Austria + Bavaria + Slovenia Trip

What a fun trip!

I’d suggest doing a couple stops along your drive as opposed to staying in some of the places you mentioned to make room for a couple alternative ideas I've listed below. For example, Berchtesgaden/Konigsee can be seen while driving to/from Salzburg or some of the other bases. The Grossglockner Road can be done as a scenic drive from one base to the next without having to stay overnight there. The Grossglockner Road is nice, but the weather there can be extremely finicky. We stayed in Kals am Grossglockner last July for 12 days with the priority of doing the road and had zero days of good visibility. We ended up doing the road anyway and saw the Grossglockner for a literal total of about 2 minutes before it was in clouds again. The weather around that specific mountain tends to keep it in the clouds a lot. I just wouldn’t prioritize it over other things. If it works out on your travel day that you have good weather, you can easily drive it as a scenic route to Slovenia.

If you need to skip something to make more room for other things, I’d pick Gosausee over Konigsee, as it has better hiking and is less crowded on the trails.

I’m not a huge fan of Hallstatt as a base. It’s WAY overcrowded with day trippers. Pick one of the lakes in the Salzkammergut that isn’t so flooded with tour buses and selfie sticks and just go to Hallstatt for part of a day. We stayed on Grundlsee and loved it, but there are a ton of great lake options in the area.

I would highly recommend adding some more time to Slovenia. It’s incredible and the Logar Valley is a hidden gem. If you can find availability at Lenar Tourist Farm, it’s such an incredible spot with the most loving hosts. We’ve stayed there twice for a few weeks in summers past and it’s a little slice of heaven back there with incredible hiking, scenic drives, farm to table meals at all the tourist farms and just the loveliest people.

Some other places to consider instead of Mayrhofen are Bad Gastein (incredible hiking, biking & thermal spas and possible to do day trips to Salzburg, Berchtesgaden/Konigsee, etc. from) and Weissensee (high alpine crystal clear lake you can stay on that boasts some of the warmest alpine water in the world averaging 72-78 degree water in the summer). We love both of these spots - both hidden gems off the typical tourist radar.

Here are a few itinerary ideas to consider….

Munich Airport > Garmisch - 3 nights > Innsbruck - 3 nights > Mayrhofen/Zillertal - 2-3 nights > Drive the Grossglockner Rd on the way to Bled - 3 nights > Logar Valley, Slovenia - 3-4 nights > Salzkammergut Region - 4 nights > Salzburg - 1 night > Vienna 2 nights

Or

Munich Airport > Garmisch - 3 nights > Innsbruck - 3 nights > Mayrhofen/Zillertal - 2 nights > Stop at Konigsee/Berchtesgaden on the drive to Salzburg - 2 nights > Salzkammergut - 4 nights > Lake Bled - 3 nights > Logar Valley, Slovenia - 3 nights > Drive to Vienna - 2 nights

Or
Munich Airport > Garmisch - 3 nights > Innsbruck - 3 nights > Bad Gastein - 5 nights > Weisensee - 2 nights > Lake Bled - 3 nights > Logar Valley, Slovenia - 4 nights > Drive to Vienna - 2 nights

Also - You might want to consider picking up your rental car at the Munich airport instead of dealing with the train to Garmisch and then still having to go pick up your car. Doing a pickup at Munich Airport and drop off in Vienna might be your simplest option, depending on your final itinerary.

Make sure to remember to get the vignettes for both Austria & Slovenia before you cross each border. You can purchase them at gas stations before you hit the border. There are cameras EVERYWHERE on the roads there and you will get a ticket in the mail if you don't have it on your windshield once you're on their roads. Also be super mindful of your speed. Said cameras have gotten me many times for as little as 3 km/h over the limit. It can be a bit confusing, as there aren't always speed limit signs posted. In Austria you'll see a white circle with a black diagonal line which means the previous limit signs are no longer valid and now you go the default "national speed limit" - on rural roads that's 100 km/h, autobahns 130 km/h but nowhere does it say that amount, they just expect you to know it :)

.... and now you go the default "national speed limit" - on rural roads that's 100 km/h, autobahns 130 km/h but nowhere does it say that amount, they just expect you to know it :)

At every border crossing in Europe there is a big sign showing the respective national speed limits and other regulations (e.g., headlights always on).

That may be, but I drive in Germany, Austria & Slovenia every summer and I’ve never noticed the signs you’re talking about. Unless you know to be on the lookout for them, it would be extremely easy to miss clearly, as in all my years of driving there I’ve literally never noticed such signs 😆

Thank you so much for all your recommendations. I am going to rework the iterinary and post updates here soon.