One week in Germany: a multi-city route
One week, one direction: Berlin to Munich by train, with Potsdam's palaces and Dresden's baroque on the way.
Photo by Alfred Leung on Unsplash
Interactive map of the route. The full stop list below works without it.
About 540 km as the crow flies
How do you spend a week in Germany?
A one-way route from Berlin to Munich, with Dresden in between and Potsdam folded in as a day trip from the capital. Trains do the work, city center to city center, and only the Dresden to Munich ride eats a full morning. Book two things before you fly: the fast trains, because advance Sparpreis fares open up to a year ahead and climb as departure fills, and a timed entry slot at Sanssouci. Wayside's Berlin walks cover the capital; Dresden and Munich are covered here with the fares, hours and tickets you need.
- Days 1 to 3
Berlin
Boulevards, the Wall and Museum Island
Berlin is the right place to start, because the city's biggest set pieces sit on one walk: the Brandenburg Gate, Unter den Linden, Bebelplatz and Museum Island. Wayside's walk from the gate to the island covers exactly that, and the Bernauer Strasse tour covers the Wall on the street where East Berliners jumped from upper windows. Give the rest of your time to the Scheunenviertel's Jewish history around the Neue Synagoge, Kreuzberg's Markthalle Neun and the tenement streets of Prenzlauer Berg. Stay in Mitte to walk everywhere, or in Prenzlauer Berg for quieter evenings, and use the U-Bahn and S-Bahn for everything else.
- BookThe Reichstag's glass dome is free to visit, but you need to register in advance with the Bundestag's visitor service, and expect an airport-style security check.SourcevisitBerlin
- TicketsA day ticket covering the museums of Museum Island runs about €24 in 2026.SourceEuropean Tourism, Germany Travel Guide 2026
Berlin one-day itineraryBerlin walking tours
Next leg · 27.2 km
- Day 3, day trip from Berlin
Potsdam
Wayside tour coming soonFrederick's summer palace
Potsdam is Berlin's classic day trip, a short S-Bahn or regional train ride southwest and covered by the Deutschlandticket. Sanssouci, Frederick the Great's rococo palace, sits above terraced vineyards, with the park's follies and the New Palace strung out behind it. Entry runs on fixed time slots and daily tickets are limited, so book online before you leave; the palace closes on Mondays, and the park stays open and free. Come back through the old town and the brick Dutch Quarter, where the cafes are cheaper than Berlin's.
- TicketsSanssouci Palace tickets cost €14, or €10 reduced, and come with a fixed admission time; the palace is closed on Mondays and daily tickets are limited.SourceSPSG, Stiftung Preussische Schloesser und Gaerten
- TicketsThe sanssouci+ day ticket, €22, covers every SPSG palace open in Potsdam on the day you visit, including the New Palace.SourceSPSG, combined ticket sanssouci+
Next leg · 156.9 km
- Days 4 to 5
Dresden
Wayside tour coming soonBaroque on the Elbe
Dresden is the mid-trip stop, and its baroque center is small enough to cover on foot: the Frauenkirche, the Zwinger courtyards, the Semperoper and the Bruhl Terrace all sit within a morning's walk on the Elbe. Cross to the Neustadt for cheaper rooms and livelier evenings, and climb the Frauenkirche dome if the sky is clear. Book the Berlin to Dresden train early, because advance fares are far below the walk-up price, and keep an evening for the Elbe meadows below the terrace.
- Getting thereTrains from Berlin to Dresden take as little as 1 hour 39 minutes, with up to 15 direct trains a day and advance fares from €25.99 in June 2026 listings.SourceEveryRail, citing Deutsche Bahn listings
- TicketsThe climb up the Frauenkirche dome runs March to October, Monday to Saturday 10:00 to 18:00 and Sunday 13:00 to 18:00; adult tickets cost €12 and guided ascents €14.SourceFrauenkirche Dresden
Next leg · 359.5 km
- Days 6 to 8
Munich
Wayside tour coming soonFinish in Bavaria
Munich ends the trip in Bavaria, with the Marienplatz Glockenspiel, the Viktualienmarkt stalls and the old town's beer halls within a short walk of each other. The English Garden is a U-Bahn ride away, and the Eisbach surfers ride the wave at its southern edge. Give the last morning to the Residenz, the Wittelsbach palace with its treasury and rococo theatre, then eat one more time at a market stall before the airport train. The Dresden to Munich train takes most of a morning, so start it early.
- Getting thereDresden to Munich by train takes about 4 hours 32 minutes at the fastest, with around 20 connections a day and usually one change; book ahead for the lower fares.SourceTrainline
- HoursThe Munich Residence opens daily, 9:00 to 18:00 from late March to late October and 10:00 to 17:00 from late October through March, with last entry an hour before closing.SourceBavarian Palace Administration
Less time?
With five nights, cut Dresden and go straight from Berlin to Munich on the ICE, which takes under four hours; keep Sanssouci as a day trip from the capital. With four nights, take two nights in Berlin and two in Munich, and see Potsdam as your last act in Berlin. Both versions keep the Berlin walks and the Residenz; what you lose is the Elbe, the Frauenkirche and the cheapest hotel rooms of the trip.
Planning your route
Can I do this route with the Deutschlandticket?
The Deutschlandticket covers most of this trip. Germany's €63 monthly regional ticket includes every U-Bahn, S-Bahn, tram, bus and regional train ride here, and the day trip to Potsdam is included in full. The two long runs, Berlin to Dresden and Dresden to Munich, are worth doing on IC or ICE trains, which need their own tickets; the Berlin to Dresden fare starts at €25.99 in advance.
SourceBundesregierung, Fragen und Antworten zum DeutschlandticketEveryRail, citing Deutsche Bahn listingsShould I book trains before I leave home?
Trains on this route are worth booking before you fly. Sparpreis fares are tied to specific departures and rise as a train fills, while walk-up Flexpreis tickets can cost several times more, and booking normally opens up to 12 months ahead. Add a €5.50 seat reservation in second class if you are traveling on a Friday or Sunday.
SourceThe Man in Seat 61Which airports should I use?
Berlin Brandenburg (BER) is the arrival airport and Munich (MUC) the departure one. The route runs one way from north to south, so an open-jaw ticket saves you crossing the country twice, and both airports have train links into their city centers.
Do I need to book Potsdam and Berlin's sights ahead?
Sanssouci needs booking ahead. The palace sells fixed admission times and limited daily tickets and closes on Mondays, so reserve as soon as your Berlin dates are fixed. In Berlin, the Reichstag dome needs advance registration through the Bundestag, and on summer weekends museum tickets are worth having in hand.
SourceSPSG, Schloss SanssoucivisitBerlinHow much walking is involved?
The walking is flat and city-sized: Wayside's Berlin walks run from about 1.5 to 4.8 kilometers, and Dresden and Munich keep their main sights inside compact old towns you can cross on foot. The palaces, Museum Island and the Residenz are the standing-heavy parts of the trip, so plan lighter afternoons after them.
More of Germany
- Walking toursWalking tours in GermanyGermany changes scenery faster than most countries its size. Chalk cliffs and dunes line the Baltic coast, terraced vineyards step down to the Rhine, the Black Forest turns dark and deep, and the Bavarian Alps stack up against Austria. Its cities are compact, layered with Roman walls, cathedral squares, baroque palaces, and the concrete remains of the Wall. Berlin holds the twentieth century in one downtown; Hamburg turns its harbor into a neighborhood of brick warehouses and cranes; Munich keeps beer halls, market stalls, and an Alpine horizon. Food is regional and generous: more than 3,000 kinds of bread, spring asparagus, river fish, roast pork with dumplings, and beer gardens under chestnut trees where you may bring your own food. Trains tie the country together, and traveling here feels orderly and unhurried.
- Know before you goGermany essentialsEntry rules, city-to-city trains, money, plugs, holidays, and the seasons: the national facts to know before a first trip to Germany.
Do it yourself
Follow it in the app
Get the Wayside app and download the Berlin walks before you fly, so the Brandenburg Gate, the Wall on Bernauer Strasse and the Barn Quarter are ready the moment you land.
Provenance · last verified September 27, 2026
Researched and routed by Wayside, with inter-city detail checked against the source.
SourcesEuropean Tourism, Germany Travel Guide 2026Budget Your TripThe Man in Seat 61Bundesregierung, Fragen und Antworten zum DeutschlandticketDeutschlandticket.deThe Man in Seat 61, trains from BerlinvisitBerlinSPSG, Stiftung Preussische Schloesser und GaertenSPSG, combined ticket sanssouci+EveryRail, citing Deutsche Bahn listingsFrauenkirche DresdenTrainlineBavarian Palace Administration
Photo by Alfred Leung on Unsplash