Well, it's about time I post this. There is really nothing new here, but I decided to post because I really enjoyed reading all of the ED posts while waiting for my trip to start and then while waiting for re-delivery!
Travel to Munich
We flew from Tucson to San Francisco and then to Munich via Lufthansa. I’ll put in a plug for Lufthansa Premium Economy. I purchased four tickets for this vacation and I think the extra cost vs. value was a nice balance. I was able to completely stretch out and get some sleep (I’m 6 feet tall). Obviously you are not going to mistake this as international Business or 1st class, but for a family trip, spot on. Based on other members’ input, I recommend calling to see about the Lufthansa BMW discount, but when I booked, tickets were less expensive (by about $100) using the regular Lufthansa web site. This changes regularly.
Once in Munich, our Sixt driver was waiting to take us to our hotel. I won’t dwell on hotels, but for Munich we used King’s Hotel, which is one of the hotels recommended by BMW in the ED delivery packet. It was a nice hotel with private parking (although the spaces are a bit narrow). The hotel is about 10 – 15 minutes from the Welt.
We walked around Munich for a bit, and then were ready to crash. We found a nice restaurant for a meal and a glass of wine and then went to sleep.
Delivery Day/BMW Welt
Here we go! My delivery time was at 9:10 AM, so we arrived at 8 AM for check-in. After going to the check-in/paperwork area next to the Premium Lounge, I was immediately taken to complete the paperwork while my family wandered into the Premium Lounge. The Paperwork process was efficient and done in 10 minutes or so. Each person in your party receives a plastic card that is used for entrance to the tour and museum. I commented to the woman helping me with the paperwork that she must have the best job given that she is greeting very happy people picking up their BMWs. She responded yes, but because of the volume of deliveries (> 100 per day) and the inevitable occasional mistakes that occur, she takes flak regularly without actual blame. Anyway, she was a joy. Be nice!
I joined my family in the Premium Lounge for breakfast. What a fantastic place. The architecture, the light, the furniture…absolutely perfect for a fan of modern architecture, as I am. As has been documented, the lounge is a fantastic place to relax, eat and drink. The spread changes through the day from breakfast to lunch. We enjoyed coffee/expresso while waiting for delivery.
I saw her on the balcony of the lounge in advance of delivery…love at first sight.
Promptly at 9:10 AM our delivery specialist met us and took us to the virtual reality area where the car was presented to us. Nothing I didn’t know; if you are in a hurry, skip this. If not, go for the full experience.
Then, down THE staircase. It is such a special experience to see your car waiting for you on one of the spinning platforms. It’s been called one of the most expensive staircase in Germany (depending on what you order) but no one is disappointed. The next 1.5 hours were spent learning about the car, entering NAV destinations and generally having a great time exploring the car. My delivery specialist, Alex, was very competent and helped us enter our planed route along the Alpine Road (not easy, as the Nav wants to route you to major roads). My car was right near the exit so I missed the full “victory lap” experience. Not a huge deal, but stay to the left and you can circle the Welt a few times before exiting.
After exiting, I checked the car in for valet parking below and we proceeded to the factory tour. As most of you know, you cannot take any pictures during the tour. It was very cool to see how these cars are put together and understand the balance of human involvement and automation.
After the tour, which did take the full 2 hours, we had lunch in the Premium Lounge.
We then went to the gift shop to pick up the complementary engraved keychain and 2 safety vests. Each person in the car is supposed to have one in case of an accident, but I decided to walk on the wild side and just take the two free ones. I forgot that the blue dot on my BMW card gave me 10 extra euros to spend, and so exited without further merchandise.
We then hit the museum. The BMW “100 years” exhibit is in full swing and was interesting. Here are a few shots of various sightings, none unique but all cool.
I had the M room to myself for a few minutes!
After the museum, we were dead from a combination of excitement, activity and jet lag. We grabbed some black bean-ginger vegetarian burgers from Holy Burger and went to sleep.
Travel to Nuremburg and Nordlingen
The next morning, we arose early to drive to Nuremburg, where we were meeting some friends. We had a nice time walking around and had lunch in the castle area. A bit touristy, but fun. As someone who likes modern art, I really enjoyed the Neue Museum.
Then it was a nice drive to Nordlingen, a wonderful town along the Romantic Road. Nordlingen is a medieval town that was built within a crater created by a large meteor, and has a fully persevered wall around the town. My mom grew up here and I used to visit frequently as a child when my grandparents were alive. A beautiful town and great memories to say the least. I could spend days just wandering around here…
Typical German sandwich:
We went to the nearby Harburg Castle, which was built in the 11th or 12th century. It is one of the few original undestroyed German Castles.
Continuing on the Romantic Road
We stopped at Landsberg am Lech and had a nice lunch by the river.
Our next stop was Garmisch-Partenkirchen, which is a beautiful town. Our room had a nice view.
We had a traditional German dinner. Here, venison with mushroom sauce.
I have to say that we only were able to eat about half of the food – the portions were huge. We generally don’t eat much meat and we like vegetables, which seemingly (like water!) are in short supply in many German restaurants. At this point we started actively seeking out vegetables and Italian food.
We were on our way towards Neuschwanstein when my son saw some interesting looking ruins on a hill and a long suspension bridge. We stopped to check it out. It turned out to be the ruins of the castle Ehernberg, connected to Fort Claudia by the world’s longest pedestrian suspension bridge at 1,322 feet, 360 feet high. It was a very cool experience and we spent most of the day here. Sometimes the unplanned stops are the best!
Because of our stop at Ehernberg, we just drove by Neuschwanstein. We had been there before, and to be honest it has an amusement park vibe to it because of the throngs of tourists.
Our next stop was Fussen. It is a pleasant town. We had a relaxing meal outside at a nice Italian restaurant. Spaghetti with garlic, arugula, fresh chanterelles and parmesan.
We stopped at the Wieskirche, a famous rococo church in Steingaden.
The Alpine Road to Berchtesgaden
The Alpine Road is fantastic. When there are no other cars it is perfect. When other cars are present, you have to overtake them on twisty roads or be stuck behind them until the next town. Fortunately, the M3 is a willing partner in this!
We arrived in Bechtesgaden and walked around. Like all Bavarian towns, I found it charming.
My son caught me attending to some bird excrement.
Greek vegetable plate:
From Berchtesgaden we travelled to Salzburg, which I always enjoy. Of course we went to Hohensalzburg Castle, where we had lunch overlooking the city.
Parked next to a halo car for me, the Alpina B10:
Finally, back to Munich where we spent the night at the Novohotel at the airport. The next morning, we dropped the car off at LogInOut. As others have pointed out, the directions in the packet you are given at the Welt are somewhat confusing as these state that LogInOut is before the Hilton, but it is actually the first entrance past the Hilton on the one-way road. Checkout at LogInOut was an incredibly easy process and took about 20 minutes. I then said goodbye to my new baby and went to our terminal, conveniently right next door to LogInOut.
686 miles later, quite a bit dirtier but otherwise is great shape! I had already planned to pay LogInOut the 40 euros for a wash, and that took a small stressor out of our departure.
I dropped the car off June 10 and recollected it on July 30. Not too bad. I was fortunate to not be affected by the differential recall. Back home after the drive from Long Beach to Tucson - break-in is now complete!
Random Thoughts
M3 status in Germany: Bavarians seem to really like the M3 based on the looks, smiles and thumbs up the car received. I was a bit surprised by the attention. I was surprised how few Ms I saw during my trip – one F82 M4, one E63 M6, two E36 M3s. That’s it, except for cars at the Welt.
De-badged BMWs: As has been previously noted, the vast majority of BMWs in Germany are de-badged (model information, not the Roundel of course) when they leave the factory. I saw about a dozen BMWs with badges – all the rest were de-badged.
Audi wagons: Given BMW has basically ceded the high-performance wagon market to Audi, it’s no surprise we saw many RS wagons and similar variants. They look pretty good.
German roads: As advertised, German roads are wonderfully maintained. I bought TrakkTape but decided not to use it. No chips.
Water: I suggest that you keep a bottle of water with you as water is not routinely available. There are no water fountains in most areas and water is not provided for free at most restaurants. If you order water, you will most likely be paying for bottled water – still or sparkling.
Thanks for reading!