We just arrived back in the USA after three wonderful weeks in Austria. With the help of both Tomaz and Zala, our Austrian assigned travel specialists, we visited Zell Am See, Kitzbuhel, Salzburg, Graz and Vienna. Throughout the stays in the amazing cities we had many day trips and excursions. Thank you Tomaz and Zala!
From Zell Am See, our driver / guide David took us along the Grossglockner road and up to the Grossglockner glacier and National Park and down the other side of the...
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We just arrived back in the USA after three wonderful weeks in Austria. With the help of both Tomaz and Zala, our Austrian assigned travel specialists, we visited Zell Am See, Kitzbuhel, Salzburg, Graz and Vienna. Throughout the stays in the amazing cities we had many day trips and excursions. Thank you Tomaz and Zala!
From Zell Am See, our driver / guide David took us along the Grossglockner road and up to the Grossglockner glacier and National Park and down the other side of the mountain to Heilegeblut. What a spectacular ride with exquisite views and highly educational at the National Park. David is a wonderful guide as he is from the area and quite knowledgable. Another activity suggested by Tomaz and Zala was the Top of Salzburg which was an amazing adventure taking at least 4 ski lifts / cable cars taking about 1&1/2 hours up to the top of the Kitzhorn. We were up on a glacier and experienced the first ski lift built into a glacier. Again, there is a museum to visit which is informative along with spectacular views. An experience like none other.
In Salzburg, we started our trip in the birthplace of Mozart at an evening Mozart string performance and two opera singers in one of the oldest buildings in Salzburg, dating from the 900's. We highly recommend such an experience in Salzburg. We also enjoyed a walking tour of historic old town Salzburg which helped us improve our understanding of the history and architecture and better directed our sightseeing during our remaining stay. One of the highlights was our visit to the Salt mine (Salzburg means Salt area) near Hallstatt. Along the way our very kind, knowledgeable driver took us through beautiful villages and made stops along the way.
Graz was truly a find and not heavily touristed which is refreshing. From here we did two days of traveling to wine regions with our guide David. Have to say, the Austrian and Slovenian (both Styrian regions) white wines are delicious but not well known. We came away converts and cannot say enough nice words about our guide David as he entertained all our ignorant questions and helped us better understand history and culture.
Vienna was our last stop and a city not to be missed. One of the highlights was a food tour guided by Peter. We knew enough to only have some fruit for breakfast which was a good call as 7 hours later we returned back to the hotel with belts way too tight! We liked one of the stops so much we returned the next evening for our last meal in Vienna before heading back to the USA.
This trip marks our fourth time utilizing KimKim, so clearly we think highly of the company. We very much appreciate being taken care of by a local company / individual and have not been disappointed in the level of service and ideas presented. We will be back for more adventures utilizing KimKim.
Hotel Reviews
Hotel Stefanie is the oldest hotel in Vienna, located in the second district so there is a lot of history packed into the hotel, the city and the district. Very easy to walk across the Danube canal right into the historic city center, about a 10 minute walk. And once across the canal, the metro and trams are all available again making it easy to travel around the area. Staff is immaculate and friendly. This is an "old fashion" hotel in that the room keys are gigantic so you give your key to the staff when leaving the hotel. Amazingly, they have it ready for you with a smile on their face upon your return. So, very friendly and helpful staff. The rooms are far from "old fashion" and are well appointed.
Palais-Hotel Erzherzog Johann 4*
Graz
This hotel is right at the one of the main squares of the historic area of Graz and an easy walk to get to the top of the hill overlooking Graz. Staff is friendly and as usual, they all speak multiple languages so will gladly accommodate the visitor. The trams are right out the door so it is easy to travel around the city if your feet are too tired.
Hotel IMLAUER & Bräu
Salzburg
Very convenient location to the train station. An easy walk with luggage. And also very easy walk into the city and the historic old town of Salzburg across the river. The staff is quite friendly and helpful making recommendations on where to eat and the easiest way to walk and begin exploring the city. The hotel has a beer garden attached to the restaurant which is lovely and shaded. Restaurant serves authentic Austrian dishes and the breakfast buffet is extensive.
Schwarzer Adler Kitzbühel
Kitzbühel
This hotel is near the old historic city center and is exquisite. We were greeted with a glass of Prosecco and made to feel as though we were the most important clients. The hotel is exquisite and a wonderful place to unwind and relax with a roof tip pool including great views and a bar.
Authenticity & Character
Beautiful, old historic building.
Location
Easy access to the city center but a taxi is required from the train station.
Staff
We felt right at home and it was hard to leave
Hotel Grüner Baum Zell am See
Zell am See
This hotel is in an excellent location for walking all over the small village of Zell and very convenient to walk to/from the train station with luggage. Rooms are quite spacious and the staff is very friendly.
Authenticity & Character
Typical Tyrolian architecture with a lot of wood and beautiful flowers.
Staff
Big smiles and very friendly. They knew our room number when checking in for breakfast after the first day and think about how many customers they meet daily!
Activity Reviews
Wachau Valley wine tour
Vienna
If you like wine and tasting and learning about new wines, this is a good day trip. The company limits the size of the group, there were 6 of us on this trip with 2 guides. We drove for about 1 hour outside of Vienna into the Wachau Valley with explanations along the way. We stopped at two wineries total, one before lunch and the second after lunch. Lunch was at a typical Heuriger which was excellent and unexpected. We had wanted to visit a Heuriger but were unsure of how to do this without a car so this solved the issue. After the second wine visit, we boarded a river steamboat and cruised the Danube to Melk, ending with a beautiful view of the Melk Abbey. Then returned to Vienna. A fun filled, delicious day.
Vienna's Sweet and Savory Food Scene
Vienna
Our guide Peter provided us with both history of Vienna, explained the architecture and also helped us understand the importance of the foods / beverages we were tasting. So, overall a very educational and delicious tour. We spent about 7 hours total which included a lot of walking and the riding the metro into local neighborhoods with no tourists. This was refreshing as we could see everyday life. One of our stops was at a local market which was amazing to the sense for the sounds, sights, and smells. Highly recommend this tour if you like food and history. This company limits the size of the group and there were 8 of us including Peter.
Day trip to Slovenian Styrian region (Ptuj and Maribor) - the oldest vine in the world!
Graz
David took us wine tasting two days in a row. The first day was to the Syrian region of Austria near the Slovenian border. This particular trip was into Slovenia, our first time into the country of Slovenia. Beautiful and picturesque given the steep rocky hills, vines and trees. Delightful wines. And both Maribor with the oldest vine in the world and Ptuj with the castle were beautiful. The wine was an added bonus.
Hallstatt Salt Mine
Austria
This was an unexpected surprise. The mine is an active mine, still used today and has been in use for about 8,000 years. The old original remains are visible and the history is explained along the way. It is a bit "disneyland" but nonetheless an excellent experience tailored to both children and adults. We had a private driver to get us from Salzburg to the mine and had time to wander around Hallstatt afterwards. Hallstatt is picturesque, just like in the guidebooks. But, very crowded.
Classic Concert in Salzburg with dinner
Salzburg
Highly recommend as Salzburg is all about the music and Mozart.
This was a small group tour led by an employee of the Graz Tourist Information office. We recommend this tour as it helps you truly look at the buildings and architecture in a different way and truly see them. Lots of stories and history provided as well as tips on where to stop for ice cream and other delicacies.
Top of Salzburg
Zell Am See
This was a highlight and the experiences was very unanticipated. The day started out cloudy and rainy so we debated going as we were certain the views would not be visible given the clouds. But, one never knows so we boarded the bus to Kaprun, about 10km. Ultimately, we then spent the next 1&1/2 hours traveling via 4 different ski cable cars up to the top of the mountain, the Spitz Einhorn. Miraculously, the clouds went during our transport up the mountainside so we were treated with a preview of outlooks to come and could hear the bells of the cattle below us and the sounds of the mountain streams rushing downhill. At the top of the Spitz Einhorn there is plenty to see and do. Ultimately, an amazing day.
Explore Zell am See on your own
Zell Am See
Started the day with a leisurely boat ride around the lake, approximately 1&1/4 hour. Then, we actually walked around the lake following the walking path. It is about 10 miles total around the lake but there are small little hamlets along the way with restaurants and toilets combined with beautiful views. Spent the remainder of the day wandering the village of Zell am See and having a beer lakeside around 5:30pm.
Local specialist: Tomaz Martinek