The challenge: fly 6000 kilometers, pick up two cars, drive almost 4000 kilometers, stay at seven different hotels, attend two all-day events, nine meetings, and five dinner meetings, and fly back.
The beginning of article comes to you from Brugge, Belgium, at least that’s where I think I am.
On October 15, I found myself on Lufthansa Flight 411 to Munich, arriving in time for the October 17 opening of the new BMW Welt (see BMW’s Brave New World), BMW’s new €500 million “experience and delivery center.”  Just a year ago, …

I’m writing this from Hamburg, at least I think that’s where I am.  Sometimes trips can be just plain boring.  This one was most decidedly not.  In a 16 day whirlwind tour I would stay in seven hotels and would span 9 cities to cover, however briefly: Munich, Vienna, Munich (again), Hamburg, Flensburg, Sønderborg, Brugge, Düsseldorf, Bremen, and Bremerhaven.  Countries: Denmark, Germany, Austria, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany.
Normally my trips last four to five days.  With meetings and events spread out across half a month, this trip would be more than …

Visitors to Munich have always thought of the city as a kind of BMW world.  Not only is the automaker headquartered there, but the cars themselves are as ubiquitous as the beer and are even used as police cars and taxis.
As a company, BMW has always presented a distinctive image, from its logo, a stylized spinning propeller against a blue sky, to its buildings, which include the Vierzylinder (Four Cylinder) headquarters designed by Karl Schwanzer, which reopened last summer after being closed for a top-to-bottom reconstruction for over two years …

Business travelers frequently bring home a souvenir or two for family members when visiting interesting destinations.  Twice in the past year I’ve brought home something a bit different – and much larger – but I couldn’t pack it in my rollerboard.
In recent years, savvy business travelers have joined the thousands of Americans who each year take a trip to Munich, Germany with one goal in mind.  Unlike other tourists, they are not there for the beer, the Schnitzel, the museums, and art galleries.  The real reason for the trip: …

The Holiday Inn München City-Nord is my Stammhotel, meaning that when I visit Munich, this is where I stay (and where I have been staying for the past 20 years).  It’s not the most luxurious, it isn’t the most elegant, but it is a solid, 3.5 star business hotel that impresses me with friendly staff, unpretentious but sparkling clean rooms, and an 11 meter-long breakfast buffet that is said to be the largest in Munich.  When I was there in August, the hotel had just started a top-to-bottom € 5 …

THE 2426 KM DRIVE
In 5 days, I covered 2426 km and four countries (Austria, Germany, Hungary, and Italy). I crossed international borders 22 times.   I planned each day’s drive the night before, choosing my destination primarily based on the promise of good weather.
11. November – 460 km, Germany, Austria, and Italy
Friends Rich and Jill joined me for breakfast and soon enough, we were on the Autobahn in two 2006 3er Series BMWs.  Our itinerary: drive across the Brennerpaß into Italy and then head back north to Berchtesgaden.  I wonder if …

FOR FORTY YEARS, AMERICAN BMW BUYERS HAVE BEEN TAKING THEIR BRAND-NEW CARS ON A FINE VACATION
Since the 1960s, several thousand Americans each year have taken a trip to Munich, Germany with one goal in mind.  Unlike the other American tourists, they are not there for the beer, the Schnitzel, the museums and art galleries, and the Gemütlichkeit alone.  The real reason for the trip: to pick up a new BMW at BMW’s factory delivery center.
For years, BMW has been among a handful of European automakers that offer Americans the option …

Getting there is half the fun when you visit the InterContinental Resort Berchtesgaden. Few hotels offer amenities such as a twisty drive via the Alpenstraße.  My car’s navigation system guided me through the fog as we climbed to an altitude of 1000 meters.  Even though it was dark, I could sense how incredible the view would be.
And, come morning, the view was incredible.  The InterContinental Resort Berchtesgaden, built on the site of Field Marshal Hermann Göring’s house near Hitler’s Berghof mountain residence, is promoted as being “between heaven and earth,” …

Friday, November 11, 2005, Munich Germany
Last week, we left off with success (insofar as Internet connectivity was concerned) in the Confetti Suite; this after two other suites had no connectivity.  Prior to my departure from the hotel (today’s plans called for a drive from Munich to Italy via Innsbruck across the Brennerpaß
as far as Sferzing, and looping back to Berchtesgaden), I passed by the front desk just in time to hear another guest complaining about problems with Net connectivity.  He was quite upset (apparently, his room had no connectivity) and …

Lufthansa has offered FlyNet in-flight Internet service (powered by Connexion by Boeing) since mid-2004; recently, the airline added the service to New York flights ( it was launched on the Los Angeles – Munich route).  Here is a test drive.
Tuesday, November 15, 2005, 11,000 m over Europe
As soon as we reached cruising altitude, my computer detected Wi-Fi and I logged into FlyNet.  Seat power outlets are conveniently located and I had a choice of U.S. or the European Schuko connection systems.  I started off with simple chores, such as checking …