Am I a nitwit?
 

I booked my family and myself on a trip to Bavaria during the Christmas holidays. Sure, the Christkindlmarkts will be cool and seeing the snow and lights will remind me of childhood days gone by, but hwta the heck are we gonna do on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Years Day? We will be in Berchtesgaden/Salzburg on 24 and 25 December. Will ANYTHING be open? Will we even be able to eat? New Year's Eve we're outside Trier. I really didn't take all these things into account before I booked this trip. Now I'm stuck. Oh yeah, we will have a car so we can tour around the areas but even then, I'm concerned about the availability of gas on the holidays.

I would suggest contacting your hotel and finding whether they serve food on Christmas Day, and if you should book in advance (since it may be a special menu). If they don't, they may be able to recommend a restaurant where you can book a Christmas dinner (I think you should pre-book for Christmas Day).

According to the Salzburg tourism website there are several Christmas Markets open until 24th Dec.

I hope you have a great time - museums and smaller restaurants may be shut for a couple of days, but you could attend a service in the cathedral, go for a walk, enjoy the peace and quiet! In skiing areas, I suspect it will be business as usual throughout the holiday season.

Don't panic. We spent our Christmas holiday in Salzburg a few years ago and it was magical. We ate at our hotel Christmas Eve and Christmas Day (Hotel Freisacher in Anif), but I can also recommend the Alt Salzburg, and the restaurant at the Schloss Monchstein. Just contact them ahead of time and ask about reservations.

It is a beautiful area of the world to spend Christmas. Enjoy.
((c))

Well, don't be so harsh as to call yourself a nitwit!

But, it <i><b>is</b></i> possible to get info on what you think might be a decision you'll regret... <i><b>and</b></i> be considerate to other Fodorites at the same time...

...by re-posting your question(s) with a message header that lets others know you're asking about a <i><b><font color="red">&quot;Christmas-season trip to Bavaria, Salzburg and Trier!</font></b></i>&quot;

Enjoy your trip... and get information <i><b>from</b></i> others who actually have some experience traveling to these destinations at that time of year!

Best wishes,

Rex

Zeus--there should be some Christmas concerts around Salzburg. Have you checked the Salzburg tourism websites for event schedules?

I was actually going to respond to this post with a humorous comment about vague headings because it didn't occur to me that Rex would beat me to it with a serious one.

Frankly, I would rather see a message board populated with a variety of topic titles such as &quot;Am I a Nitwit?&quot; than one with nothing but the approved model. It got my attention, although I have no information. It also got the attention of at least three posters who did have information. OK, Rex, you can really let me have it. I'm ducking.

Rex,
I have to say that you are driving me absolutely bonkers with your header advice. Can't you just give us a break? The title grabbed my attention.

As far as Christmas goes, at least the Ski resorts will be open...you can alway go skiing.

&lt;&lt;The title grabbed my attention.&gt;&gt;

That is exactly why it is wrong.

When this becomes a competition for the catchiest message header... and none of them indicate what is the subject of the question... then you'll realize what a wrong-headed opinion you're espousing.

Sorry...I just get a bit more frustrated by your pithy little announcements that I have read maybe 20x today. Do you just cut and paste it or what?

The sqeaky wheel gets the oil!!!!

I think your plans sound fantastic! We were in a very rural area of england on thanksgiving and thought we would never find a place for our Holiday meal, (a holiday they don't celebrate of course) and we ended up at 500 year old Inn eating the most amazing Roasted turkey, quail, goose with all the trimmings!! It was serendipity!

sometimes the best surprizes will just happen!!

You said &quot;sorry&quot;, so I will say &quot;no apology needed&quot;...

But does it look like the reply I posted on this thread was cut and pasted from any other post?

Some replies are highly similar and cutting and pasting do help reduce the need to re-type portions. When it makes sense to re-phrase for an exact post - - to be as helpful and specific as possible, that's what I do.

Dear Rex, do you have any travel advice to offer?

Yes... ofen a dozen times a day... click on my name.

And I'm curious... did you actually want any replies, rogerdodger... to http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34686911

titled &quot;Silly Trip #3&quot; - - with no reponses?

I wonder how many people clicked on your post, and had their blood pressure go up, just the slightest little bit... thinking... &quot;what a nitwit&quot;...

I'll e-mail [email protected] and ask that this post... and yours... be removed.

Dear rex, how many of your threads have been deleted? Now, lets talk travel. When is you next trip? I am leaving early November back to England and Scotland. Do you have any travel advice to offer as I am truly open to opinions of others. Thanks for any non-bashing travel experiences.

Zeus: I spent a delightful Christmas in Austria - find out if your hotel/gasthouse has a Christmas dinner and, if not, could they recommend one close by. Our Christmas dinner was so special, with a performance of a poem about Father Christmas ( in German, so only I could understand it out of our group). We also booked a &quot;one-horse open sleigh&quot; ride for after dinner and rode through the crystal clear night (on a deep bed of snow) singing Christmas Carols. Then we walked into the small town to view the ice sculpture and topped the night off with Midnight Mass. Our Christmas tree was a little branch purchased that day at a local market, decorated with foil-wrapped chocolates, put in a hotel drinking glass. It was the best Christmas.

As for real advice, you have plenty of time to do some more research. You will have a blast!

slojan and rogerdoger:

If you click on Rex's name, as he suggests, you will notice that 95% of his posts are of the &quot;POLICING&quot; variety.

For whatever reason, there's always one self-appointed cop on internet forums. Maybe they have some &quot;issues&quot; with self esteem...

Just ignore him like everybody else.

HI Zeus,
I'm sure you will have a fabulous time.

We, too, are scheduled to be in Europe over Christmas. We will be in London Christmas Day and Boxing Day. I began to panic....but, after plotting our some of what we wanted to do, I found activities for each day (xmas is a walking route I mapped out).

I also emailed my hotel for suggestions and assistance. They have helped me find an open restaurant, and we have pre-booked our dinner for 25 December so we know we are set for that day.

Enjoy!

WOW!!! I'm finally accepted at Fodors - Rex yelled at me!!!

Thanks to all those that gave it back to the self-appointed Fodor's cop. I deliberately chose a provocative title in order to draw attention. I'm a little sick of seeing dull headers like &quot;Help me please with my German Christmas trip&quot;. I'm proud of myself because I got some great answers from some very helpful and considerate people.

In any case, I feel better reading all the other posts. It doesn't sound like everything shuts down on Christmas - just MOST everything. Does anyone think gas stations will be open? And what about that Austrian toll pass? Will I be able to buy the highway pass on Christmas Day or do you think I can risk not buying one just for a short drive over the border on Christmas Day?

One last thing Rexie - In the words of Sgt. Hulka in the movie &quot;Stripes&quot; : &quot;Lighten-up Francis&quot;!!

Well I enjoyed the title myself.

I would start by asking your hotel front desk about what will be open. Maybe get reservations for a special meal or two. I have never been to Bavaria but do travel around the holidays. Certainly you can find a church service or two, possibly music or a concert. Walking around a town that is closed for holiday is often a fine option.

After you arrive if finding restaurants becomes a problem you could shop a day before and make some kind of festive picnic to have in your hotel room. Don't forget the wine.