Austria - where to stay??

[Larissa]

Kristen and I are going on our honeymoon in Austria in mid-April 2006, but we're starting to collect ideas now. Right now it's looking like 3 days in Vienna and 3 days in Salzburg. Does anyone have any ideas on where to stay? We will be flying into Vienna and not renting a car.

[Mrs. M.]

Hotels:

Vienna:
The most famous hotel is the Sacher, of the cake fame (above link).
They just opened a new Meridien, which looks fabulous, and the Hilton Stadtpark has been newly renovated.

Salzburg: We loved the Kobenzl www.kobenzl.at Super romantic, but not in the city center. There is a very nice Sheraton in the city. A nice mid-priced Hotel is Hoelle www.hoelle.at we had family stay there and they liked it a lot.

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The following is a repost of a Vienna tread from the other website...

Vienna is very easy to navigate and has great public transport.
There is tons to see, especially if you like arts and history!
http://www.mqw.at/ Museumsquartier
http://www.khm.at/ Art History museum
http://www.belvedere.at/ Austrian National Gallery (all the major Klimt pieces)
http://www.schoenbrunn.at Schönbrunn castle Habsburg residence
http://www.hofburg-wien.at/ Imperial palace and residence
http://www.albertina.at
there is much more, these are the musts I'd say

The first district and most of the cool stuff is inside or close to the "Ring". The subway is great, runs every few minutes and from 5 AM until a little past midnight. There is also trams, they are ok but rather slow, and buses.

As for areas to avoid... of course being a big city there are areas that are not as pretty as others. But we have always felt safe everywhere and crime is very low.

I've got a few more must see sights..
Stephansdom
and the opera house http://www.wiener-staatsoper.at/Content.Node2/intro.php
Shopping on Kärntnerstrasse
But if you go downtown, you cannot miss them anyways.
As for food, what Austrian cuisine does best (I think in the world) is pastry. Cakes, strudels, baked sweets. Most famous of course is the Sachertorte which you have to try at the Sacher cafe http://www.sacher.com/

But there are many other treats. Vienna is known for it's coffehouse culture.
A word on restaurants... this is Europe and people will smoke. Many restaurants do not even have a non-smoking-section. It sucks, I can't wait till they change that!
A fun thing to do as well is to visit a Heuriger - a typical winery with a tavern. Vienna actually has wineries within the city limits! http://www.aeiou.at/aeiou.encyclop.h/h559793.htm;internal&action=_setlanguage.action?LANGUAGE=en

As for bikes... I think they have a pretty good network of bikepaths, maybe not quite as good as the NL, but don't take my word as I don't even own a bike.

For Tickets for something , the above link to the Opera, as well as this: http://www.musicalvienna.at/ (english button on top right)

[HeatherFL]

bumping. :)

Might be spending some time in Austria during Christmas-time. Is this a good time of year to go? (I'd be expecting cold.) I would love to take in an opera or two and I'll be honest, I've been in love with it ever since seeing The Sound of Music. So any advice is appreciated! :)

[Mrs. M.]

Hi Heather, come see me in Vienna!

If you like romantic Christmas markets, this is a good time to go. Salzburg and western Austria can get lots of snow (looks lovely), Vienna doesn't usually get a lot of snow.

http://static2.orf.at/vietnam2/images/site/oesterreich/200543/weihnachtsbeleuchtung300.jpg

http://www.weihnachtsmarkt-deutschland.de/2004/bilder/wien-weihnachtsmarkt.jpg

[HeatherFL]

:eek: :D EEEEEEK I am so excited! Look at that. Oh my gosh it looks soooo beautiful! Yep Austria and Germany!!! We're looking at flights as I type this!

Thanks for the advice in the other thread. I'll keep you posted. :)

~H.

[ks_piper]

I'm actually going to Austria in May. I won a trip through work to visit the Riedel (www.riedel.com) glassworks in Kufstein in the state of Tyrol. I'm so giddy about going!!!

I won't get to do much sightseeing, but my boss won the trip last year and said was absolutely amazing. Beautiful beyond words. And the glassworks are definitely something you don't want to miss.

Looking forward to hearing about everyone's trips!!!

[Rosebud]

I haven't been to Austria, but wanted to throw out a couple hotel options I ran across that sounded interesting.

Hotel Das Triest (http://www.hoteldastriestvienna.com/)
Boutique hotel with modern design-- I read about this place on a couple of websites devoted to boutique/architectural hotels.

Das Tyrol (http://www.slh.com/austria/vienna/hotel_viedas.html)
This hotel is a member of Small Luxury Hotels of the World. I always trust their picks.

Hollmann Beletage (http://www.hollmann-beletage.at/en/reception.htm)
Another boutique hotel with a real focus on design. It's located in Vienna's historic district.

[Rosebud]

Oh, and you might want to check out these threads on Fodors.com:

Germany & Austria Christmas Trip Report (http://fodors.com/forums/threadselect.jsp?fid=2&tid=34938757)

Must see/do/buy in Salzburg at Christmas (http://fodors.com/forums/threadselect.jsp?fid=2&tid=35084968)

[Mrs. M.]

Hotel Das Triest (http://www.hoteldastriestvienna.com/)
Boutique hotel with modern design-- I read about this place on a couple of websites devoted to boutique/architectural hotels.

Heh. This is right around the corner from me. All the celebrities that want to stay somewhere incognito (not the giant flagship hotels downtown) stay at the Triest. Robbie Williams stayed there when he was in town. It is in walking distance to the city center.

I don't know the other two.

[HeatherFL]

ks piper Oh that sounds so cool! I own a lot of the Riedel stemware. I'd love to see it!

Rosebud You are always such a wealth of information! Thank you so much for the links.

Birgit Thank you! I am going to check out the Triest. I am assuming it's nice. LOL I'll come knock on your door just to say "hi.!" Kidding, kidding! (Prices seem really good too!)

~H.

[daener]

I can't recommend Innsbruck enough! There is a fabulous little town called Igls just above the ski jump with an amazing hotel, the proprieters are amazing, the location is amazing. My family has been frequenting this hotel for years (my mom is from Switzerland) and have always had wonderful experiences there http://www.batzenhaeusl.com/engl/frame/hotel.htm.

But Vienna is one of the most beautiful cities I've ever visited. I love the entire country, you can't go wrong in Austria.

[zayt]

you can't go wrong in Austria.

Just to *ditto* this. Beautiful country and people, no matter where you go. And love, love, love Vienna - especially in winter. Have been a few times and am yet to be disappointed. Enjoy!

[HeatherFL]

Thank you, daener and zayt! I am so excited, I can hardly stand it!

Of course, I have to go to the Opera in Vienna. I know I must get tickets way in advance if I want good seats, and I am hoping that if I do it this week there will still be good ones left.

I usually dress up for the opera. Gowns and tuxes? Or is a suit and tie okay for a man?

Thanks!

Heather

[Mrs. M.]

Can you believe it, I haven't been to the Opera since I moved here 8 years ago (hangs head in shame). But we see people go all the time since we live close. I think tuxes and gowns are mostly for premieres and special events. Suit and tie would be fine for "everyday" opera.

[MollJay]

Bumping up this thread.

We're planning to stay at the Hotel Austria, which is the #1 rated hotel in TripAdvisor, when we go there in late July.
http://www.hotelaustria-wien.at/en/welcome/index.html