Mayerling

If you have a few days, then no. If you are here for two months, yes. There are much better half day trips. What time of year?

In early May. What do you suggest. We are thinking of Bratislava for a day. With Danube boat ride back. What do you like?

That boat is horrible. I'm also not a fan of Bratislava. The Wachau is wonderful that time of year. A hike down from Kahlenberg into Nussdorf is glorious on a sunny day. Sopron is also fab.

Anyone else on these two side trips. We are seeing the state opera house ballet of mayerling. That is why I thought this was good. Oh well. Any other thoughts. O thought it was cool to see another world Capitol too in Bratislava. More thoughts. We are in Vienna tues - fri. Seeing the ballet Wednesday night. Super excited about seeing the ballet there.

I have visited Mayerling as I am really into Austrian history. The former hunting lodge is now a convent of course but they have a nice visitor's center with an explanation of the tragedy that occurred there. I also visited Mary Versera's grave (the original I believe) which was close by (I read somewhere she ended up being buried four times).

The landscape around Mayerling is very pretty. But it would not take a half-day to see what is there. (I have not visited the lake...)

Maybe I read the wrong thing about the house where the Crown Prince and Maria carried out their death pact. I thought that afterward Franz Joseph had the place torn down.

If you want to spend almost half a day getting to a famous place connected to the monarchy, go to Bad Ischl from Vienna, did that as a day trip from Wien Westbahnhof last May. You can walk from the BI train station to the Kaiservilla where Franz Joseph wrote out his "An meine Völker" speech when war came in 1914, also where he wrote out the Austrian war declaration (in French, not German) to the Austro-Hungarian Foreign Minister to be given to the Serbs. Bad Ischl was the summer refuge for the Habsburgs to escape from the heat in Vienna. But to see the Kaiservilla, you have to go on the tour, only given in German, just as in the past. .

Here is a link to the Carmelite site: http://www.karmel-mayerling.org/

Bad Ischl and the Kaiser villa are a good idea, probably better than nearby Halstatt.

I remember a very peaceful morning in Vienna getting to and visiting the Hermes villa (a gift from Franz Joseph to Kaiserin Elisabeth and one of her preferred places) in a fairly periferic park. As a walk is necessary visit it only in a fine weather day.