Hello fellow EDers! I am about to embark on my first ED journey in a little over a week. Thanks for all the tips you've left behind in these forums, it's been wonderful to read up and be able to anticipate what I'm likely to encounter. I have done what many have suggested, and booked my hotels for the night of arrival and the night that I return the car, and plan to be pretty flexible with the rest of my trip, allowing weather to help dictate which direction to head. As such, I had a few questions that I thought I'd throw out there, and am looking for any guidance or thoughts on my general itinerary and plans.

My list of must-sees:
- Neuschwanstein
- Regensburg
- Innsbruck
- Prague (I think; I could be convinced otherwise perhaps)

My situation:
- My car: 2006 325xit, premium/sports/cold weather packages, automatic, iDrive, comfort access, PDC, xenon, Logic7, Monaco blue/black leather
- Arriving 12/21, 12/22 delivery, 12/30 return in Munich, 12/31 flight home to SF; 9 days total with the car
- X-Drive and all-weather tires, so I should be fine in moderate snow conditions
- I'll be travelling with my girlfriend, so no kids or other companions involved
- Neither of us speak a bit of German (we do Japanese and Italian, but I don't think they'll be of much help!)
- I've been to Holland, France, Spain and Italy before, by train. I loved Italy, but we'd like to mainly hit places we haven't been before
- I'm not a huge fan of cold weather (don't know many who are!), but since we've been to Italy (and Spain), might be kind of stuck with the colder climates
- My girlfriend is vegetarian, I'm hoping most places can accomdate this with at least a dish or two, would be curious to hear people's experiences
- I've got some friends in Holland (Utrect) that I'm considering visiting for a day or two, though it may be a bit out of the way? (perhaps i can convince them to meet us half-way)
- My sister lived in Heidelberg for a year and raves about that area of Germany, and Romantic Road, so that peaked my interest
- I've always wanted to go skiing in the Alps, but my girlfriend wants to avoid black diamonds so we'd probably be happy with any location
- I enjoy driving (of course!), but want to have a good balance and feel like we're getting a chance to enjoy the scenery and soak in a bit of the local culture and relax at the same time (i.e., 8-10 hour driving days should be kept to a minimum!)

My general itinerary so far:
12/21 - arrive Munich
12/22 - BMW delivery, Munich > Regensburg
12/23 - Regensburg > Prague
12/24 - Prague > Salzburg > Innsbruck
12/25 - Christmas in Innsbruck (skiing?)
12/26 - Innsbruck > Romantic Road (somewhere?)
12/27 - Romantic Road > Heidelberg
12/28 - Heidelberg > Utrect, Holland
12/29 - Utrect > Nurnberg
12/30 - Nurnberg > Munich
12/31 - depart Munich

Questions:
- I've booked the arrival & departure nights in Munich at the Innside Hotel (Parkstadt Schwabing), so I need to figure out the best way to get there (hopefully via public transport). The hotel has a downloadable direction sheet but it's in German. Help anyone?
- Where would be the best place to be on Christmas? I've heard Rothenburg ob der Tauber on the Romantic Road is supposed to be quaint for Christmas (maybe too quaint?). Anyone experience Christmas in Bavaria (or Austria or Switzerland for that matter)? Innsbruck looks like a winter wonderland, great for Christmas day?
- Anyone know of there if ski lifts are open on Christmas day? Innsbruck in particular?
- Are the Christmas markets they make so much of open on Christmas eve or Christmas day, or just prior to the holiday?
- Are most stores & restaraunts going to be closed around Christmas or other days that we should know about?
- Will hotels be harder to book during the holiday? Should I try to make reservations more than a day or two in advance?
- I've seen a few books that list small inns & hotels all over Germany, would it be worth picking up? For those who make their plans as they go, what's the best way to find & make arrangments for overnight stays? Are there websites that list such locations as well?
- any reccomendations for hotels/inns along my journey would be greatly appreciated
- what tour/guidebooks have people found most helpful? So far I've picked up LP's "Munich & Bavaria", Frommer's "Germany's Best-Loved Driving Tours", NG Traveler's "Prague & the Czech Republic" and Thomas Cook's "Drive Around Bavaria & the Austrian Tyrol"
- Overall, does it look like I'm going to be driving too much?
- Would it be too agressive to try to incorporate Bavaria, Prague, Austria, Switzerland and Holland into the trip? Should I drop either Prague or Holland out to make things easier on us? Will I experience enough of the Alps in Austria that I'd be okay missing Switzerland?

Thanks in advance for any answers/comments/thoughts, I know I've listed quite a bit! I'll have my camera in hand and promise to post pictures & updates along the way when I have a good connection!

Cheers,
Jeremy