Christmas in Austria, Germany or Northern Italy?

Posted by jenackisland on 11/21/19 05:14 PM

My husband and I are spending two weeks in Europe including the Christmas and New Year holidays. It's a last minute trip so I know reservations will be a challenge and may dictate where we end up but thought I would "throw out a life line" and get some ideas!

We are flying in and out of Zurich so figured we would spend New Years in Zurich since we have to fly out on Jan 2. (Read a little bit about fireworks over the lake so I am looking at hotels on the lake and nearby). We really don't know much about Switzerland and we chose Zurich to fly in and out of because it offered the best fare. We have done some research on Austria and Germany and have been to northern Italy but we really have just started to research Switzerland. We are comfortable driving in Europe and plan to rent a car for most of the trip. We are open to flying from Zurich upon landing to another city to make for an easier "loop" of travel.

We love to stay in lively but quaint towns and cities where we can walk out the door and explore. We don't mind driving to explore nearby areas for the day either. We are big into cafe culture, people watching, food & wine, some museum sight seeing (just not all day), and nature. We are not skiers or thrill seekers that is for sure. We like a more relaxed pace but do not like being in such a remote area that we are forced to drive everywhere - we prefer to walk to dinner vs driving.

We know cannot hit all of these places but our areas of interest are:

Vienna
Salzburg
Innsbruck
Munich
Bolzano
Strasburg
Colmar

We love Italy and the Alto Adige so that is up there on the wish list to weave in somehow.

Would love any itinerary suggestions in general and specifically where to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Thank you!

Posted by NickB

Maryland

11/21/19 11:47 PM

910 posts

I would suggest skipping the car. One of you would always be missing the scenery and fatigue will be an issue. Days are short, weather will be an issue in the Alps over any two week span. I wouldn't plan on a road trip like this in the US Rockies either. Check bahn.com for train connections.

One possible quick loop would be to arrive in Zurich and spend a day (Dec 21?) getting acclimated including the Swiss National Museum (brilliant archeological exhibits) and the Chagall windows in the Frauenkirche. Catch the 1 hour flight to Munich the next day to really start. Two nights (Dec 22, 23) catching the Christmas market, museums, food. Train to Salzburg on the 24th - two nights and Christmas. Train to Bolzano on the the 26th to visit Otzi the 5,000 year old Ice man (three nights, 26, 27, 28). There is a gondola up to villages on the plateau west of the town from near the train station. Not really time to stop on the way from Salzburg to Bolzano, although the train passes through Innsbruck. From Bolzano head south by train - Verona - to Lugano (Ticino Canton, Italian Switzerland) for two nights in the Ticino (29th, 30). On the 31st head back to Zurich on the slow train across the Gotthard Pass to Lucerne and then on to Zurich an hour further along. Obviously, you can alter the number of nights at each location, but longer stays equals fewer stops.

You should check on hotels quickly once you establish your itinerary. Sites like Booking.com allow you to check hotels within price ranges in desired locations. Picking one hotel and clicking on "map view" for its entry gives you the prices for all of the other hotels in the same area. This gives you immediate information even if you choose to contact hotels directly.

Have a great time!