sailormom

Fellow Travelers,

New to Austria area, would love feedback on our very rough draft plans…

Things that I love to seek out when traveling: cheese, wine, yarn, knitting stores, visiting small villages that specialize in something handmade, freshly made butter, cows, chickens (I know, there’s a theme here) Trying new foods, herbs, small gardens. Not a big museum fan, rather roam streets and see what interesting shops or cafes we can find. Maybe tour one castle.

Not a big fan of crowds--really like to experience things as a local but can find value in soaking up culture in cities such as Innsbruck and Salzburg for a few days. We’d love to scout out an area that would be ideal for next summer when we could bring out 2 children back. Maybe a farm stay.

We're flying into Zurich because of our frequent flyer miles.

Day 1: Fly into Zurich and take 4 hour train to Innsbruck. Stay in Innsbruck and pick up rental car.
Day 2: 2nd night in Innsbruck (If we’re not touring museums, do we need another night in Innsbruck?)
Day 3: Drive to Heiligenblut. (1 night stay—suggestions on where to stay?)
Day 4: Drive to Hallstatt (suggestions on where to stay?)
Day 5: Drive to Salzburg (Looking for upscale country inn maybe on outskirts of Salzburg to be home base for next 3 days.)
Day 6: Salzburgerland area (Day trips--suggestions on small towns)
Day 7: Salzburgerland (Day trip) OVERNIGHT TRAIN FROM SALZBURG TO ZURICH (have not been able to get a lot of information on how to book or what sleeper options are available.)
Day 8: Fly out of Zurich mid morning.

Any suggestions? We're not "set" on any of these places. Very flexible.

asps

A few notes:
- upscale country inns near Salzburg are in the Wals and Anif (more expensive) areas
- the regions you are visiting do not grow vines so do not look for wineries - but of course you can have wine at any restaurant
- try visiting the Dorotheum jewelery shops (you will find two small ones in Innsbruck and one, larger, in Salzburg). They act as pawn agencies and you can often find old jewels in interesting early 20th century designs
- an obvious daytrip from Innsbruck is Rattenberg (tiny town specialized in glass objects)

elberko

You might be interested in Heimatwerk. Every "state" capital in Austria has one of these shops which carries the specialties of that area:
http://www.heimatwerk.at/home.1.0.html?&L=1

~Liz

sailormom

Thanks Liz! What a great website filled with such detail on the cooperative.

bettyk

In Hallstatt, you might look at the Gasthof Simony which is right in the town square and backs up to the lake. Amazing views. It's more of a shabby chic sort of place with a lot of history. Don't expect a lot of frills but as I said the location is to die for. You may want to request a balcony room.

As far as small towns to visit near Salzburg, besides Hallstatt, I can recommend St. Gilgen and St. Wolfgang on Wolfgangsee, as well as Bad Ischl, the summer residence of Franz Josef. If you are a fan of the Sound of Music, you may want to see the "wedding church" in Mondsee.

While in Innsbruck, you may also want to visit nearby Hall in Tirol, a lovely little town once known for it's thriving salt industry. Because of the money brought into the town by salt, there were many lovely churches built in the town. In fact, Hall in Tirol has the largest intact old town in the western part of Austria.

asps

Heimatwerk shops are great to see samples of the regional output in a single place, but are very pricey. Often a larger selection of a single item at better prices can be found in specialized shops, say places like Geiger or Steinbock and Giesswein for traditional clothes. Factories have often outlets where sometimes you can find bargains (for example Giesswein at Brixlegg, two minutes driving from Rattenberg).

A special place to be is the Gwandhaus, a sort of showroom by the traditional designer Gössl in the outskirts of Salzburg. Top quality at very high prices, but often they have small exhibitions and the place may be fun to visit (the restaurant there is not bad). Dress up a bit as the place is very classy.

Have a look to "Basteln" shops - hobby shops for ladies stocked for any kind of handwork.

Cheese: Austria wants to look traditional but it is a very modern country and in a lot of places the local butcher/cheese/deli shop got integrated as a section of the local supermarket. So the best selections of cheese and wines are often at supermarkets.

bilboburgler

Keep an eye for a bush stuck in a lamp post next to any odd looking shops. These are often famers shops/bars, limited by statute to only open for 30 or 90 days and often managed by farmers in rotation week by week or month by month. This allows a bunch of local farmers to bring their years production to retail at reasonable cost.

Various names as this varies by regions
http://www.tourmycountry.com/austria...gewinepubs.htm

sailormom

Excellent suggestions. Thank you all. Your in put is very much appreciated!