Suggestions for December trip - Switzerland, Germany, Austria?
 

We're contemplating a return trip to Europe this December.

Germany, Switzerland and Austria spring to mind as we enjoy Christmas markets, winter hiking, alpine villages, etc. but we're also open to something completely new (we've been to England, Scotland, France, Belgium, Netherlands, a tiny bit of Italy). We prefer small towns and villages.

I seem to recall neckervd posting a list of off-the-beaten path Swiss ski areas that appealed, but I can't locate the thread.

The loose plan at this point is a week in Germany (or Austria) and two in Switzerland.

In Germany we've visited Munich, Berchtesgaden, Garmisch, Regensberg, Bamberg, Dresden, Meissen, Annaberg-Buchholtz, Schneeberg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Nuremburg, Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Fussen, Mittenwald and probably a few more that I can't think of at the moment.

In Switzerland we've visited the BO (extensively), the Upper and Lower Engadine, the Vorderrhein valley in the Surselva district, as well as Lucerne, Zurich, Kandersteg, Adelboden, Zermatt, Engelberg, Arosa-Lenzerheide, Basel, Chur, Montreux.

In Austria we've visited Innsbruck, Vienna and Salzburg, although it's been many years. Kitzbühel has been on our radar for many years, but stays of less than a week in December seem problematic (?)

I realize this is vague, but I'm just stuck, and therefore wondering if we should do something completely out of our comfort zone, but not sure exactly what that might be. Any suggestions, keeping in mind time of year and our low key travel style?

Hallstatt area for high Alps and pretty setting of town?

Hi Mel, haven't been there but have on my to do list...Gosausee in Austria. Maybe the nearby village is too small as a base, but it looks like fabulous hiking.

My recommendation: Any where that you can get pizokels and capuns! ;)

Oooo...promising suggestions. Thank you.

I googled Gosausee, is the nearest town Goasau? Population 1,889...works for me.

I shall look into both Gosausee and Hallstatt, which look pretty close on the map.

I hear ya kja, we may have to squeeze Grisons in there somewhere just for a pizokel and capun fix. Our stomachs do tend to direct our travel...

There is a guest house at Gosausee. We haven't stayed there but ate there during our visit in summer 2016 and it looked nice.

Gasthof-gosausee

Thanks Trophywife, I'll take a look.

Never miss Christmas holidays in Austria. The enormous Christmas market at Rathauspark and Innsbruck, their Belvedere Palace, and of course the singing chorale in front of Cathedral in Salzberg makes me miss that wonderful Christmas experience.

I will offer Seefeld in Tirol. DH, DDog and I just spent five nights there (our fourth visit) including twice the days in between Christmas and New Years. Lots of winter activities; Innsbruck and Hall in Tirol are easy to reach by train, too. We are currently in the Öztal for the remainder of our alpine holiday and are most thoroughly enjoying (and exhausting) ourselves with hiking and sauna-ing; so much so, in fact, that we might just propose the area to the "children" (17 and 22) for this year's getaway between Christmas and New Year's, for the cross-country outings and places like the Aqua Dome.

Thank you fourfourtravel - we visited Seefeld eons ago, but maybe it's time we go back. Enjoy the rest of your holiday. I'll look forward to your trip report.

Are you travelling with a car? We'll probably be limited to train/bus travel.

Melnq8, thank you. Seefeld has adopted a little more chicy-mhicy vibe in the last couple of years, especially as they are preparing for a huge Nordic ski championship event next February; though, the charming village still offers the outdoor enthusiast great aesthetic value in an incredible setting. There won't be a trip report, though. Nine days of, "We hiked. We sauna-ed. We ate amazing Tirolean cuisine." probably wouldn't inspire anyone. :) And yes, we are traveling with our personal vehicle; not only is it more manageable with DDog, but it allows us the flexibility to see and do beyond what train and bus schedules offer.

Hi Melnq8,

It's always such a challenge to come up with ideas for places that are new to you, as you, long ago, got to all the best-known places. Ah well. Here's my try --

For Germany, you don't mention the Bodensee, but can I assume you've seen it? If not, you may want to spend a few days at Lindau, and if it's not too wet, you may be able to do some biking down the lake. I believe none of the ferries will be running then, though; you'd have to check that out. I spent a few nights in Lindau some years ago, and it's a decent base to see Konstance, Bregenz, Meersburg.

I'll also recommend the town of Oberstdorf, which I ran through on the train into Lindau. It looks like a lovely place, and some few folks have asked about it over at the Bavaria boards at TA; it sounds charming.

Finally, I'll send a big recommendation for the small city of Aachen. I visited for just a couple of nights a few years ago just to follow the trail of Charlemagne, and I really hated to leave. It's a lovely town with very interesting winding streets leading to fascinating squares. It has some of the same feel as Regensberg, which I loved, so if you liked Regensberg, you'll probably like Aachen.

For Austria, you don't mention the Wolfgangsee, but again, it's so high on the tourist trail, I do wonder if you've already seen it? I personally am a sucker for Alpine lakes & mountains, and I adored spending some time in St Gilgen. I was without a car (of course...), and I got around mainly by renting bikes and by the bus. Saint Gilgen has a population around 3,600, and Saint Wolfgang has a population around 2,800 -- which doesn't seem at all right to me because Saint Wolfgang has more hotels, restaurants, and shops, and does seem bigger. Anyway, I've seen pictures of their Christmas market by the lake, and it looks so beautiful!!

For Switzerland, I would suggest the area around St Gallen, though I haven't visited there yet. From what I've heard, it's an area of beautiful rolling hills, and I'm drawn to it because of that.

I'll only add that (and fourfortravel knows my feelings on this) Seefeld in Tyrol is very near Garmisch, and out of curiosity, I visited there for a day one time. I just strolled through and around town, saw the little sports platz outside of town, etc. Didn't do any hiking. The town didn't really hit my heart, though I'm not at all sure why. Maybe because I live in Garmisch, and it's quite similar??? Fourfortravel, I think, feels the same way about Garmisch that I do about Seefeld -- that it's nice enough but not particularly special.

Have fun! Hope your research yields tons of new gems for you!!

s

I see that in Germany the state Thuringia is completely missing in your list of travels so far. They have picturesque small towns with wonderful, historic old towns! And Christmas markets, too! Erfurt might be a bit too big for your taste, but I like it very much as it has one of the best preserved old towns in Germany. Their Christmas markets is very charming (and large), at the foot of cathedral hill - quite a scene! Expect crowds, though ...

Smaller Thuringian towns that come to my mind: Eisenach, Arnstadt (Christmas market 6-9 Dec), Mühlhausen (Christmas market Thur-Sun over 3rd Advent), Lauscha, *the* glassblowing town where Christmas tree ornaments are manufactured (www.thueringen.info/lauscha.html), Schmalkalden, a cute small town with impressive castle and Christmas market through December (Schmalkalder Herrscheklasmarkt 2017)

Or what about Sachsen-Anhalt? Naumburg is fantastic (Christmas market 26 Nov - 23 Dec, www.naumburg-im-advent.de) with famous cathedral and nice old town. Or the Harz towns with timber-framed houses like Quedlinburg, Wernigerode ...

I, too, assumed that you have toured the Salzkammergut and so did not mention it. The Wolfgangseer Adventmarkt is spectacular; while the markets are open the ferry around the lake is operational, so with the right planning you can visit all three markets in one day (St. Gilgen, St. Wolfgang, and Strobl). So far this set of markets ranks among our top favorites for the charming simplicity, the others being the local markets held for one weekend only in various old palaces, and one in a gorge (the Glühwein was definitely appreciated for that market!)

swandav2000, if I had visited Seefeld as a day trip and did not partake of outdoor activities I, too, would not have been inspired. In fact, over our five nights this week we spent little time in the village proper; the exorbitantly-priced boutiques and tourist-clogged cafes were as uninteresting to me as are the ordinary chain stores in GAP. That said, both destinations serve us equally well for outdoor activities; we tend to lean towards Seefeld, though because it is easier to reach from Vienna; and because the grocers will be open on Sundays and most holidays (a big plus for us when renting a holiday home over the Christmas season.)

3 weeks in December? Don't you live in Australia and you want to go to Germany, Austria and Switzerland?

Maybe try some skiing for that amount of time.

I did hike around for a couple of hours around Wengen, including in the snow. But nicer when the sun is out.

I went to the Vienna Christmas market. Nice but so cold, couldn't stay out too long. I think some people are jaded about European Christmas markets, complaining about all the cheap Chinese manufactured goods there instead of real handmade crafts from small European villages.

melanq lives in Colorado I think.

Thanks for all the recommendations!

scrb11 - We lived in Australia for seven years, but retired to Colorado three years ago, and yes, we made Christmas trips to Europe from Australia several times, specifically to get away from the oppressive heat. Not going to ski. We've had wonderful winter weather in Switzerland in December on past visits - not-so-much in Germany.

Our house was struck by lightening Friday, we've been without internet (currently borrowing the neighbors), but I will take a good look at all these wonderful suggestions once things have settled down around here.

:omg: I hope you and yours are OK!?!

We're fine, thank you kja - we have some damage and some electrical issues, but small potatoes compared to what could have happened. The noise was indescribable.

Whew! I'll take your word about the noise -- I have no interest in personally confirming what it sounded like! Best to you and yours. :)