Driving Through Austria
 

We are planning to visit Austria from June 13 - 25, 2002. We were in Switzerland in October and went over some very steep passes (Grimsdel (spelling) and Grand St. Bernard - up to the monestary, and over to Como in Italy. Loved the trip - hated the passes.<BR><BR>We're staying on a place called Grundlsee about 65 miles south of Salzberg in the Alps. I want to travel as much as possible, but other than the cities - Innsbruck, Salzberg and Vienna, would really appreciate information on places to see. We're staying at a timeshare and will take day trips.<BR><BR>Thank you very much.

We were in Southern Germany and Austria this past summer. We drove the entire trip and stayed at small quaint towns. One of the two most beautiful in Austria were Hallstatt and then Melk. Please don't miss those two places for your day trips. Take the boat cruise on the lake when you are in Hallstatt and visit the beautiful Abbey when you are in Melk. Good Luck!

Hallstatt and St.Wolfgang lakes are must see places in Salzkammergut area. You could also drop in Bad Iscl (small resort town with wonderful Konditorei-bakery) on the way to Hallstatt.

Carole---<BR>You will be staying in my favorite part of Austria, the Salzkammergut lakes region. Besides the other suggestions, of which Hallstatt is not to be missed, you should visit all the lakes and their little villages in that area: Altaussee, Mondsee, Attersee, and Traunsee. Of these, Traunsee is a scenic wonder, especially around the village of Traunkirchen and farther north at Schloss Orth. To see Hallstatt, you will need a bit more advice on how to get into the village unless you already know. Good travels.

Carole,<BR><BR>My wife and I just spent a week in Grundlsee in November. What a wonderful area. We both want to go back there in the early summer. Bad Ausse is the nearest bigger town and it has a lot of neat shops. Bad Ischel also has a lot to offer. As one of the others said, Hallstatt and St. Wolfgang are must sees. Hallstatt may have been my favorite town in Austria. Salzburg is only a short drive. <BR><BR>There was a pub, that was closed when we were in Austria, on the side of the road overlooking the valley near St. Goisern. You were up about 2,000 feet above the valley and the view was absolutely amazing.<BR><BR>E-mail me and I'll be glad to send some pix of the area and highlights.<BR><BR>Mike

In full cognizance of what you thought about the Grimsel Pass, and having done it myself twice, I still recommend a trip to the Swarovski Viewtower [and yes it has a crystal show room]in the Gross Glockner park. The drive to the location, which overlooks a glacier and a beautiful valley, is via the Gross Glockner Hochalpenstrasse. I thought it was a marvelous drive, even if it was steep in places. We had a regular gear shift car which is much easier to manage on mountain roads. (In fact, I would not have an automatic. My own car at home is a 5 speed Camry and I don't want a new one because I cannot get a 5-speed in an LE or XLE, or in a 6 cylinder Camry.) There are some lovely areas on all sides of the Gross Glockner if you don't want to take the pass itself.<BR>The whole Salzkammergut is a great place to visit. Just loaded with little places and lakes to visit.<BR>

The small villages along the Danube just outside of Vienna are a real joy. Lots of wineries, old castles, tiny churches, etc. We rented some clunky touring bikes off the auto ferry at Weissenkirchen, and spent a day just pedaling along the bike path on the north side of the river, it was the best day of our entire trip to Austria.

Carole, maybe my website can help you.<BR>It includes a trip to Austria.<BR>http://www.geocities.com/Yosemite/5733