traveler_of_the_road

Hi,
I am planning on taking a solo trip starting in Prague and ending in Munich this december. I'll have about 16 days. In the Czech Republic, I plan on going to Prague and heading down to Austria. Is there any other cities that I should visit while in the CR?

In austria I plan to visit Vienna, Salzburg, and Innsbruck and then head to Munich. I plan to take the train between each city and buy individual tickets, not a rail pass.

I would appreciate your thoughts on how I should allocate my time in each place, what I should do, where I should stay. If you have had experience traveling solo to these places, I would really appreciate it. Most importantly, I want to get a sense whether these places are safe for a solo female tourist.

I am woman in my 20s and am on a budget. And yes, I realize that it's be really cold in these places during this time. Any help you can give me will be much appreciated!

yk

Never been to Prague, but have been to Munich, Innsbruck & Salzburg solo when I was 30 and I'm female. Have been to Vienna twice too, but traveling with someone. These places are super safe and I would not worry at all - just use your common sense. Things like:

- Don't walk along dark alleys at night; pick bigger streets
- Don't flash your cash
- Don't accept drinks from strangers
- Don't tell strangers where you're staying or where you're heading next

In terms of how much time & what you should "do", you need to tell us what your interests are. I can spend a week in Vienna alone (even after 2 visits) because I love the art, architecture, and classical music. But if you're NOT into any of those, maybe 3 days would be enough.

I don't like Munich at all, and I find one day is more than enough. But that's just me, and plenty of people here love Munich and can spend days there.

If you haven't checked out any guidebooks, that's what I'd start first; so that you can get an idea of what interests YOU at these places. Also, the DESTINATIONS section here on Fodors.com have plenty of info on these cities.

To check train schedules and train times, the Austrian rail website is very helpful and user-friendly. www.oebb.at

iris1745

Hi; I can add a litle to yk's remarks. We have visited all of the cities you mentioned a number of times, with the exception of Insbruck [once]. All great places to visit. See this web site for good downloads of information on Prague and Munich. You have the cities in the right order. Click on the city and then 'instant'. You will find any number of excursions/tours to be taken. The cities are safe, but 'caution' as yk expressed, is paramount. Richard www.inyourpocket.com/

Delaine

I am a woman in my 30's and have visited all the cities you mentioned. I have walked all over them by myself and felt completely comfortable.

If you have time, I would visit Cesky Krumlov in the Czech Republic. It is a charming Medieval village/town between Vienna and Prague. There is a large castle complex on a hill overlooking the town. The old town itself is almost completely encircled by the Vltava, the same river that runs through Prague. I was there last October, and it seemed very cozy; I imagine it would be beautiful with a blanket of snow.

As for what you should do, it depends. What are your interests?

traveler_of_the_road

Thanks for replying so quickly! I am interested in classical music, art, nature, churches, and sightseeing in general.

traveler_of_the_road

Oops, I forgot to add that I read in fodor's guide book that some places in CR will be closed due to weather in the winter. Has anyone experienced this?

bachslunch

Have been to Vienna, Prague, and Salzburg. Have not been to Innsbruck or Munich, but have done some research on these two for possible future trips. With 16 days (assuming they are full days and not counting travel, though am thinking there's not much more than about 3-4 hours between any of these via train), would likely do the breakdown this way:

-Prague 4 days
-Vienna 5 days
-Salzburg 2 days
-Munich 4 days
-Innsbruck 1 day (as a day trip from Munich)

Of course if your main interest is in skiing and not museums/churches/architecture, would seriously consider reapportioning your time in radically different fashion. yk's advice on consulting a guidebook is first rate, as are the safety suggestions.

yk

I concur with bachslunch's breakdown of days. I may even add one more day to Vienna (and subtract one from Munich), IF you really love classical music and art. Vienna is full of art museums, and there are about 8 composers homes you can visit.

Here's my trip report to Vienna & Budapest from this past Spring. It starts in Vienna: http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...pring-2009.cfm

Don't miss art museums in Vienna are:
KHM, MAK, Belvedere, Leopold (if you like Klimt & Schiele), Secession.

Here's the list of composers homes you can visit in Vienna:
http://www.wienmuseum.at/en/location...partments.html

Also, check schedules at Vienna's Staatsoper to see what operas & ballets are on in December, as well as Musikverien.

JeremyinFrance

I think it would be a shame to spend all of your Czech time in Prague. Have you seen Cesky Krumlov? Telc? Or for some nature, how about Adrspach Rock City? That's a great place to visit in Winter.
http://www.jeremytaylor.eu/cesky_krumlov_photos.htm
http://www.jeremytaylor.eu/telc.htm
http://www.jeremytaylor.eu/adrspach_...e_skaly_1.html

Delaine

Here are some suggestions of places that I enjoyed.

Prague:
-Prague Castle -- a must see!
-St. Vitus Cathedral -- 1 of my favorite cathedrals in
Europe
-Old Town
-Old Town Hall -- great views from the clock tower
-Church of Our Lady Before Tyn -- very interesting
architecture
-Church of St. Nicholas
-Josefov
-Old Jewish Cemetery
-Old synagogues: Old-New, Pinkas, Maisel, Spanish
-Charles Bridge & Bridge Towers
-Strahov Monastery
-The Loreto
-Church of St. Nicholas in Malá Strana
-Church of Our Lady Victorious
-Church of Our Lady Before the Chain
-Wandering around Malá Strana and Nerudova Street

Cesky Krumlov:
-Krumlov Castle
-Wandering around the village

Vienna:
-Kunsthistorisches Museum -- one of the best old masters
museums in the world; amazing!
-Schönbrunn Palace & Gardens -- you could easily spend a day
here wandering through the gardens and touring the palace.
There are wonderful views from the Gloriette. They also have
a cafe with really good apfel strudel that they make there.
-The Hofburg -- this includes the Imperial Apartments (with
Empress Sissi Museum) & Schatzkammer (Treasury). If you go
to Schonbrunn, you could skip the apartments, but I do
recommend the Treasury
-Augustinerkirche -- has a lovely tomb by Canova
-Michaelerkirche
-Stephansdom -- nice views from the towers; one has an
elevator, the other stairs
-Kapuzinerkirche -- contains the crypt of the Habsburgs
-Peterskirche -- second oldest church in Vienna
-Karlskirche -- very interesting architecture
-A circuit around Ringstrasse to see the Staatsoper, Burgarten, Burg Theatre, Neues Rathaus & Volksgarten
-A stroll through the Graben

Salzburg:
-Hohensalzburg Fortress -- on a hill above the town;
interesting and good views
-Schloss Mirabell -- lovely gardens & fountain; where some of the Sound of Music was filmed
-Schloss Hellbrunn -- extraordinary water gardens (think
trick fountains) and lovely palace; home to the gazebo
from the Sound of Music; slightly out of town, but easily
reachable by public bus
-Getreidegasse -- main street of Old Town
-Mozart's Birthplace

Munich:
-Alte Pinakothek -- fantastic gallery of old masters
-The Glyptothek -- my favorit museum of classical sculpture
-Neue Pinakothek -- another great art museum, but slightly
newer paintings, as the name implies
-Michaelskirche -- tomb of King Ludwig
-Frauenkirche -- the cathedral
-Peterskirche -- fantastic views from the tower (stairs only)
-Hofbräuhaus -- go at least for ein bier
-Schloss Nymphenburg -- you could skipt this if you go to
Schonbrunn in Vienna

Innsbruck: I would spend only a day here; there is much less to see than in any of the other cities.
-The Hofburg
-The Hofkirche
-The Goldenes Dachl (Golden Roof)
-The Stadturm (City Tower)-- great views of Innsbruck, the
the Goldenes Dachl, etc. (stairs only)

traveler_of_the_road

Hi everyone,
thanks so much for all your suggestions! This is why I love this forum. I am diligently reading guide books now and have fine-tuned my trip a bit. I'm going to start in Prague, then to Cesky Krumlov. From Cesky Krumlov I want to go to Salzburg before Vienna because I'll be flying out of Vienna. (I decided to skip munich since I want to devote more time to CR and AT). So my question is: are there trains that goes direct from cesky krumlov to salzburg? Or perhaps has 2 or 3 stops only?
The other thing too is that I won't be able to book my trip until about 3 weeks before my departure due to my job. Has anyone has experience with getting last minute flight deals or hotel deals to/in these places?

Thanks!!

iris1745

Hi Traveler; You are doing OK. However, trains in the CR are not as reliable as other countries in Europe. There are trains from CK to Chesky Budejovice. Then on to Linx and finally Salzburg. Chesky Budejovice to Linz, perhaps two hours and then to Salzburg about an hour. Some countries if you only have a few minutes to make the connection, it works. Don't count on it in the CR [And we love the country] Usually, there is no problem making ticket arrangements, even the day of travel. Once you have decide on a hotel in Chesky Krumlov, ask the hotel about connections to Salzburg. Or e-mail this company to see if they can shuttle you from Chesky Krumlov to Linz. From there you can get the train to Salzburg. Or they can get you to Salzburg. I think for about $70 US you can get a ride direct to Salzburg. Richard www.shuttlebus.cz