Has anyone been to any of these towns?<BR><BR>Spittal-Millst.see <BR>Mallnitz-Obervellach <BR>Bad Gastein <BR>Bad Hofgastein <BR>Schwarzach-St. Veit <BR>St. Johann im Pongau <BR>Bischofshofen <BR><BR>We're looking for a really scenic village surrounded by mountains with good hiking opportunities. Thanks for your help!

Eddie,<BR>I'm not sure of the village names but if you have a map, we drove thru about 20 that fit your description on our way to Switzerland from Fussen Germany. In fact they were so very scenic that my husband and I plan to travel there next summer just to relax for a week. I have not started to look into places to stay - but I can tell you that they appear to be ski areas in the winter. Also another area that is just beautiful and would fit into what you are looking for is the Austrian side of the Zugspitze (sp?) this can easily be found also by looking at a map of southern Germany and Austria close to Fussen.<BR><BR>Lily

Hi Eddie and Lilly, L' can you mention a couple of town names to give us an idea of the route you took from S to Fussen? Any chance you can recall the names of your favorites? Thanks. J.

Yes, I'm just not in my office and my maps are! I'll post Tuesday or Wednesday.

The towns I listed are all south of Salzburg on the way to Slovenia. Has anyone been there?

Do a search on www.tiscover.at for links to descriptions of the towns and hiking routes. (Some of the links are only in German.)

topping for Eddie and Lily

been to Bad Hofgastein, loved it. It is in a valley, but the town is a bit hilly & wonderful to browse, walk about a bit. The views are great...there is a level path to Badgastein. Very unusual to see someone ask about Bad Hofgastein.<BR>Enjoy. Linda

I've been to all those places except Bischofshofen, which I missed by only a few miles in my drives around Austria. You will find Bad Gastein and Bad Hofgastein to be lovely, with good hiking, and so will Obervellach, on the south side of the pass from the "gasteins." However, if "scenic" to you means good mountain scenery, I'd say that the others are not all that great. But if mountains, lakes, and small villages, all at the same time, get your attention, then try Hallstatt, Traunkirchen, Mondsee, Maria Worth, Millstatt, and Altaussee. For really lovely villages, St. Veit and Friesach, not far away, are two of the prettiest you could find. <BR><BR>And if you like hiking on more moderate terrain (i.e., only rolling hills rather than steep mountainsides) you have to stay somewhere around St. Veit and the area of the countryside south of there, where there are many marked hiking trails and lots of little inns. My favorite place to stay for this kind of hiking (or biking) is the little Alpine inn Moorquell between St. Veit and Bruckl. You can hike to your heart's content and see small villages, picturesque little farms, charming cathedrals, and friendly natives.

Off the wall, I'd recommend the tiny village of St. Ragemund. It was home of the late Ernst Jagrstatter, who is being considered for Catholic sainthood. Jagrstatter, husband and father of three toddlers, refused to fight for Hitler's Germany and was eventually executed by guillotine in 1943. Of peasant background, he was of great spiritual comfort to the other political prisoners of the Third Reich.

Hello. I have been to both the Schwarzach-St. Veit areas and St. Johann im Pongau. I loved them both! Granted, I went in the winter, and learned how to ski in the alps, but St. Veit was a beautiful little town, and I am sure there is plenty of hiking there in the warmer months.I reccommend browsing the site Http://www.salzburgerland.com. It has great info on Austria, divided up by region, then by town. I believe most of the towns you are considering are on there. Good luck!

Just passed through the area around St. Johann a few weeks ago. It is wonderful. Lots of small pensions to stay in with great views of the valleys. Did not go south of there but between there and Hallstatt is a wonderful drive.<BR>Have a great trip.

We were in many beautiful scenic villages, including:<BR>Gmunden<BR>St. Wolfgang<BR>Hallstatt<BR>Zell Am See/Kaprun<BR>Altausee<BR>St. Gilgen<BR>Traunkirschen<BR>All of them have beautiful lake-mountain views and are recommended!<BR>

Have been to the places Shari mentions. Hallstatt is exceptional -- Take a Salt Mine Tour. We loved that village. St. Wolfgang and St. Gilgen are also nice.<BR><BR>Enjoy!!!