Can anyone give input on the Sound of Music Tour in Salzburg and the Castles tour in Bavaria given by Panorama tours? <BR>Also, we will be visiting the castles as a side trip from Munich--is it better to go on a tour or rent a car for one day? <BR>Thanks.

Another question, if taking Castle tour, does the tour provide "advanced" reservations so that you don't have to wait in line at the Castles?

We took the Sound of Music tour in Salzburg. It was December at the time. I have to say I really was not into the movie that much. But we really enjoyed the tour, they do show where many of the scenes were filmed but the landscape was what we really thought was beautiful. Have fun in Salzburg we loved it - more than Vienna I would not hesitate to go back again. We also took the Panorama tour to Neuschwanstein with a stop in Oberammergau. We enjoyed that as well. It was nice not to have to worry about driving and if you are renting the car only for that I would say it might be better to just take the tour. Have fun

We took the tour in '97, and really enjoyed it. You will really enjoy the town of St. Gilgen and the town where the wedding chapel is, although you don't have much time in either one. I have another suggestion for Salzburg which we very much enjoyed. We had dinner at a fortress on a hill in the middle of town, followed by a concert. The food was o.k., but the views were spectacular! I can probably get you some more info on this, if you'd like me to. Salzburg is a wonderful place!

We vistited Munich in April of 2000. Had no car but wanted to see some country side and the castles. We used Panorama tours for the Munich city tour and the castle tour. We have taken several tours such as this in U.S. and Europe and thought these were some of the best. Guides were interesting and friendly without being overbearing and the guide to the castles gave a lot of info about what you were seeing along the way. He even spoke 3 or 4 languages. Like most tours of this kind we felt a little rushed. We would have liked to linger a little longer at the shops and hiked to the bridge above Neuschwanstein (marienbruck SP?) the absolute best views of the castle. No, they don't reserve a tour. They do get your ticket for you but you still have to wait in line. We had to wait for an hour! My suggestions would be to grag a quick bite or better yet bring a small picnic lunch and eat up near the castle the view is better up there. If you eat at the recommended restaurant it takes to long. Take the Horse cart up! I thought I was in good shape but the walk all the way up is a killer. Go the the castle first then you know how much time you have left and walk up to the bridge if time. The walk down is much easier and just as pretty. On your own would be the best way to see the castles but all in all a great way to see them with a limited amount of time and no car. Have fun, hope this helps!

We took the Panorama Sound of Music tour in March 2000. I had never seen the movie, but my husband did and wanted to see the film sites. Our guide was great- originally from Floriday but lived in Austria for the last 20 years. The tour was really fun and we breifly got to see the lakes region and two small towns. They also took us to see Eagle's next in Germany on the tour.