Amsterdam to Salzburg to Danube to Vienna to Budapest Advice

Point to point rail travel is your best bet . For a start , studying this website thoroughly , will educate you to the possibilities and advantages - https://www.seat61.com/

Thanks Steven. Been reading the books too, but most are destination focused, for example Vienna or Budapest. We are kind of doing a whirlwind tour starting and ending in Amsterdam with 14 days in between. Like the idea of the rail travel, but one thing we really wanted to do was the Danube between Passau and Linz for sure. Want time to really enjoy the towns along the way. Seems like a rental car would be good for that (place to keep luggage if we decide to bike a town for example). Also once we get to places like Salzburg it would be great to be able to head to anywhere that interests us. But, renting a car has disadvantages as well.

Have you already purchased your plane tickets? If not, fly into Amsterdam and out of Budapest. With only 14 days it’s a shame to spend two days backtracking.

We have the tickets. Actually looked at that originally. Believe it or not the round trip to Amsterdam was cheaper than the best one way fare I could get and two one way fares was over twice the price of the round trip. Conclusion, they don't want you to fly one way to Amsterdam or from Budapest. I also figured that we could use the travel back to also visit a couple towns we missed going east.

Obviously fares change often, but I did get a great deal on Momondo on the round trip. What I am looking at is flying back to Amsterdam from Budapest. The problem there is the one way rental cars are out of this world expensive. One idea I just thought about was using the rental in Austria (one way from Salzburg to Vienna) then rail from Vienna to Budapest. Anyone who has done this before is probably reading this and shaking their heads. Anyway, please keep the ideas coming. I just don't know the rail system well enough to know what works and what doesn't. For example I looked at Amsterdam to Salzburg via rail and it takes 12 hours it says.

It is too late now, but for other readers, you don't do it as two one ways. You use multi-city or multi-stop or the old expression open-jaws, or whatever term your particular airline uses for the concept of flying into one city, making your own way to a second city and flying home from the second city. They virtually all do it, and the cost is usually somewhere between a round trip from the cheaper city and a round trip to the more expensive city, often tending towards the lower end.

Live and learn on that one Nigel. I should have looked on here before that email from Delta/KLM about the special hooked me.

Many places you describe can be easily visited without a car. For the Danube, I stayed in Melk two nights and spent the full day biking along the Danube to Krems and then taking the boat back up to Melk. Great day, On the part days, I had plenty of time to enjoy Melk and the Abbey. In Amsterdam, Munich, Salzburg, Vienna and Budapest you probably don't need a car. Also, you may find cheap flights Amsterdam to Munich - my son did this recently and he was on a shoestring budget (and he also found US to Amsterdam flights the cheapest). You can check skyscanner for cheap flights within Europe, then go buy from the airline for your best deal. But maybe there are places on your list that definitely require a car so that's why you are looking.

You should fly from AMS to Munich, no question. Take the train to Salzburg from Munich, which is easy to do. You do not need a car in Salzburg, but if you plan to visit areas around Salzburg, such as Wolfgangsee, Hallstatt, Eagle's Nest, you will be more efficient with a car. I am trying to understand your Danube time as I am not aware that the stretch from Passau to Linz is particularly scenic or noteworthy. To make this diversion from Salzburg seems unnecessary. Instead, I would focus on the Wachau Valley, which is between Melk and Krems. While you can get there by train, renting a car might make the most sense if you want to fully explore the area over a few days. Keep the car until you reach Vienna and return it immediately as a car will do you no good in Vienna. Of course all of this can be done by public transportation - it will just take longer. You would then take the train from Vienna to Budapest. All the train train described should be purchased from the Austrian National Railways - www.oebb.at.

We did an intra-Europe flight into Munich, train from the airport into town and then on to Salzburg. The car was rented at the end of our stay there. We meandered through Austria to Vienna and returned the car immediately, as PP suggested.

There’s no reason to get a car in Munich. Pickup and return all in Austria is much cheaper.
The Avis location in Salzburg is really small and cars have to be reserved well in advance

I am trying to understand your Danube time as I am not aware that the stretch from Passau to Linz is particularly scenic or noteworthy.

Most likely the OP wants to see the "Schlögener Schlinge" (horseshoe bend) of the Danube.

Exactly the kind of expertise and advice we need. So, given about four days to explore the Austrian portion of the Danube, what are the places and or things we should absolutely see? Likewise, any suggested overnight accommodations that other travelers loved?

I've read that Linz to Vienna is the most scenic. With 4 days and a car, we also can bike and walk...

Linz to Melk is not scenic. Krems to Vienna is not scenic. As previously mentioned, the scenic stretch is the Wachau which goes from Melk to Krems. The rest is boring and industrial. Maybe look at stopping in Steyr, Enns and Mauthausen as well.

Thanks again Emily. Other than the holiday dates mentioned, are Steyr, Enns and Mauthausen the kind of places we can wait until we are there to pick overnight accommodations or should we book them now?
Kevin

Please google each of these places to become familiar with them. Enns and Steyr are smallish towns and while I think you can find accommodation on the day you arrive, why would you want to spend precious vacation time doing that? Options are very limited in these areas. Mauthausen is the site of a former Nazi work/death camp.

Visiting Steyr is worthwile. Its historic center where the rivers Steyr and Enns meet is picturesque with buildings dating back to the 15th century. There are 500+ landmarked buildings in this town.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steyr
(The German version of Wikipedia contains a lot more information.)

Thanks again to all. Any other suggested Danube destinations, please post.