European Family Road trip itinerary

24 night trip through Germany, France and Switzerland

Our 4 week road trip in Europe took us through Germany’s Black Forest region, through southern France and the Swiss Alps. Hiring a 9 seater van from Munich airport, we spent just under 4 weeks exploring.

Below I have given a brief outline of our itinerary, with links through to more detailed articles on the places we visited if you would like more information. Our trip started in Munich, taking us through Germany, France and Switzerland.

Day 1 & 2: Munich to Freiburg.

Driving time: 4 hours 30 minutes. 423 km.
Accommodation : 2 nights at a spa hotel near Freiburg.
What we did: Visited medieval Freiburg. Hiking in black forest.

Day 3,4,5: Freiburg to Dijon

Driving time: 2 hours 55 minutes. 275km
Accommodation: 3 nights in a B & B outside Dijon
What we did:

• Visited Beaune,
• explored wineries and chateaux in the Burgundy region,
• visited Dijon.
• Visited Cite’D’automobile at Mulhouse on route to Dijon

Day 6,7 & 8: Dijon to Auxerre

Driving time: 1 hour 45 minutes. 150km
Accommodation: 3 nights in A French Chateau now operating as a B&B
What we did:

• Explored villages, including Vezelay and Noyers sur Surein
• Discovered prehistoric artwork at a limestone cave
• Visited wineries in the Chablis region
• Visited chateaux throughout the region

Day 9 to 16: Auxerre to Annecy

Driving time: 4 hours 16 minutes. 376 km
Accommodation: 7 nights in a private holiday rental at Talloires

What we did:

• Explored the beautiful lakeside town of Annecy
• Hiked in the French Alps
• Explored chateaux
• Visited the Gorges du Fier
• Tandem parasailing
• Paddle boat hire
• Lake cruise
• Cycling around the lake
• Relaxing on the beach

Day 16 to 23: Annecy to Grindelwald

Driving time 3 hours. 274km
Accommodation: 7 nights in a private holiday let in Grindelwald

What we did:

• Hiking in the Swiss Alps
• Exploring the Glacier Gorge
• Cable car ride to Schilthorn
• Ziplining, mountain bike riding and mountain walks at Grindelwald First
• Day trip to Spiez and Oberhofen
• Walking the Eiger Jungfrau trail.

Day 23 and 24: Grindelwald to Lucerne

Driving: 1 hour 24 minutes. 86km
Accommodation: Two nights in a three star hotel

What we did:

• Afternoon walking tour of Lucerne
• Visiting the largest transport museum in Europe
• Visiting the Lindt chocolate museum

Day 25: Lucerne to Munich

Driving time: 1 hour 24 minutes. 86km
Accommodation: Lufthansa lounge at Munich Airport

What we did:

• Visited the Air museum at Munich
• Caught our flights home

Our nearly four week route looked like this, seeing “more of less”, but provided a holiday that was enjoyable for an extended family group of 6 aged from 13 to 54.