Wolfgangsee Advent Activities - 1 Day?

Bumping this up!

All I can say is we spent a day from our base in Berchtesgaden seeing those towns Advent Markets. We started in St. Gilgen. Small village nice market. We then hopped on the ferry and visited the others. We loved St. Wolfgang.

I would never prebook (and I doubt you can) any cable car or mountain trip. These are dependent on the weather being acceptable, which you can never count on. What would be the point of prebooking only to arrive in a rainy day where you couldn’t see anything and the lift or train wouldn’t be operating?

See how it is the day you’re there and do the things you can fit in of the weather is cooperating.

Related:

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/austria/great-salzburg-daytrip

Thank you both so much. Phred, that is exactly what I was hoping for but hadn't found. I really appreciate your help.

PQ

Ride the Schafberg Railway (St. Wolfgang I think)

The Schafberg Railway will go to Schafbergalm (altitude 4470 ft) only, but not to Schafbergspitze (altitude 5680 ft) during advent and winter time.

See here: https://www.5schaetze.at/de/schafbergbahn/preise-und-fahrplan.html
(Unfortunately this information is not given on the English version of that page.)

Christmas Market semi-pro here with recent and substantial experience with the Wolfgangsee area at Christmas.

There are three Christmas markets on Wolfgangsee - Sankt Gilgen, St. Wolfgang and Strobl. Each are connected by boat or by bus. Each have a different theme. I suggest taking the 150 bus to Strobl first. Explore the market in Strobl, maybe have some food and punsch. Take the boat to St. Wolfgang. This is a very charming place hitting all the Christmas feels. Explore the large market which meanders through the entire village. Walk over to the Schafberg Railway and take the Christmas Train to the top. At the top, you will find a hut serving punsch, but nothing else. It is very cold up there and likely knee deep snow, so you are really going up for the train ride experience. Take the train back down and get on the boat to Sankt Gilgen (there is a boat stop at the base of the Schafberg station). Sankt Gilgen's market is Biedermeier themed, which is lovely. Eat and enjoy. Take the 150 bus back to Salzburg.

It is not worth it to go up the Zwolferhorn cable car - what will you do when you get up there? As for music, the markets will have ad hoc music. You will eat at the market most likely as opposed to a restaurant. That said, if you want a restaurant, there are some nice ones in Sankt Gilgen, like Gasthaus zur Post. You will want to dress very warmly as you will be outside essentially the entire time.

Hi Emily,
It sounds like we are in for quite a treat that day! It sounds magical!

As for the cable car, the website says they have "hearty culinary delights" and punch, as well as a light installation and a cleared trail to see the views. I assumed this meant that there was a hut of some sort with food and drink. We've never done a cable car, or been up in the mountains before, so we really wanted to just go up, hopefully get a drink and maybe a snack, admire the view, maybe walk some of the trail and then go back down.

Any cafe recommendations for a good hot chocolate in one of the three villages?

Thanks for all the information

PQ

You don't have time to do the Schafberg and the Zwoelferhorn. Pick one, but I can tell you that the Schafberg is much more magical. The Schafberg is just as high as the Zwoelferhorn - maybe higher?

For hot chocolate, you can buy it from a Christmas Market stall - there are many.

Hi again,
I really appreciate your insight. Can you help me understand the time issue though please? We really had our hearts set on doing both so if we really can't it will be a hard decision to skip one.
We are early risers, so I envisioned us getting to the first village in the morning around 8:30-9am and not leaving the final village until sometime in the evening after supper, giving us about 10 hours in the area. Is this really too tight? :(

Thanks again!

Yes, 10 hours is tight to do everything. Again, the highlight is the markets in the villages. So the markets are open on Thursday and Friday from 11 - 7:30 and Saturday and Sunday from 10 - 7:30. If you get to Strobl around 10, then you should allow 1 hour to explore that village/market. Then you have to get on the boat, which operates on a schedule, for the 20 minute or so ride to St. Wolfgang. Then you'll want two hours in the village and then at least an hour for the Christmas train, also operating on a schedule. Then a 30 minute boat ride to St. Gilgen. You'll want a 1-2 hours in St. Gilgen. Plus you need time for food. I guess you might have time at the end to go up the cable car, but, again, it is the same view essentially at the train. If it were me, I'd want to be less structured, but it is your trip.

This really helps, Emily, thank you. We'll definitely have some decisions to make. Perhaps we'll skip Strobl.

If you skip Strobl, then you should get off the bus at St. Gilgen (the 150 doesn't go to St. Wolfgang) and then you take the boat to/from St. Gilgen across the lake to St. Wolfgang. As mentioned above, the best part is the lake, the lights on the lake after dark, and the beautiful markets in the three villages. The Christmas train is very special.

If you go to my Instagram (3point14maker) then you can see my photos from last year's Christmas markets on Wolfgangsee.

Emily,

Your suggestions for going to Strobl, Wolfgang and St. Gilgen are amazing and we plan to follow your ideas shortly before Christmas! Thanks for telling us things we'd never have known about! Do you have any further input that would be helpful?
Many thanks,
Shirley

Note that the Wolfgangsee ferry has an advent schedule different of its summer schedule.
See here: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/austria/tentative-itinerary-for-wolfgangsee-during-advent#2375544