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Salzburg to Vienna via Wacchau or just see Salzburg and Vienna?

Posted by on

Hi,
Our family of 5 (3 children 13, 14, 17) will be traveling in Europe for 2 weeks in July with the last leg in Salzburg and Vienna. We have 2 nights in Salzburg and 2 nights in Vienna. The last day in Vienna we will be leaving very early for a flight which doesn't give us much time to explore Vienna. We have 2 options:

1) Should we leave Salzburg early with a private tour by car that takes us to the Melk Abbey and a boat trip to Krems before getting to Vienna around 4:30 pm? Luggage won't be a factor as we have a private car/guide to hold it. OR

2) Take the train and get to Vienna to see more there?

As this is the end of our journey, I'm wondering if might be maxed out on museums etc and will enjoy the abbey and boat trip more or should we spend the time seeing Vienna? I would love some input.

Posted by
1913 posts

I am partial to Vienna. So, my answer would be to take the train and see as much of Vienna as you can. Unless you have something special your last day in Salzburg for the evening, I would consider taking a train in the evening and spending an extra night in Vienna. The Imperial Treasury would be an interesting family sight to see. The city itself has great architecture as well. If you feel you will be maxed out on museums, then the car hire and boat tour would be a great option. Enjoy your trip.

Posted by
613 posts

After my first 50 EU vacations, I started rating sights by how many times I was willing to repeat a visit rather than go see something new. With 12 visits, the Abby Church at Melk is Europe's top sight (only 4 visits to Vienna, but then they do add up to 13 days). Don't miss Melk, especally if you liked the interior of the Salzburg cathedral, a kindergarten work compared to Melk.. Melk is a must, but you are short changing Vienna. Cut something out of the rest of your trip so you can spend at least 3 days in Vienna.

Posted by
640 posts

I vote for option #2. There is a lot to see in Vienna and 2 nights gives you only 1 whole day to do it. You will probably be more relaxed by cutting out an extra hotel move. You can do Salzburg next year when you return.

Posted by
7919 posts

We’ve been to all of those places and would recommend skipping Melk and just take the train from Salzburg to Vienna. Even then, you will be short on time for all of the sites in Vienna. I’m sure there will be others who disagree, but we were more than ready to be off the river at Krems and be in Vienna for another five days. But to be fair to that area, we had just spent two wonderful days at St. Wolfgang at a lakeside spa boutique hotel relaxing and hiking, and an overnight at Melk, so we were ready to be in Vienna again.

If you’re exhausted and at a point of just relaxing at Vienna, you could always just take the subway and wander the gardens and Gloriette at the beautiful Schönbrunn Palace (gardens are free).

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