Three Or Four Days In Austria, May 2014
Nov 3rd, 2013, 03:37 AM
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Three Or Four Days In Austria, May 2014
I am thinking of spending 3 or 4 days in Austria, in May, 2014. I am trying to decide between Switzerland and Austria. Can you please help?
I'm a pretty typical tourist. I enjoy quaint towns and villages. I want to experience majestic mountains as well. I'm not a skiier or hiker, so that is not important to me. I would like to stay in one place during my short stay, if at all possible. Where would you suggest I use in Austria, as my base?
Any help you can give would be very greatly appreciated. Thanks very much.
I'm a pretty typical tourist. I enjoy quaint towns and villages. I want to experience majestic mountains as well. I'm not a skiier or hiker, so that is not important to me. I would like to stay in one place during my short stay, if at all possible. Where would you suggest I use in Austria, as my base?
Any help you can give would be very greatly appreciated. Thanks very much.
Nov 3rd, 2013, 03:49 AM
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LOL, put off by the posts on your Switzerland thread?
First off, the mountains are not as "majestic" in Austria compared to Switzerland. They're still beautiful and without knowing Switzerland you wouldn't know the difference - and enjoy the Austrian Alps very much
For May I second Weisser Tee's recommendation of Salzburg and the nearby lakes. (However, I am not a big fan of Salzburg myself, bad experiences with people there and overall too touristy/crowded.)
First off, the mountains are not as "majestic" in Austria compared to Switzerland. They're still beautiful and without knowing Switzerland you wouldn't know the difference - and enjoy the Austrian Alps very much
For May I second Weisser Tee's recommendation of Salzburg and the nearby lakes. (However, I am not a big fan of Salzburg myself, bad experiences with people there and overall too touristy/crowded.)
Nov 3rd, 2013, 05:22 AM
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I'm smiling at your comment!! I've found this form to be very helpful, but people definitely have their own bias, which is fine. That's why I'm trying to get as many opinions as possible!
So you second the recommendation of Salzburg, but you're not a big fan of Salzburg? Care to elaborate?
I really am looking for "majestic." I want my breath taken away by what I see and experience. It sounds like Switzerland may do the trick, more than Austria?
So you second the recommendation of Salzburg, but you're not a big fan of Salzburg? Care to elaborate?
I really am looking for "majestic." I want my breath taken away by what I see and experience. It sounds like Switzerland may do the trick, more than Austria?
Nov 3rd, 2013, 07:21 AM
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First of all you must decide, where you want to go in the Land Salzburg. Salzburg is a town far away from the "majestic" Alps, a bit like Zurich or Basle compared to the Swiss Alps.
The most accessible glacier around Salzburg would probably be the Kitzsteinhorn, 2 1/2 hrs OW. Bigger accessible glacier areas are in Oetztal/Pitztal/Kaunertal, about 2 hrs from Innsbruck.
In my perception these glaciers are more hidden than those around Wengen, Grindelwald, Zermatt, Saas Fee, Argentiere, Riederalp and it would therefore be rather difficult to find a place with fine views to them (except alpine club huts closed in May).
I fully agree with Ingo:
"First off, the mountains are not as "majestic" in Austria compared to Switzerland. They're still beautiful and without knowing Switzerland you wouldn't know the difference - and enjoy the Austrian Alps very much".
The most accessible glacier around Salzburg would probably be the Kitzsteinhorn, 2 1/2 hrs OW. Bigger accessible glacier areas are in Oetztal/Pitztal/Kaunertal, about 2 hrs from Innsbruck.
In my perception these glaciers are more hidden than those around Wengen, Grindelwald, Zermatt, Saas Fee, Argentiere, Riederalp and it would therefore be rather difficult to find a place with fine views to them (except alpine club huts closed in May).
I fully agree with Ingo:
"First off, the mountains are not as "majestic" in Austria compared to Switzerland. They're still beautiful and without knowing Switzerland you wouldn't know the difference - and enjoy the Austrian Alps very much".
Nov 3rd, 2013, 08:04 AM
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I totally understand that you want as many opinions as possible. However, I highly recommend you do some research on the internet or in guide books (your local library?) It helps to sort out the opinions of others.
As neckervd said, the city Salzburg is very different from the state (Land) of the same name. The city is at the foot of the mountains, and while that's true for Lucerne or Thun as well, the mountains around Salzburg are not as tall - by far.
I was in Salzburg (city) a couple of times and found it to be quite crowded (in late March too!), the people quite unfriendly and not helpful at all (in the hotel as well as in a bakery, the staff in the cathedral was downright rude, the famous cafe Tommaselli was full of smokers and you could hardly breathe ... and it was *way* too much Mozart at every corner for my taste. All the time and everywhere his music doodling, advertising for anything with some (distant) relation to Mozart, Mozart pralines (Mozartkugeln), and so on.
Anyway, the scenery around Salzburg is rather lovely than majestic. The lakes e.g. - Wolfgangsee or so - are beautiful, but the mountains are way too low to be 'majestic'. Neckervd is right, Kitzsteinhorn (and Dachstein) are the closest glaciers worth seeing to Salzburg. Although these are quite dramatic they cannot compete with the Jungfrau region and the Western Alps in general.
However, you must keep in mind what was said on your Switzerland thread: Early or mid May is way too early for the resorts/villages in the highest and most majestic Alps. Most of them are shut down, in Switzerland as well as in France. So, like Weisser Tee said, you would walk through ghost towns mostly while gawking at the majestic peaks. Don't know if that is fun.
Another point to consider: In May the snow line will be quite low, maybe at 2000 m or so. Anywhere in the Alps. You will hardly recognise if it is a glacier you're looking at or not. Even lower peaks that are usually not as majestic do look more majestic in May. Which means you would probably enjoy the views of Kitzsteinhorn and the Hohen Tauern massif in state Salzburg quite much. A good base would be Zell am See, which is not just a tourist resort, but a real small town. (Although I never found the Hohe Tauern to be breathtaking, granted.)
As neckervd said, the city Salzburg is very different from the state (Land) of the same name. The city is at the foot of the mountains, and while that's true for Lucerne or Thun as well, the mountains around Salzburg are not as tall - by far.
I was in Salzburg (city) a couple of times and found it to be quite crowded (in late March too!), the people quite unfriendly and not helpful at all (in the hotel as well as in a bakery, the staff in the cathedral was downright rude, the famous cafe Tommaselli was full of smokers and you could hardly breathe ... and it was *way* too much Mozart at every corner for my taste. All the time and everywhere his music doodling, advertising for anything with some (distant) relation to Mozart, Mozart pralines (Mozartkugeln), and so on.
Anyway, the scenery around Salzburg is rather lovely than majestic. The lakes e.g. - Wolfgangsee or so - are beautiful, but the mountains are way too low to be 'majestic'. Neckervd is right, Kitzsteinhorn (and Dachstein) are the closest glaciers worth seeing to Salzburg. Although these are quite dramatic they cannot compete with the Jungfrau region and the Western Alps in general.
However, you must keep in mind what was said on your Switzerland thread: Early or mid May is way too early for the resorts/villages in the highest and most majestic Alps. Most of them are shut down, in Switzerland as well as in France. So, like Weisser Tee said, you would walk through ghost towns mostly while gawking at the majestic peaks. Don't know if that is fun.
Another point to consider: In May the snow line will be quite low, maybe at 2000 m or so. Anywhere in the Alps. You will hardly recognise if it is a glacier you're looking at or not. Even lower peaks that are usually not as majestic do look more majestic in May. Which means you would probably enjoy the views of Kitzsteinhorn and the Hohen Tauern massif in state Salzburg quite much. A good base would be Zell am See, which is not just a tourist resort, but a real small town. (Although I never found the Hohe Tauern to be breathtaking, granted.)
Nov 4th, 2013, 06:35 AM
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SHUT DOWN VILLAGES
What's the definiton for that?
1. Completely closed (no open restaurant, no postal delivery, no public transport, no running cableway), no local people living there, like many resort places in France and some in Italy
2. Almost all hotels, shops and restaurants closed, no running cableway, but postal delivery and public transport running, very few local people living there,
3. Village with about 500-1000 local people living there all the year round, shops and restaurants for local people and 1 or 2 small hotels resp restaurants with rooms to let open, no running cableway, but postal delivery and public transport running, bigger hotels, touristic restaurants and souvenir shops closed.
Most "shut down places" in Switzerland belong to category 3.
The following more or less artificially created resort places in Switzerland belong to category 2, however:
Moleson Village, Revereulaz, Champoussin, Les Crosets, La Tsoumaz, Haute Nendaz, Veysonnaz, Thyon2000, Les Collons, Prafirmin-Mayens de la Dzou, Mayens d'Arbaz, Anzere, La Delege, Aminona, Buerchen Station (Zenhischere/Egga)
Or does "shut down" in this forum mean: places with no English speaking tourists?
What's the definiton for that?
1. Completely closed (no open restaurant, no postal delivery, no public transport, no running cableway), no local people living there, like many resort places in France and some in Italy
2. Almost all hotels, shops and restaurants closed, no running cableway, but postal delivery and public transport running, very few local people living there,
3. Village with about 500-1000 local people living there all the year round, shops and restaurants for local people and 1 or 2 small hotels resp restaurants with rooms to let open, no running cableway, but postal delivery and public transport running, bigger hotels, touristic restaurants and souvenir shops closed.
Most "shut down places" in Switzerland belong to category 3.
The following more or less artificially created resort places in Switzerland belong to category 2, however:
Moleson Village, Revereulaz, Champoussin, Les Crosets, La Tsoumaz, Haute Nendaz, Veysonnaz, Thyon2000, Les Collons, Prafirmin-Mayens de la Dzou, Mayens d'Arbaz, Anzere, La Delege, Aminona, Buerchen Station (Zenhischere/Egga)
Or does "shut down" in this forum mean: places with no English speaking tourists?
Nov 7th, 2013, 12:46 PM
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I can still remember over 40 years ago, when I was 21, visiting the town of Charmonix, around 2 hours from Geneva, Switzerland. The town is charming and taking the 2 cable cars, on a hot August 1973 day, to the top with snow all over. My photos of this town are still my all time favorite. Add this stop to your list! Unfortgettable!!
