Our second leg of our summer Europe trip was to Vienna, Salzburg, and Innsbruck. I had never been to Austria before and was excited to see a new country in Europe and my 21st country I’ve been to in the world! We flew from Milan to Vienna and did 2 nights in Vienna, 2 in Salzburg, and 2 in Innsbruck. Looking back, I wish we had done 3 nights in Vienna and 3 nights in Salzburg, but 2 nights was the perfect amount for Innsbruck. The native language of Austria is German so there was a bit of a language barrier as many places did not have translations. The people are very friendly and welcoming though! 

VIENNA

Vienna reminded us a lot of Paris! It’s a large city with beautiful architecture and busy streets. It’s packed with historical buildings but has a  modern city center filled with shops and restaurants. We wish we had a little more time here to explore and sightsee since there is so much to see! It’s easy to get around in Vienna as you can walk most places but there’s also plenty of taxis, buses, and trams. 

WHERE TO STAY

We stayed at Hotel Grand Ferdinand and it was amazing! It is a 5 star hotel perfectly located in the Aldstat area, a quick walk to the city center but on a quieter street corner. The hotel is super unique with a modern, industrial vibe. They have an amazing breakfast buffet on their rooftop every morning overlooking the city! Complete with a rooftop pool, E-Vespas for guests, and an exercise room, the hotel offers plenty of amenities. We took photos for the hotel and it was so fun getting creative with the content. 

WHAT TO DO

Since Vienna is such a big city there’s so much to do but we had to narrow it down since we were only there a couple days. There are so many cathedrals, museums, and historical buildings to check out if you just wander around the city center. 

• Get dressed up and attend an opera or ballet at Vienna State Opera House
• Explore the ground of Hofburg Palace and Volksgarten Park
• Try a Viennese hot chocolate
• Shopping- there’s every store imaginable in the city center
• Nightlife- Vienna has a large nightlife and clubbing scene but we didn’t make it out here since we were too tired

WHERE TO EAT

We honestly weren’t a huge fan of the Austrian food, but we at least had to try it! If you want to try some authentic dishes have a wiener-schnitzel (fried veal), apple streudel, bratwurst, and pretzels. 

• Missel & Schein- a cute atmosphere with an open kitchen and you can watch the chefs make schnitzel 
• Furich- found lots of gluten free options here for authentic Austrian food, they even do gluten free fried schnitzel 
• Aida- cute pink themed bakery chain
• Restaurant Rote Bar- needs to be reserved in advance, fancy atmosphere right across from opera house

SALZBURG

Salzburg was definitely one of our favorite cities on the trip and was just a 2.5 hour train ride from Vienna. It is such a cute, historic town and felt like it was out of a movie. Which, it technically was. Sound of Music was filmed here and it was so cool to recognize all the spots around town from the movie! We were supposed to do a day trip to Hallstat (about a 1 hour drive away) but decided to cancel it so we could spend more time in Salzburg.

WHERE TO STAY

We stayed at the Hotel Goldener Hirsch and it was probably the nicest hotel I’ve ever stayed at. It’s a 5 star boutique hotel part of The Luxury Collection by Marriot. Dating back to 1407, It’s one of the oldest hotels in the city. It has such a historic charm to it but still has modern amenities, like hooking up your phone to the Bluetooth music that plays while you shower.  The staff was also extremely friendly and it was so fun that they were dressed in the traditional Tracht uniforms. We looked forward to the “turn down” service every night where they would fluff our pillows and leave fresh waters and Austrian chocolates by our bed before we got back. It also was perfectly located in the heart of the city. We would love to come back and stay here during Christmas time!

WHAT TO DO

Two or three days is the perfect amount of time in Salzburg as it is a small town that is pretty walkable. 

• The Original Sound of Music Tour- they have tons of sound of music tours but this one is supposed to be the best. We booked it ahead of time through Viatour. It was four hours and took us on a big bus all around Salzburg and to some mountain villages where scenes of the movie were filmed! 
• Salzburg is Mozart’s birthplace so they have a museum and many tours dedicated to Mozart
• Shopping on the main street
• Have drinks at a brewery 
• Mirabell Gardens- another sound of music spot but the gardens were stunning to just walk around or take photos
• Dom Platz- a beautiful plaza with a cathedral and horse and carriages you can rent to take you around town

WHERE TO EAT

We weren’t in Salzburg long enough to try a lot of places but here are some we tried as well as some recommendations from my friend Sarah who also visited Salzburg recently!

• Restaurant Goldener Hirsch- this was in our hotel and is one of Austria’s most well known fine dining restaurants
• Sternbrau- typical Austrian food, cool beer garden vibe
• Monkey Bar- coffee/cocktail bar right on the river 
• St. Peter stiftskulinatium- oldest restaurant in Europe est. 803., super cute decor (pink/fur/bohemian)
• M32- restaurant on top of the hill with a view of the whole city
• Cafe Tomaselli- has been around over 150 years

INNSBRUCK

We spent our last 2 nights in Austria visiting the town of Innsbruck. It was about a 2 hour train ride from Salzburg and ended up being one of our favorite cities on the trip! It’s a whimsical small town located in the valley of the alps along the river, so the scenery is insane! Innsbruck is known as a popular destination for winter sports, but is lovely to visit in the summer as well. 

WHERE TO STAY

We stayed at Nala Individuellhotel which was about a 10 minute walk from the main city center. It was a fun and funky hotel, with each room having a different theme at affordable rates. However, since it is an eco-friendly hotel the AC didn’t really work so I wouldn’t recommend staying there during the summer. If we went back we would prefer to stay in the historic city center where there are lots of hotels and restaurants along the medieval buildings and cobblestone streets. 

WHAT TO DO

We loved not really having a set plan for Innsbruck and just wandering the streets and popping into shops and restaurants. Here are some things we did and things we would do if we had more time:

• Wander around Aldstat, the old town
• Check out the famous “Golden Roof”, a beautiful landmark in town that’s been around since the 1500s
• Visit the Swarovski Crystal museum- we didn’t’ get a chance to go since it was a little out of town, but it’s one of Innsbruck’s top attractions 
• During Christmas time they have a huge Christmas market and lots of winter sports

WHERE TO EAT

• Dinner at Golden Adler- local foods and nice atmosphere, they also have a wine cave inside where you can do a tasting
• The Breakfast Club- had amazing breakfast options, we were excited to have eggs and a more “American” breakfast
• The Naked Indigo- a vegan restaurant with gluten free options, best view on the river
• Bar 360- a great place to grab a sunset drink with panoramic views of the city