mosey_on

My family will join me after I conclude a business trip in Italy in May.
We are committed to ending our 10-day family vacation in Zurich and have our return fights from Zurich to the US.
We're thinking of starting out in Vienna, spending 2-3 days there, then driving over the next several days through Salzburg, Munich and then Zurich.
Any recommendations about how many days for Vienna? Suggestions for smaller towns to explore and maybe stay in along the way? We arrive in Vienna May 12, and depart home from Zurich May 22.
This is our first time in Austria, Germany and Switzerland.
Thanks to all you experienced travellers!

nytraveler

Well, Zurich is primarily a business city - so I wouldn't stay there at all. Instead head to Lucerne - which has much better access to the mountains that you really want to go to Swtiz for. You can tour the old town, take a steamer on the lake to several small villages and ascend one of more of the nearby mountains. I would leave 3 nights for that, then head to Salzburg - where you need to spend 2 or 3 nights to see the town and some of hte countryside - then Vienna for at least 3 and preferably 4 nights. Yuo don;t really have time for Munich - just too muc to so in the other places. Or - if Munich is a must do - then I would bag Vienna. Otherwise you won;t have time to see much of anything.

Aramis

nytraveler;

I'm not sure how you know for what the OP wants to go to Switzerland, or that they are willing to forego Munich because you don't deem that they have enough time to see it once they see what you want them to see. Could they perhaps want to see Munich and Zurich, specifically?.

But then again, you didn't read the original post at all well, either. It is very explicit. The OP is committed to ending their trip in Zurich and wishes to begin in Vienna, and to see Salzburg and Munich on the way to Zurich.

mosey;

You have 10 nights and at least the 1st is in Vienna and the last in, or near, Zurich. 10 nights for 4 desired cities is tight. It can certainly be done, but unless you want to spend just one night in some place(s) along the way, it really doesn't afford much opportunity to stay anywhere other than those 4 locations, splitting the nights 3,2,3,2;

On that basis, Vienna and Munich probably deserve the 3 nights each and Salzburg 2. Zurich has some charm and could keep you happy for 2 days (probably just over one day and 2 evenings depending on when you arrived) but, depending on when your flight leaves, you could also stay somewhere closer to the mountains that had easy connections to the Zurich airport - it has it's own rail station, too.

In other words;

Vienna 3
Salzburg 2
Munich 3
Zurich 2

You may encounter a significant drop charge if you pick up a rental in Vienna and return it in Zurich. You might want to see if you are comfortable with that before you plan on driving the whole route. An option would be to train from Vienna to Salzburg, rent a car there - maybe the day before you leave so you can take a day trip, and the plan to drop the car somewhere in Germany near the Swiss border and train to Zurich. I believe it is possible to rent a car in Salzburg and incur no drop off charge to Germany.

I can offer some more suggestions if some of this is assisting you in defining your plans. A lot depends on the rental/train breakdown and whether you want to stay in Zurich proper for 2 nights at the end of the trip.

mosey_on

Thanks for the suggestions so far. Great points!


Where we fly into to start our vacation is still flexibly (i.e. I am flying north from Catania, Sicily, and assumed Vienna would be a good place to launch our vacation). Where we travel beyond Vienna is open as well. We just end up in Zurich at least the last night and planned to stay near the airport.

I realize now I had not factored in the drop charge, so I should think about that. One option is as mentioned to take the train from Vienna to Salzburg. Would another option be to fly from Catania to Munich for example and pick up the car there? then drive to Vienna? But I hate to pay for a car while we're in Vienna given the good public transportation. We had planned to rent a car only to drive from the city west toward Germany in order to see the countryside.

Is there a German city close enough to Zurich where we can drop the car then bus to Zurich airport?

mosey_on

Now that I look at the map, I wonder if picking up the car in Vienna will still work, as long as I drop off in a city (in Austria) near Zurich?

bigtyke

take a close look at what you want to see in the various places. Maybe rent a car in Vienna, drive to Salzburg, use it there then turn it in and take the train to Munich aznd Zurich.

swandav2000

Hi mosey_on,

I live south of München and travel to Switzerland often.

Really there is terrific public transport in both places, and you really don't need a car for either place. I suggest you just relax and enjoy the trip, and not set yourself up for hassles of city driving or finding expensive parking. Trains take you from city center to city center -- and you can enjoy the trip.

There is a train station in the basement of the Zürich airport. You can get all the train schedules and options at the Swiss rail site

www.rail.ch

Have fun as you plan!

s

Pepper_von_snoot

I'll chime in here with my opinion.

I would not stay in Zurich for two nights. Zurich is a very clean, pleasant city, but it is boring for tourists. Unless you want to spend most of your time window shopping or eating chocolate cake, I wouldn't stay in the city. Zurich is also EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE.

If you drop off your rental car before you get to Zurich (and I agree with Swandav that you don't need a car in Switzerland to get around--the trains are great), and you need a place to sleep in Switzerland before you get to Zurich Flughafen then definitely stay overnight in Luzern. Luzern is much more exciting for tourists because of its beauty.

You can take the train right from Luzern to Zurich Flughafen. The train ride is about 1 hr. 15 minutes.

Tschuss,
Pepper

mosey_on

All,
Excellent suggestions. Thank you.

I like the suggestion to stay in Lucerne and riding train to Zurich airport. Our flight is around noon so that should give us time for transit and check in I should think. Yesterday I was looking at Zurich airport hotels -- very expensive and not including Internet or breakfast!

Would we be missing a lot by focusing on the cities (Vienna, Salzburg, Munich, Lucerne) and not venturing by car into the countryside?

Regarding the train travel, we would have two large suitcases (I will have been on a 4-week business trip prior to this pleasure trip, plus my daughter is joining us and will not travel light). How easy will it be to accommodate lugging around the bags in and out of train?

Would you consider Munich a "must see" city on par with the other 3 cities?

Thank you for your suggestions -- I appreciate the "local" insights.

nytraveler

If you want to rank "must see" cities for tourists I would put Vienna at the top, followed by Munich, Salzburg and Zurich. Really I wouldn't bother with Zurich at all - it has a lake - as does almost every other city in Switz - a couple of museums and a couple of blocks of cute old town. I have been there numerous times - on business trips - and after the first two always went somewhere else if I had extra time.

Lucern is a great tourist town - and only an hour from the airport - so I would stay there is you have tickets out of Zurich that yuo can;t change.

But, IMHO - you don;t have enough days to see 4 cities - even 3 is pushing it - and I would focus more so you get to see something beyond the first 2 or 4 sights in each place.

mosey_on

nytraveler, thanks for your perspective.

Assuming we eliminate 1-2 cities including Zurich, what would be your picks for top 2, top 3?

By the time I conclude business in Italy, I will be looking forward to a more relaxed pace, so staying put in a couple places certainly has appeal!

Which two cities if only two?
and which three if we wanted to add a third?
(not including a one night somewhere near Zurich airport, even if it Lucerne)

Aramis

You could stay in Konstanz, on the German-Swiss border. It is less than one hour by train to Zurich airport. You arent passing by Zurich, as you would to get to Lucerne, so that would save some time. However, it may be best to just consider Zurich your departure point and plan to arrive by train at the airport station sometime late on the day before your departure. Slightly more expensive maybe but efficient - and have you checked prices for other locations in SwitzerlandÉ It is frightfully expensive throughout the country, presently

If that appeals to you, I would keep Vienna, Salzburg and Munich on the list, add 1 night to Salzburg and use it to take a local day trip to someplace like Koenigsee, St. Gilgen, etc.

Vienna 3
Salzburg 3
Munich 3
Zurich Airport 1

mosey_on

Aramis,

Thank you for mentioning Konstanz -- I had looked into that city as a potential auto rental drop - off in case we rented a car in Salzburg (rent in Germany to avoid the cross-country drop off charge). It might be an alternative to airport hotel if it is less expensive and the train is a straight shot.

Great suggestions about Salzburg -- will look into Koenigsee, St. Gilgen.

I guess in typical American fashion, we are so hungry to see Europe we want to cram too much in.

Pepper_von_snoot

I wouldn't stay at a Zurich Flughafen hotel for the night. Even if you don't stay overnight in Luzern, at least stay in downtown Zurich the night before your flight. It is as easy as pie getting from the Hauptbahnhof to the flughafen and takes about 15 minutes.

I hate airport hotels. What are you going to do, sit in the hotel lobby for fun?

At least if you stay in Zurich, you can walk around, see the Chagall Windows at the Fraumunster, and have dinner in a nice
restaurant.

If you decide to stay in Zurich, a nice, clean, inexpensive hotel is Pension St. Josef. It is about a 5-minute walk from the Bahnhof. My husband, Keith, and I have stayed here twice. I have also stayed at the Dolder Grand and the Baur au Lac.

Everyone has different tastes. I HATE Vienna with a passion. I would much rather spend more time in Salzburg, which I think is a very beautiful small city.

Tschuss,
Pepper

mosey_on

Pepper,
Thanks for the tips re hotel in Zurich.

Interesting, your feelings about Vienna.
We might actually take a day trip/train as recommended toward Prague.

Thanks to everyone for your input. This is a great resource.

easytraveler

For the small amount of time that you have, a better side trip from Vienna would be Melk Abbey, which you can do in a day and even take a Danube River cruise through the beautiful Wachau Valley. You can get off at Durnstein and hike to the castle which is where Richard the Lionhearted was kept prisoner.

http://www.stiftmelk.at/englisch/index.html

http://www.austria.info/uk/discover/wachau-1114720.html

http://www.ddsg-blue-danube.at/engli.../e_lwac_fp.asp

I, OTOH, love Vienna, but mainly because of its music. The city offers so many musical events to choose from. Its museums, palaces, and the "center" of the city are all worthwhile.

The best way to get quickly acquainted with the major sights is to take the yellow Vienna Ring tram (NOT the yellow bus which is a private tour bus and costs more). You can go around the Ring in about half an hour and stay on the tram as long as you wish. Each passenger gets an earpiece and there are several languages to choose from.

http://www.wien.info/en/sightseeing/...w-routes-trams

I'll agree that you do not need a car. Public transportation is so extensive and easy to use.

Can you encourage your daughter to travel light? Really, how much luggage does she need for a ten day trip? It's really not necessary to bring the kitchen sink.

mosey_on

Easytraveler,
Ha! I had to laugh at your suggestion that my daughter travel light (do you have an 18 y.o. female in your household?).
Actually, her situation is unique -- she is finishing up her own "gap year" abroad and making her way back home by joining us in Vienna. Hence, her bulky luggage....Although it would not be a bad idea to have her ditch the 29-inch suitcase (two of them were purchased at Walmart and one has already fallen apart, so we are at least down to one) and all her hair products, and just carry her back pack.

So, how does this sound:

- Stay in Vienna for 3-4 nights, with one day devoted to the Melk excursion

- Train to Salzburg, stay there for 3 days.
Day trips to the sites mentioned

- Train to Munich, stay there for 3 days.
Day excursion(s) via the special deal Bavarian train

Train to either Zurich proper or Constanz the day before departure

Option: rent a car in Munich for 3 days to explore countryside on our own; drop off car in Constanz.

What do you think?

Thanks again all for you suggestions.
This is shaping up!

easytraveler

mosey: I have traveled with the females in my family (I'm female myself) and half their luggage consists of makeup items and hair treatment items (I call them "hair torture machines").

One time I was on a business trip and my colleague was going to be with me for only two days - she brought two suitcases, nine pairs of shoes, - in total she had five pieces of luggage! For two days!


There are a couple of ways around the problem of your daughter's gigantic suitcases.

One is to have her mail some things home. I tend to collect a lot of paper - brochures, books, postcards, etc., so i will mail the heavy paper stuff home instead of lugging it all over Europe.

Or, if you have your hotel in Switzerland picked out, you could forward the bulk of her luggage to the hotel and have them hold it for you until arrival. (Lock up the suitcase!)

For train travel, the ideal - IMHO - is a 20-21" suitcase plus a backpack for each person.

MRoo

I found Vienna to be very interesting - there's a lot to do and see, and the food was great. I would stay there for 3 nights, then drive to Durnstein. You can spend one night in Durnstein, and go to Melk Abbey the next day, before driving into Salzburg (going to Melk as a day trip from Vienna would involve backtracking). Spend 2 nights in Salzburg, 2 nights in Munich, and 2 nights in Zurich (which would probably only feel like one full day there). You'll get to see and do a lot! Have fun!

AisleSeat

I have spent a lot of time in Munich and IMHO you don't want or need a car there. Too many hassles with traffic and parking plus a great public transport system that is easy to negotiate, probably the same for Vienna. I would see Vienna, train to Salzburg, train to Munic and pick up a car on the way out of Munich. I have had some minimum luck requesting a rent car with Swiss plates so I didn't have to pay the cross border drp fee.