Our Tour Through Austria

After a couple days spent in Linz, it was on to our next adventure: our own 4 day tour through Austria..

We started in Salzburg. Tom and Lori spent the day on the Sound of Music Tour (as we did a month before with my parents). Afterwards we strolled through the small and charming streets of the Altstadt (“Old Town”). Of all that Salzburg has to offer, I think this might be my favorite…simply walking along while taking in the atmosphere. We went to dinner and enjoyed some authentic Austrian cuisine, which consists of seasonal pumpkin soup, Wiener schnitzel with sauerkraut, potatoes, bread, and not to be forgotten- beer.

The following morning we did a little souvenir shopping and we were off to our next destination- Hallstatt 

Hallstatt could be one of the most peaceful and scenic places on Earth. It’s no wonder the tiny village is growing popular among tourists. We didn’t do much besides walk through the still town and appreciate the views that day. At night we kicked back with pizza and cards at our bed and breakfast. The next day we had breakfast, walk/jogged through the mountains, and set out for our next stop, Zell Em See.

Zell Em See is a popular ski village among Austrians; and although we were there a little early for ski season, it was quite a place to see.  We spent day/night there exploring, until we embarked on the Krimmler Waterfalls.

Day 3- Krimmler Waterfalls

Lori suggested early on that the Krimmer Waterfalls were a must-see along our journey.  They are the highest waterfalls in Europe and among the top 5 in the world. Tom and Reid didn’t seem quite as excited about an estimated 4 hour hike up but I think it’s safe to say they’re happy they did.

The beginning seemed pretty easy…that’s how the mountain sucks you in. The higher you get, the better the views of the waterfalls and the town below, so we became more enthusiastic to continue on.  Also, the higher we got, the steeper the trail. There were times when the angle we were hiking made the trail appear almost level with my face…can you picture that!?

The views were spectacular and plenty worth the hike. I’ll let my pictures describe the rest..

Afterwards we took a beautiful, and somewhat life-threatening, drive through the windy narrow roads spiraling down mountains…which, (eventually) brought us to our final stop, Innsbruck.

Innsbruck is one of Austria’s largest cities and known for its winter sports. In fact, the city hosted the Winter Olympics twice (1964 and 1976). Innsbruck was a unique mix of both urban and rural setting. It was similar to Vienna in size and character. However it’s surround by stunning Austrian Alps that set it apart from any other major city I’ve seen here so far.

We had the opportunity to tour the Olympic ski jump. I was scared just looking down from that height, I don’t know how they manage to jump off it…and then proceed to land on 2 skis!

The journey came to end as we made our way to Munich, where Tom and Lori were flying out of to return back to Minnesooooota.  It was an invigorating week that gave us all the opportunity to see some of the most beautiful areas of Austria with our own eyes, and memories to keep for a lifetime.