al998

Hello,

I discovered this forum 2 few weeks ago, looking to organize our trip around Munich, Salzburg, Vienna and maybe Budapest and any feedback on this trip would be welcome. It’s the first time we’re going in this region.

The trip will start in Munich and should end in Vienna 10 nights later. We could spend 1 more night if needed.

I’m wondering if my itinerary makes sense.

Day 1: Settle in Munich (Will arrive around 9 am). Visit the city

Day 2: Castles of Neuschwanstein and Linderhof (A must for us)

Day 3: Munich or Bavaria (Augsburg , Rothenburg or Lake Chiemsee)

Day 4: Go to Salzburg. Visit the city

Day 5: Salzkammergut Lakes-Austrian Alps (St-Gilgen, Ferry on Worlgansee)

Day 6: Go to Vienna (settle there for 5 nights)

Day 7: Cruise on Wachau Valley, visit Melk & Krems

Day 8 : Visit Vienna

Day 9 : Visit Vienna or Side Trip to Budapest or Bratislava

D 10 : Visit Vienna

Day 11 : Leave

My main questions are :

Does the side trip to Budapest make sense? Would it better to spend 2 nights there (and fly back from Budapest) and cut 1 night in Vienna or Munich? Or spend more time in the 3 first destinations and cut Budapest? We never went to Eastern Europe.

- Should we rent a car for Munich and/or Salzburg or travel only by train?

- In Munich & Salzburg, would you go to hotels in the city or B&B’s outside?

Thanks a lot in advance.

tn

al998,

I did this trip, in reverse, in December. I have stopped in Munich and Salzburg a number of times. Both are among my favorite places.

You are really moving around quite a bit. I would suggest you think about slowing down some for this trip. For example, you should spend at least two days in Munich and three would be better. Otherwise, you really wont get to see much of it.

I would recommend Salzburg for a minimum of one night, but hopefully you are there for two days. I have not done your stops in between Salzburg and Vienna.

We spend four days in Vienna, and did not feel like it was adequate. Of course, some of this depends on the types of activities you enjoy. Vienna has a lot to see.

So, I would suggest slowing down a bit.

Brataslava is great, and only 45 minutes or so from Vienna. A lovely small city that is easy to visit in a day. Budapest is longer, if I recall, more like 2 or 2.5 hours on the train. That is a long day if you go there and back.

All of your travel here is easy to do by train (with the possible exception of Lakes region, which I have not had the opportunity to plan a trip to yet!). If you go to www.bahn.com, you can plan it out easily. But it is just about 2 hours between Munich and Salzburg and about 2.5 from Salzburg to Vienna. Definitlty go by train.

I think whether you stay in a B&B or a hotel is a matter of preference. But for location, I would definitely opt for the center cities. That is where most of what you want to see will be, so l like to stay in those areas.

Aramis

First - itinerary comments;


Day 1: Settle in Munich (Will arrive around 9 am). Visit the city

OK - jet lag day


Day 2: Castles of Neuschwanstein and Linderhof (A must for us)

A must is a must


Day 3: Munich or Bavaria (Augsburg , Rothenburg or Lake Chiemsee)

Your previous day will be long and busy - if you day trip from Munich today you will have only spent 1 jet lagged day in the City and will end up day tripping or moving every day from Day 2 - through Day 7

Day 4: Go to Salzburg. Visit the city

Sweet


Day 5: Salzkammergut Lakes-Austrian Alps (St-Gilgen, Ferry on Worlgansee)

More sweet


Day 6: Go to Vienna (settle there for 5 nights)

Stately sweet. Consider taking one night from Vienna and adding to Salzburg


Day 7: Cruise on Wachau Valley, visit Melk & Krems

Perfect day trip but maybe better on Day 8? That gives you a chance to "settle" in Vienna for 1.5 days.


Day 8 : Visit Vienna

Or Melk & Krems - see previous comment.


Day 9 : Visit Vienna or Side Trip to Budapest or Bratislava

Budapest is a long day trip (2.5 hours each way), Bratislava a quick boat ride


D 10 : Visit Vienna

Or maybe you added a day to Salzburg.....


Day 11 : Leave

Too bad



Questions asked


As noted, the side trip to Budapest is 5 hours of traveling. Your 10 days and 3 locations planned make adding Budapest as a 4th stop even more busy. You have a lot of travel and/or day trip days in here - it will be tiring.

The only really sensible car rental here would be to rent on Day 5 in Salzburg for your Salzkammergut day trip and use the car for the drive to Vienna the next day, too. If you trade a day in Vienna for Salzburg, you have the option of renting for 3 days and taking several trips into the area around Salzburg. You could include Hallstatt, or Koenigsee, for example. If you can find a rental in Munich that doesn't have a high drop charge for Vienna, you could rent when leaving Munich instead and see some things on the way to Salzburg.

I have a personal preference for always staying in the heart of whatever city, town, or village we visit. Being able to walk around at night or early in the morning amongst the things I came to see, whether it is architecture, cafe (Bierkeller!) life or whatever is invaluable to me. Some people want the peace and quiet of getting away from the action after a hard day. It's up to your likes and dislikes and maybe your budget. It will also save you time to stay centrally.

Oh, one more thing - SPEND THE OTHER NIGHT! (haha - smile now)

al998

Thanks a lot for your help tn and Aramis. It’s much appreciated.

We didn’t realize we did so much travel & day trips.

For Salzburg, we initially planned 2 nights : 1 day visiting the city and 1 day visiting the Salzkammergut. If we add 1 night there like you two suggest, should we allocate it to another day-trip or to Salzburg?

Is Bratislava worth the day-trip or should we spend that day in Vienna? I guess we will see when we're in Vienna.

Thanks.

bardo1

It's up to you but Salzburg is tiny. You can see the old town and the castle in less than 1/2 a day. The car rental suggestion is a great idea.

bachslunch

I'd spend a day in Salzburg -- there's easily a full day's worth of things to see, small as the historic area is.

tn

I have only visited Brataslava once. It is an easy day trip, and it is a nice looking place. I was there on a short business trip, not leisure, so I cannot add much. But I think the idea of seeing how Vienna goes is probably right. Its easy to get there if you run through everything in Vienna.

On Salzburg, my love for it may lead to overestimating the amount of time you should spend there. But it is a beautiful old town. I think a half day is too short, and I would definitely encourage you to overnight. If you are going in the summer, expect it to be quite crowded on the main street (Getreidegasse), which is largely for shopping. In other seasons, it is busy, but not a river of people.

For a great lunch or dinner in Salzburg, consider Goldene Ente at Goldgasse 10.

In Munich, for a traditional Bavarian meal, I would highly recommend Zum Durnbrau at Dürnbräugasse 2...this is just a few blocks from the Hofbrau Haus.

TN

Abraxas

I just came back from traveling through Bavaria and Franconia + Salzburg. I enjoyed it quite a bit. I'm already planning on going back in a couple of years. I suggest visiting Lake Chiemsee on your way to Salzburg (by train). The only way you'll be able to do both Neuschwanstein and Linderhof on the same day is if you rent a car on that day. It doesn't seem feasible with public transport. If you can, I'd suggest staying a night in Fussen (lovely little town). I stayed at a quaint B & B called Casa Patrizia with a nice view of Neuschwanstein from my balcony. I like your itinerary. I was initially going to visit Vienna as well but ended up sacrificing it and traveling through Franconia (Nuremberg, Bamberg and Wurzburg) instead. However, I'd suggest spending more time in Munich. One day is clearly not enough. Also, I'd add an extra day to Salzburg. While it can be an expensive city it is well worth the time and money. It was my girlfriend's favorite stop on our trip.

annhig

if you follow Aramis's idea of hiring a car after Salzburg, you can combine the drive to Vienna with the day trip to Melk, as it and the Wachau Valley are en route.

That gives you this:

Day 1: Settle in Munich (Will arrive around 9 am). Visit the city

Day 2: Castles of Neuschwanstein and Linderhof (A must for us)

Day 3:Munich - whatever you've missed

Day 4:Munich or Bavaria (Augsburg , Rothenburg or Lake Chiemsee)

Day 5: Go to Salzburg. Visit the city

Day 6alzkammergut Lakes-Austrian Alps (St-Gilgen, Ferry on Wolfgansee)

Day 7: Go to Vienna (settle there for 4 nights)

Day 8 : Visit Vienna

Day 9 : Visit Vienna or Side Trip to Budapest or Bratislava

D 10 : Visit Vienna

Day 11 : Leave

this gives you only 4 nights in vienna but more time actually in the city. I suggest that you don't go to Budapest - it really is too far, and with only 3 full days in vienna, Bratislava is a bot of an ask, though if you really fancy it, you can go on the hydrofoil up the danube which is a lot of fun.

a very nice 1/2 day trip outside the city [just] can be made to the Heurige [wine taverns] of Grinzing, you get there on the u-bahn/tram and/or bus and can wander around taking your pick of their wines and very reasonably priced buffets and other food. we really liked the ones near the Beethovenhaus in Heiligenstadt.

hope this helps,

have a great trip!