ira

Hi All,

I’m planning a motor trip through Austria and Germany.

Since my wife suffers from vertigo, I am trying to plan routes that are scenic, but won’t be on high, twisting mountain roads with steep dropoffs.

She can handle scenic vistas, but not long drops into narrow vallies.

We can drive from St. Gilgen to Rothenburg in about 6:30 hr, by bypassing Munich.
From there we will drive South on the Romantic Road to Reutte and from there to Lake Constance.

Reutte to Lake Constance is on the B198 and the S16/E60. She should be able to handle this road.

OR

We can go from St. Gilgen to Reutte on the B178 through St. Johann in Tirol (near Kitzbuhel) and the A12/E60. From there we will go North to Rothenburg and on to Lake Constance.

My question is, “Will my wife be able to handle the B178 to A12/E60 part of the trip”.

Any help will be appreciated.

Underhill

Ira,

I send commiserations to your good wife; I also have a big problem with sheer mountain drops and have leanred not to trust my husband when he suggests a nice little "scenic" drive over twisty yellow roads on a Michelin map.

So--topping for a more useful answer.

ira

Hi All,

I have discovered the German Alpine Road.

It is shown as a small yellow road on the Michelin maps.

The B178 is a larger, red road.

Travel time is the same on both routes.

Which, if either, would be the better one on which to take my wife?

ira

anyone?

Zeus

I think this may depend on just how severe your wife's vertigo might be. Just driving on the road to St. Gilgen from Salzburg might seem scary to her if she's like Jimmy Stewart in "Vertigo" where even going up a step ladder freaks her out. The roads are rather twisty and in places you might get nervous about your proximity to the waters just below, but the drop isn't more than 20-30 feet at its worst. If you're talking about someone, like myself, who gets a bit anxious about observation decks on tall buildings or bridges crossing a valley between two high mountains, she shouldn't have any problems.

If you plan on driving the B-178 through Lofer to St. Johan then on through Kufstein to the Autobahn, I wouldn't be too concerned. My wife drove this way many times in previous trips - usually during heavy snowstorms in January.

In the Lofer area the road is a little winding but I don't remember any precipitous dropoffs. (If you drove from Mittenwald to Innsbruck via Zirl - now THAT could be hairy!). Just stick to the main road which pretty much remains level and she should be fine.

I would love to drive that same route again myself. Lofer is a charming little oasis after driving through so many miles of forest and fields. It's been close to twenty years since I drove this route so unless some major earthquakes or volcanoes have sprung up, the route should pretty much remain unchanged. Somewhere after Lofer and in that relatively flat portion on the way to St. Johan there is a big horse farm. I think it may be a Lippizaner stud farm open for tours. I always meant to stop but we were always in too much of a hurry.

ira

Hi Zeus,

>If you're talking about someone, like myself, who gets a bit anxious about observation decks on tall buildings or bridges crossing a valley between two high mountains, she shouldn't have any problems.<

>If you plan on driving the B-178 through Lofer to St. Johan then on through Kufstein to the Autobahn, I wouldn't be too concerned. <

That's it, exactly. Thank you very much.