What things not to miss
 

Please advise the most important things not to miss in Salszburg and Wien. <BR>Also good restaurants suggestions, <BR>shopping,theaters,etc.Thanks for your advises

Rosy, <BR> <BR>When in Vienna pick up the book Vienna A-Z. All historic sights are marked with flags and a number. Just look up the number of the sight in the A-Z book and you'll be able to know what you're looking at. <BR> <BR>In Vienna I enjoyed St. Stephen's Cathedral, Schonbrun and Belevedere palaces, tour of Opera house, Mozart concert, Mass at Hapsburg chapel with the Vienna Choir Boys singing, the giant ferris wheel in the Prater amusement park (this offered a great view of the city), walking around the Graben (pedestrian area), eating pastries in the many cafes (a couple of the famous ones are Demel and Sacher hotel), the Statspark has outdoor concerts (free). I love Vienna - the people are friendly and joyful. <BR> <BR>Enjoy your trip <BR>

Salzburg: Go to the castle. Take the tour. Sound of Music Tour will also give you a good tour of the outlying towns and lakes. if you are into beer halls, the main large one is called Muren, I believe. It is easy to find and has Augustiner beer. Mozarts birthplace. If you go to the birthplace: As you are facing the building where Mozart was born, turn around. There will be a tiny bar that is fun to have a beer in and it has tables for dinner up one flight. Take a tour of the city in one of the small vans. They will give you a great overview of the area. Same for Vienna.

Thanks Adrienne and Bob for your advises. Someone knows if The Spanish School Horse Riding it's open during October and november...What do you think about the Osterreicherhof Hotel in Salzburg and The Regina Hotel in Wien? Thanks again!

We just got back from Salzburg and Vienna... loved seeing the treasures at the Hofburg Palace along with everything else the others have mentioned.

I stayed at the Regina, but it was several years ago. It was a pleasant, older hotel. The location was convenient for walking to many places.

Where do you get tickets to the sound of music tour? Do I need to get them in advance and how long does the tour take? thanks!

Rosy, <BR> <BR>You can get tickets to the SOMT directly accross from the Mirabella Gardens. <BR> <BR>The tour is both interesting and a bit hokey. I mean a whole busload of folks singing the SOM songs is fun, though!

How long does the Sound tour take? Thanks

BP - The Sound of Music Tour takes four hours. It's a great way to see more of the city of Salzburg and surrounding area, including the Lake District, with a very scenic drive through some of the beautiful mountain areas around Salzburg. Our innkeeper arranged our tour for us and we were picked up at our hotel and driven by shuttle van to the Coach tour gathering spot. It was very enjoyable. <BR>

Great suggesions guys. But while in Vienna do not miss the Hofburg Palace with it's Imperial Apartments Kaiserappartements) and the Treasury. Also the Kunsthistorisches Museum (across the Ring from the Hofburg Palace) with its masterpieces by Durer, Rubens, Titian, and Raphael. One last place in Vienna is the Kaisergrugt, the crypt containing the remains of the Habsburgs (Kaiser Franz Joseph, Kaiserina Elisabeth, and Kaiserina Maria-Theresa to mention a few).

When I was in Salzburg I took the Sound of Music tour with Bob's Tours. It is on a small bus, seats about 8-10. The day we went, there was only 4 of us on the tour so we could be very flexible about where we went & how long we stayed. The tour guide, (Bernhard) was a very pleasant young man. He was very knowledgable about the area & the movie. <BR> <BR>One drawback about Bobs Tours, the front seat has a very high back & you could not see out the front window from the backseat. You had only side views without having to stretch to see above the back of the seat.