Hello. I have 3 nights in Switzerland and 2 nights in Austria. Any suggestions on what city to stay in or visit? In Switzerland looking for sightseeing as well as beautiful scenery. In Austria mostly looking for historic sights. Some good bar or restaurant recommendations would be appreciated also. Thanks!

What time of year? Lucern is lovely, there are mountains in view and the city is on a lake. Zurich has a lot to do and you can take daytrips. Bern is quiet but has great day trip ossibilities too.

We will be there in mid August. I have heard a lot of good things about Luzerne, Zurich and Vienna in Austria. Any bar or food recommendations there? How about Salzburg. Worth spending one night in Salzburg and one in Vienna or both nights in Vienna? Also is it worth staying the night in Zermatt to see the Matterhorn? We will be coming from Milan Italy and thought of stopping by there for a night. Thanks!

Oh boy. Talk about opinion inducing questions, these are two wingers.
OK here is my opinion.
First, my biases. I love mountains. I also love Mozart.

I think stopping in Zermatt is NOT just to see the Matterhorn, but also to view the whole Monte Rosa, Matterhorn, Mischabel Range picture. If time is limited, I suggest taking first the Gornergrat train, despite its expense. BUT if the day is cloudy, as it often is around Zermatt, the ride up to the end station of the Gorner Ridge is of limited value. You will see very little. If the day is so so, I so go, because Monte Rosa is awesome.

Now for two of Mozart's major cities: Vienna and Salzburg. Salzburg is neat, and charming in the Old Town, but in terms of trading a day there for a day in Vienna, I think the answer is "Trade for Vienna." Again, it depends on what you want to see.

But Vienna has the remnants of the Hapsburg Empire as can be seen at the Hofburg and Schoenbrunn Palace. Vienna has the Kunsthistoriches art museum which Salzburg lacks. For music lovers, Das Haus der Musik is a valuable tour for a walk down memory lane, and also learn more about some of the great composers of history. And there are performances at various venues. You did not say when you would be there, so I don't know if anything is still on at either opera, or if that sort of performance interests you at all.

The cities are of far different sizes in terms of tourist attractions. Much of Salzburg is not touristy, just the fairly small Old Town, and the fortress up on the hill, because it is a thriving commercial town of middle Austria.

Let me a little blunt with the answer at this stage. How can you make the trade off without having a good idea for yourself of what is in each city to be seen? How can you evaluate the answers? You will get here our opinions, some with and some without stated biases. All such answers need evaluation. How to do it??
I am not sure I would just count the votes and make the democratic decision.
I think if you described trip objectives and expectations, we could help you far better.
As for bars, there is more to both than booze.

Thanks for the info Bob Brown. I do know what exactly there is to do in each city. I have studied books and visited many web sites with info for these particular countries. My grandparents have been there numerous times and they gave me a good idea of what to do also. They are older than me, as I am 25. I wanted a few different ideas from people to see what the overall bias is on what to do. You can know everything about a city and exactly what street takes you where, but without being there it is a whole different situation. I saw 12 countries last year and our favorite by far was Ireland. After studying and knowing exactly what was in each country Ireland looked to be one of the least interesting to us. I did mention that we will be in Austria/Switzerland in mid August. I believe the vienna opera house is closed during that period, but something of that sort would be fun for us to do. As for the bars. We are not looking to get drunk and miss the sights. I believe a good day in a new country is sightseeing during the day and sitting down at night with the locals to enjoy one of their specialty beverages. I always felt this was a great way to get to know people better and to actually feel like a part of the community for a night. If you don't drink that is fine. Anyone else know of any good restaurant/bars? I read something about a bar/winery that was built into the side of the mountain. I guess it had a cave like look to it. I believe it was somewhere in Salzburg or Vienna. Any old, historic or interesting places like that is what we are looking for. Thanks again!

Cannot speak for Salzburg and Vienna. There are more experienced folks out there on Fodors

If you're coming from Milan and travelling toward Salzburg I recommend to drive via the Engadine/St. Moritz and spend your three nights in Switzerland there. Not in ST. Moritz itself, but in one of the nearby villages: Pontresina, Sils are my favourites. Gorgeous scenery with lakes, mountains and glaciers. Don't miss Soglio! And later, on your route toward Salzburg, don't miss Guarda, another picturesque village 50 km distance from St. Moritz.

Ingo

Great value and quality wine bar restaurant in Vienna is Harrys Time on An der Hulben in first district. This is one for the locals - central but quiet non tourist street. 17 euro for 6 course lunch (choice of 6-7 main courses) is best value I have had in over 50 countries, or go for degustation menu where you can eat through the whole menu (desserts and starters are normal size) for euro 34 - will get you about 26 courses, if you can do it. I only got to 9, a much larger associate got to 19.