. Eat properly — you are driving straight through to Baden-Baden after this.

09:00Climb the Dom

Tower — 533 steps to the 97 m platform. Opens 09:00, €8, 30–45 min. Quietest slot of the day. No large bags on the staircase — free lockers at the tower entrance.

10:00Inside the cathedral

The nave opens to visitors at 10:00 — separate entrance from the tower. Shrine of the Three Kings, the Richter window. Half an hour is enough, and it is the only window you get: it was shut when you arrived last night and it does not open before you leave.

10:30One run south

~340 km, ~3h20 on the A3 → A5. Do not bank on the autobahn being quick — the Köln–Frankfurt stretch is permanently roadworked, truck-heavy and speed-limited for long sections. The derestricted bits are further south on the A5, where you might claw back 10–20 minutes. Two wagons move at the slower one's pace. One sober DD each, one fuel stop.

~13:50Check in at the Rebstock first

Straight to Hotel & Restaurant Rebstock, Schlossackerweg 3, Neuweier ✓ — dump the bags, don't leave them in the wagons all afternoon. The Upper Castle's old estate building, vineyards on every side.

14:30Into Baden-Baden

8 km, ~15 min into town. Park central. Call the casino from here: poker seats are same-day only and the desk takes calls from 15:00 on +49 7221 3024-230.

14:45Thermal baths

Nothing to book — walk in and pay at the desk.
Friedrichsbad — Roman-Irish circuit, 17 stations, ~3h, €39 including towels, slippers and toiletries. Last admission 19:00, ages 14+. Wednesday is a swimwear day.
Caracalla — 5,000 m² of pools, last admission 20:30, €21/2h · €25/3h · €35 all day, +€5 sauna level.
The soap & brush massage (+€19) is same-day only — ask at the desk as you walk in.

17:45Old town on the way back

Out of the water and through the town: the Trinkhalle pump room, the Kurhaus, and a stretch of Lichtentaler Allee. Then back out to Neuweier.

18:45Dinner at the Rebstock

Dinner in the hotel restaurant — regional cooking, local Rebland wines, 500-year-old vaulted cellar. Eat early so the night is still ahead of you.

20:30Taxi in → Casino

Casino Baden-Baden, open until 02:00. Poker cash game runs Sun–Thu from 19:00, subject to availability — so Wednesday is on, and you join a running game. €5 entry to the classic rooms, 21+, photo ID required — bring passports.
Dress code is enforced: gentlemen need a jacket in the classic gaming rooms (shirt and tie welcome). If nobody packed one, reception rents jackets for €10.
Taxi both ways — it is 8 km and everyone has been drinking since dinner. Two cabs for six.

LateA word on Baden-Baden nights

Be realistic: this is a genteel spa town, and the casino is the nightlife. There are bars around the Kurhaus and in the old town, but nothing resembling the Kiez. If you want a late one, it happens at the tables.

Transfer · castle day

Baden-Baden→München ~430 km · 4h45 A5 → A8 via Stuttgart · via Neuschwanstein (exterior only) · drop wagons Sixt Arnulfstr. 16/18

Etappe

17 Sep

Thu · castle day

NachtMünchen · Eden Hotel Wolff ✓

Fahrt~300 + 130 km · ~4h45

Baden-Baden → Neuschwanstein → Munich.

A civilised start — the spa happened yesterday, so this morning is just breakfast in the vines and go. East to Neuschwanstein: exterior only, shuttle up, Marienbrücke, courtyard. No interior tour, no ticket to book. Munich by ~16:30, drop the wagons at Sixt Arnulfstr. 16/18 beside Eden. Hofbräuhaus dinner.

08:00Breakfast in the vines

Breakfast at the Rebstock. Pack up, load the wagons.

09:00East on the A8

Depart. A5 → A8 east past Stuttgart and Ulm, then south — ~300 km, ~3h. One sober DD per wagon. One fuel + coffee stop.

~12:00Neuschwanstein — exterior only

Arrive Hohenschwangau village below Neuschwanstein. Quick bite at a village Imbiss, shuttle up · Marienbrücke · courtyard · exterior. No interior tour, no ticket to book. Then walk back down.

~14:30Back to the cars

Back at the cars. Drive Munich via B17/A96 (130 km, ~1h48).

~16:30Into Munich → drop wagons → Eden

Arrive Munich. Drop the wagons at Sixt Arnulfstr. 16/18 — right beside Eden Hotel Wolff (Arnulfstr. 4). Sixt return due 21:00. Walk next door to Eden Hotel Wolff, Arnulfstr. 4 (same street as the Sixt drop). Check in.

AlexAlex lands, waits at Eden

Lands MUC 14:10 — ~2h20 before the cars arrive ~16:30. Drops bags at Eden and waits; joins the crew for dinner.

DinnerHofbräuhaus, early bed

Hofbräuhaus walk-in for the crew, or Augustiner-Keller.

Etappe

18 Sep

Fri · Dachau + Munich

NachtMünchen · Eden Hotel Wolff ✓

Fahrt0 km · S2 to Dachau + Munich

Dachau memorial + Munich — city afternoon.

Breakfast at Eden, walk to Hbf for the 09:00 S2 to Dachau. 11:00 English guided tour, 2.5h — ~4h at the site. Back to Munich ~14:20: Viktualienmarkt lunch, Marienplatz, Englischer Garten and the Eisbach surfers, Chinesischer Turm biergarten. Hofbräukeller dinner.

08:15Breakfast, room held

Breakfast at Eden Hotel Wolff. No checkout — the room is held through Saturday morning.

08:45Walk to Hbf

Walk across to Munich Hbf (Eden sits on the north face of the station).

09:00S2 to Dachau

S2 train to Dachau station (~25 min). Bus 726 or 15-min walk from station to memorial.

09:35–13:30Dachau memorial

KZ-Gedenkstätte Dachau — first Nazi concentration camp (1933), template for the SS system. Documentation Center + intro film · Jourhaus gate ("Arbeit macht frei") · Appellplatz · reconstructed barracks · crematorium. 11:00 English guided tour recommended (€4, 2.5h, ends 13:30 — better than self-guided).

13:45Train back to Munich

S2 back to Munich. ~14:20 arrive Hbf.

14:30Viktualienmarkt

Viktualienmarkt — wurst stall + a Maß at the market beer garden.

15:30Marienplatz

Marienplatz walk-around. 17:00 Glockenspiel if the timing suits.

16:15Englischer Garten

Walk to Englischer Garten — Eisbach surfers at the bridge near Haus der Kunst.

17:00Chinesischer Turm biergarten

Chinesischer Turm biergarten — Maß + Brez'n + Obatzda + radish.

19:30Hofbräukeller dinner

Hofbräukeller dinner (locals' Hofbräu, off Wiener Platz).

22:00Early bed

Early bed at Eden.

Etappe

19 Sep

Sat · 191. Wiesn

NachtBER · Moxy Berlin Airport ✓

Fahrt0 km · no cars

Oktoberfest opening → BER night flight.

Stash bags at Hbf Schließfächer or Bounce. Theresienwiese for a 07:00 queue — a party of 8 without a reservation is not guaranteed a table at any hour. 10:45 Wirtseinzug parade. 12:00 "O'zapft is!" — first keg of Wiesn 2026. Hofbräu all afternoon. Only the 2-pax SAS pair takes the booked LH1962 21:30 → 22:35 to BER; everyone else leaves keyed to their own Sunday flight. Alex stays in Munich.

06:00Wake, pack

Wake. Pack.

06:30Stash the bags

Stash the bags at München Hbf Schließfächer (€4–6/day) or Bounce / Radical Storage nearby (book online ahead). Eden holds the SAS pair's bags until their hop.

07:00Queue the tent — 07:00 sharp

Walk to Theresienwiese (10 min from Hbf). Queue at Hofbräu Festzelt or Hacker-Festzelt. Warning: a party of 8 with no reservation is not guaranteed a table at any hour — split up if the doors bottleneck.

10:45Wirtseinzug parade

Wirtseinzug · parade of tent landlords through Munich.

12:00O'zapft is!

O'zapft is! · Mayor Reiter taps the first keg of Wiesn 2026 in the Schottenhamel tent.

PMHofbräu all afternoon

Hofbräu-Festzelt afternoon · Maß × Maß · Hendl half-chicken · communal benches.

EveningRolling departures

Rolling departures. Each traveller leaves the Wiesn keyed to their own Sunday flight — no single exit. Alex stays in Munich (flies MUC → DEN Sunday, no BER hop).

AlexStays in Munich Sat night

Eden checks out Sat morning and everyone else flies to BER, but Alex stays over and flies MUC → DEN on Sunday. He is sorting his own room.

19:00SAS pair break for MUC

The 2-pax SAS pair break early · S8 Hbf → MUC airport (~45 min, €13, every 10 min) to position for Sunday's early BER departure.

21:30LH1962 to BER · 2 pax

LH1962 MUC → BER · 21:30 → 22:35 · only the 2-pax SAS pair.

22:35Into BER · Moxy

SAS pair arrive BER · walk / shuttle to the Moxy Berlin Airport, minutes from the terminal. Sleep.

Flight · booked

München→Berlin LH1962 · 21:30 → 22:35 · 2 pax Only the 2-pax SAS pair · positions them for Sun morning

Etappe

20 Sep

Sunday · home

Heim—

Fahrt0 km

Depart — staggered.

Staggered departures from BER, plus Alex out of Munich. Early birds head for BER ~08:30; the Icelandair four take hotel breakfast first.

~08:30Early birds to the terminal

The 10:05 SAS (2 pax) and 10:40 Aer Lingus / DUB (1 pax) head out to BER — FEX / S-Bahn from the city, allow ~45 min.

10:05SAS departs · 2 pax

SAS departs BER · 2 pax.

10:40Aer Lingus departs · 1 pax

Aer Lingus / DUB departs BER · 1 pax.

Late AMBreakfast, the Icelandair four

Hotel breakfast for the 14:05 Icelandair four.

14:05Icelandair departs · 3 pax

Icelandair FI529 departs BER · 3 pax.

16:10Alex flies home from Munich

Alex departs MUC → DEN (never in Berlin).

Berlin Saturday.Munich the Saturday after.

The nine days.

The Roadbook

Berlin — arrival.

Berlin walk → ICE to Hamburg.

Hamburg — late start, then the city.

Hamburg → Autostadt → Köln.

Kölner Dom — then Baden-Baden.

Baden-Baden → Neuschwanstein → Munich.

Dachau memorial + Munich — city afternoon.

Oktoberfest opening → BER night flight.

Depart — staggered.