Help! How should we divide our time?

I certainly would cut down on 2-night stays. If you have 8 nights, stay in no more than 3 places but 2 places is a better pace.

2 nights in Vienna is really not enough, IMO. I would skip Innsbruck and stay in Salzburg 4 nights and Vienna 4 nights. Day trip to Hallstatt from Salzburg.

I agree, unless you don’t have too much interest in Vienna. I could understand, as we’ve been to Austria 9 times and haven’t been to Vienna. Doesn’t interest us.

I too would skip Innsbruck, although we love the area. Stay in St. Gilgen for 4 nights and day trip to both Hallstatt one day and Salzburg another. I’d you stay 5 nights, add a day in Berchtesgaden and the area or Hohenwerfen Fortress and Werfen ice caves. Or Hallein Salt Mines.

Paul

I think there are two trains of thought. Some people have a preference for staying in hotels for at least three days and do day trips and others don't like to be backtracking. I probably fall more into the second group. I agree it is nice to not be packing and unpacking frequently, but I also like to be efficient in terms of travel time and unless some particular roadway is spectacular, I'd rather not drive on it more than once. I also have become very efficient with my packing/unpacking--cubes, clear ziplocks and more. I also enjoy being in a city after the daytrippers leave. I really like Salzburg and Vienna. I think you may feel like you want more time in both Salzburg and Vienna. Will you have a car or be using trains? You might consider a day trip from Salzburg to Hallstat and add a night to Salzburg. Or consider cutting Innsbruck and add a day each to Salzburg and Vienna, or I would cut Hallstat down to one night in Hallstatt and add it to probably Salzburg or Vienna if your research indicates a preference more towards Vienna.

Jules, We are traveling by car. Our reason for staying in Innsbruck is to hop up and tour Neuschwanstein Castle. Any thoughts on that? I just changed our dates in Vienna to 3 nights... now trying to change our time in Salzburg. We travel more like you, my husband hates to backtrack.

I've not been to Innsbruck except to go thru it on the train. I didn't stop there on my last trip when I was in Salzburg and Vienna because I was going to Switzerland, Luzern and Berner Oberland. I have gone to Neuschwanstein, we did it via train from Munich. Some people are underwhelmed by it, I'm glad I went once, but it wasn't as spectacular as I thought it would be. Although, the exterior in the alps is quite picturesque. If you go to Neuschwanstein, I highly recommend you do Hohenschwangau which is basically "across the street". It is good to do that one first. It smaller, but more extensively furnished, it was lived in and they provide a good background of the family. The other thing is that Fussen in the alps is very pretty. I think Neuschwanstein is something like a 2 hour drive from Innsbruck, yet I'm not sure of a better Austrian location to start in. I'm guessing you want to pick up and drop off the car in Austria. If you pick up the car in Germany, you are going over a border and that causes additional issues and costs. Even yet, you might need a sticker on the car to drive in Germany. I'm not sure if you've made your air arrangements already, but what if you fly into Munich, stay there two nights and do a day trip to Fussen, then take the train to Salzburg and rent a car and travel on from there?? Trains in Bavaria are pretty inexpensive and Salzburg is considered Bavaria in terms of the Bavarian train system.

Hallstatt is worth, at most, a day trip, certainly not two nights.
Add a day to Vienna and another to Salzburg.