Please help me settle this one last hurdle as I am ready to start booking, just not sure what to do, keeping in mind that we will be using only public transport.

After having our time in Vienna my original idea was to travel through Bad Ischl to St Gilgen and stay there for 3 days, visiting Hallstatt, hiking around and general sightseeing.
We would then take the bus to Salzburg and spend two nights,day one seeing the city and day two in Berchtesgaden. After that we will move onto an apartment in Mittenwald for 6 days and use that as our next base.

Now I am wondering if it might be a more sensible idea to stay put in Salzburg for 5 nights and do day trips from there. The Haus Am Moos, that is very highly regarded here, has a lovely apartment for €60 p/n including breakfast.

I would really appreciate your opinions so we can make an informed decision. Thank you.

I would stay in St. Gilgen and see the Wolfgangsee and Hallstatt from there. It is just a more pleasant ambiance.

Thanks Bob, that's a good point that you make.

Hi M,

Will you have a car?

Staying a few nights in St. Gilgen is a good idea. You would spend a good deal of time & money commuting between Salzburg and St. Gilgen, whereas you could be enjoying more of the beautiful Wolfgangsee area.
Salzburg (Moosstrasse) is a great base for Salburg City & Berchtesgaden touring. When you arrive in Salzburg by bus, pick up a day ticket for 3.40 Euros. This allow you to use the Salzburg bus system for 24 hours, rather than paying each time you get on a bus. The bus to Berchtesgaden (RVO Bus 840) leaves from the train station many times throughout the day. If you are traveling with a few people, buy a Bayern Ticket at DB machine. For 27 Euros, up to 5 people can travel after 9 am on weekdays in Bavaria. A train also runs to Berchtesgaden from Salzburg, a pleasant trip.

I don't think there is a need to have an overnight in Berchtesgaden ,as others have said it can be done easily from Salzburg.One piece of advice when visiting the eagles nest is to try and have at least 2 hours at the top (they have specific timed buses that you have to use).
2 hours would give you plenty of time for an official tour a look round the area and possibly a meal or a drink.

Thanks singfree and unclegus for your input, sounds like St Gilgen wins hands down. Also great suggestion about the bus pass and the RVO info.
Good thought about allowing 2 hours at the Eagles Nest.

No car Ira, using only public transport.

Hi M,

Without a car, it is not all that easy to get around the Salzkammergut.

3 nights in Salzburg would give you a chance to visit Berchtesgaden as well as seeing what Salzburg offers.

Get the Salzburg card:
http://www2.salzburg.info/sehenswertes_281.htm

Hallstatt is quite lovely, and I don't think 2 nights there would bore you.

You can get there directly from Vienna in about 4 hrs.

Keep in mind that the train drops you at the other side of the lake, and you take a ferry to town.

I'm sure that the Strassers will be able to help you with travel logistics.

Ira, thank you for your suggestions. The Salzburg card looks like a winner and now you have given me Hallstatt into the mix - yikes!
If we catch the train to Bad Ischl we then have the choice of staying in Hallstatt or St Gilgen then going onto to Salzburg. What would be the pro's & con's of Hallstatt against St Gilgen?
I know the transport around Salzkammergut isn't all that great but we really just want to soak up "being" there.

Hi M,

We passed through St. Gilgen on the way to Hallstatt.

Liked SG, loved Hallstatt.

Your choice. You won't go wrong.

People have also reported favorably on St. Wolfgang.

My personal choice would be St. Gilgen, because I love the vistas and the proximity to St. Wolfgang, but as Ira sais you really can't go wrong.

Tracy

Thanks everyone for your input, I think I will stick with our original idea of 3 days in St Gilgen and 2 in Salzburg.

I appreciate being able to throw ideas around and discuss them with everyone.

I spent two weeks on a home exchange in Salzburg last March and used it as a base for seeing some of the things you want to see.

I cannot comment on other places as bases for tourism because they were all day trips to me either from Salzburg or from a prior home exchange (July 2007) in Vienna.

I join with those who advise renting a car. Without a car you will be very limited as to where you can go--and when.

Thanks for your input Lauren but we are going green and will not be hiring a car, we are quite happy to see what we can by using public transport. I have spent hours looking at the DB website and planning and am quite happy with our choice.

But its good to know that Salzburg will be an easy place to base ourselves if we go that way.

If you are not going to have a car, 2-3 days should be sufficient for Salzburg as day trips will be mostly inconvenient or undoable to many places.

i would do 2 nights in salzburg and 3 nights in hallstatt. if you want to hike, i assume you like to be "away"... and hallstatt feels like the edge of the world, if you can find a place right on the water. salzburg is amazing, but really crawling with people. just depends on what you like... but that would be my vote.

Kawh, yes you have hit the nail on the head! We are not into cities all that much, we are happy to spend some time in them but then we like to get "away" and enjoy the countryside. I will have to now weigh up St Gilgen and Hallstatt. But if the AUD falls too much more against the Euro we might just be staying home!

Hi again Lauren, well as I said earlier the research is done and we CAN get to all the places we wish to see by public transport, we just prefer a different kind of holiday. Thanks for your input though.