My wife and I are lucky enough to be able to spend two weeks in Austria. We will be traveling end of september and early october. We know we want to visit Vienna and Salzburg. approx three days each city. The rest of the time we would like to tour the countryside.We will be flying into Munich. Out of Vienna. Your thoughts and ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Graz is one of the great missed out cities. It has a lot of the medieval atmosphere, the architecture is beautiful and the old town is largely intact.

In the middle of the city there is a mountain on top of which is a fortress, Schlossberg. The walk up the hill is tiring, but rewarding with magnificent views, far in the distance.

Plus there is a military museum in the fortress, and on the way up you pass by the Clock Tower, symbol of the city. If you're too tired after the walk up, you can have a beer (or something else) on the terrace overlooking the city.

There's a good museum (Joanneum) in town with several sections. You can visit Eggenberg Palace, just outside the city (you can get there by tram from the station).

This palace was made after the Escorial, and nice side streets with hidden cafes to walk around.

It is not for nothing that it has been chosen European Cultural Capital.

The area around Klagenfurt is beautiful as well.

DH and I have traveled quite extensively throughout Europe and Austria is probably our favorite country thus far...we love it! Two weeks will give you a great feel for the country.

One of our favorite areas in Austria is the Wachau Valley. Its a section of the Danube that starts in Krems, only about an hour or so from Vienna, and ends in Melk. There are plenty of picturesque little towns and villages along the 24 mile stretch. Melk itself is a great little town but the Melk Abbey is spectacular and a must-see if you are there. After we visited the Abbey we drove to Krems, parked our car and rented bikes. We biked to Spitz, stopping in towns and wineries along the way. In Spitz we caught the sightseeing boat back to Krems, where we dropped our bikes off and continued on our way. All in all it made for a fantastic day, although spending a few days there would be a treat. Here is some information on the area: http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/desti...chauvalley.htm

You definitely have to visit the Salzkammergut when you are near Salzburg. The area is just beautiful, filled with quaint villages and pristine lakes in spectacular mountain settings. Hallstatt is a must, but the towns along the Wolfgangsee (St. Wolfgang and St. Gilgen) are also great places to visit.

When you are in this area, you should consider visiting Berchtesgaden and the surrounding villages in Germany, a short train ride or 20 minute drive from Salzburg. Berchtesgaden itself is a pleasant little town, and from there you can visit the Eagles Nest and nearby Koniggsee and Mt. Jenner. http://tinyurl.com/kfq3x for more information

While I didn't care much for Innsbruck, the small town of Hall in Tirol, about ten minutes from Innsbruck, is one of our favorite towns in Austria. Again, the mountain setting is incredible, and the town is so cute and pleasant.

Good luck!
Tracy

Hi M,

Another vote for a 2-3 day motor trip around the Salzkammergut.

What Tracy said !

If you have a car and are interested in history you might want to consider a trip to Mauthausen, a concentration camp near Linz. Absolutely fascinating and moving and no throngs of tour groups.

We also really enjoyed our stop in Hallstatt (on the way to Salzburg) - very picturesque little town...

Thank you to everyone for your wonderful insight. I can't believe how travel has changed so much. With all of the problems in the world today it is nice to know there are still rays of sunshine. Aloha and Mahalo !

Melk is nice along the Danube. I would add a day to Vienna if you have extras!! Go to the opera - at Volksoper you can get last minute tickets for under 10E. It is in German though.

In Salzburg visit Hellbrun!!

Hi Moko -

We made this trip a few years ago. You have asked about an itinerary - here was ours.

We landed in Munich and stayed about 2 days. Then rented a car and drove south, stopped in Garmisch and Mittenwald, crossed into Austria and drove west to Reutte. Early the next morning we went to Neuschwantein, and then saw Linderhof in the afternoon. Can't remember when, but we also went to Wies, and then back to Reutte. Doing it over again, and I have, sleep in Fuessen instead of Reutte.

Next day, we drove to Innsbruck. I understand why people are not crazy about Innsbruck, but the view of the mountains from town is beautiful, the summit of the mountain north of town is incredible and easy to get to, and the Weisses Kreuz hotel is very charming. We spent 2 nights there. And I agree with a previous poster's positive impressions of Hall in Tirol.

Next we drove south into Italy, walked around Bressanone a bit, and then drove east to Lienz. I thought Lienz was just perfect. Next we drove north on the Grossglocknerstrasse (check to see whether it's open late Sept / early Oct) to Salzburg. Stayed 2 or 3 nights in Salzburg. Make sure you go to Berchtesgaden for one of these days.

Then we drove through the Salzkammergut. We stopped in Mondsee before heading to Hallstatt. Please do not miss an overnight stay in Hallstatt. Amazingly beautiful. We could barely bring ourselves to leave.

But we did the next day, and drove east to Melk. We stayed overnight there, and in the morning I drove down the Danube while my SO cruised down. We met up in Duernstein, had lunch, and drove to Vienna. Stayed in Vienna 4 days. Do not short change Vienna. So much to do. Flew out of Vienna.

All this took us about 2 weeks. Unfortunately, we missed Vorarlberg, Graz, and the area around Woerthersee.

Of course there are hundreds of ways of doing a trip like this, but I am a fairly compulsive planner, and this itinerary worked out really well. We never felt the least bit rushed, and driving was just great.

Gute Reise!

Thank you again for all the response. we are actually considering two nights in Hallstatt. Would that be too much time?

We love Hallstatt and have spent 3 nights there on our last couple of trips. It is a different place without all the daytrippers. However, we also used Hallstatt as a base to explore the surrounding area including Wolfgangsee, Fuschl and Bad Ischl. I also highly recommend the local Hallstatt Museum. It is very well done and gives an amazing insight into the history of the area.

I do agree so much with the views expressed by others on this thread. Graz is certainly a great place to visit. And when you are in Salzburg do visit Berchstesgaden and in particular the Eagles Nest (only on a fine day though). Melk Abbey is very worthwhile and though I didn't like Hallstatt (I know I am outvoted here)I did love St. Wolfgang and the Wolfgangsee. If you visit Melk Abbey you will be near the town of Krems and the Hotel Post serves lovely food - traditional but refined.

Hope these hints are of help - happy travelling.

When you are in Vienna it is easy and inexpensive to get tickets for the training sessions of the Lippizaner horses (look it up on the web)and it is gorgeous to watch. Get there early to get a good seat. There is a quaint restaurant called 'Bretzel Gewoelbe'in an ancient cellar very historical and charismatic. And there is a good tour (in English) of the Opera House which is very nice.

In Salzburg there is a good restaurant (not too expensive) called Herzl.

If you have time in Munich the Deutsches Museum is good if you are interested in technology - V2 rockets, early planes, how different bridges are built and many other fascinating things. On the outskirts of Munich is the Nyphenburg palace and close by is a very large beer garden called the Hirschgarten - lovely and shady and you can pat the deer.

Sorry - got my best wishes line in the wrong place.

Once again Mahalo for all your help. I have to travel to Maui tomorrow on business and when I return I will sit down with my maps and plan away! Aloha

I really enjoyed Hallstatt but, in my personal opinion, its not the best place to explore the Salzkammergut because its farther away from things. If you wanted to base yourself in the Salzkammergut for a few days, my recommendation would be St. Gilgen. Its a picturesque little town on the Wolfgangsee. From there its a relatively short and easy drive to Hallstatt. Hallstatt is beautiful and charming, but can easily be seen in a day, or even half a day as its very small.

Tracy

Again, what Tracy said.
We love St. Gilgen.

The Deutches Museum and the Hirschgarten are 2 of our favorite places in Munich I definitely recommend them both.