Vienna-Munich Trip

By all means stop at Salzburg. And spend some time at the Augustiner beer hall. It's one of the music cities of the world. Everyone you run into is like a local tour guide going out of their way to be accommodating to you.

And Salzburg Christmas market outside the Dom.

FYI, inexpensive trains Vienna to Salzburg (Westbahn) and Salzburg to Munich (Meridian using Bayern ticket) can be bought same-day; no reserved seats, though.

Agree with your previous responses. I will add a few things. Yes, the westbahn train is well priced and especially great when you don't want to lock into a time for a OeBB train. Just know that you can purchase an advance ticket with OeBB for about the same price as Westbahn. I have not used Westbahn but I've heard it has become even more convenient. The Bayern train from Salzburg to Munich is well priced.

I was in all those cities twice in January. Loved our time there. We did have a lot of snow in both Munich and Salzburg so I'd recommend warm, waterproof shoes/boots. Both times Vienna was about 35 degrees which being from Minnesota I didn't think would be a big deal. But it is windy and chilly. The city blocks are like wind tunnels, and the churches are not well heated! But, Vienna just sparkled with the lights and snow. Look at Hotel Austria for Vienna. It's elegant and well priced and with the nicest, most expansive included breakfast I have ever had. In Munich, I once stayed at Hotel Uhland. It's a spotless, elegant refurbished mansion, also with a lovely breakfast.

I've done a lot in Vienna. The Treasury at the Hofburg is pretty special. The art museums spectacular. Make sure to go to the National Library. I tend to visit lots of churches. The Hapsburgs churches were interesting and obviously, St. Stephens, but don't miss Peterskirche in the same neighborhood. The Opera house is pretty spectacular inside. I'm not sure if there is opera in December, and I note that its not high on your list, but we got standing room tickets for a couple euro by waiting in a line behind the opera house (well described in RS guide) We did this mostly as a less expensive way to see the interior of the building and left at intermission. The Naschmarket is an interesting place to wander around especially to see the art nouveau buildings surrounding it.

The cathedral in Salzburg is one of the most beautiful I've seen. its bright with lots of Baroque (I think? perhaps, Rococo?) Mozart was baptized there. Some people pan the Sound of Music tours. I enjoyed it. I used my RS guide for a city walking tour and also did some research in advance looking for in town Sound of Music sites. I stayed near the train station. Hotel Hohenstauffen. I found it very well priced with a great breakfast. The owners are charming. It's a 15 or so minute walk to old town. In this situation, I liked being close to the train station especially since we had rolling suitcases and there was snow in the streets and on the walks.

If Vienna is your first stop and you're staying there for just 2 nights, you'll have one full day there plus some probably-jetlagged hours on your arrival day. That sounds like an extremely short visit for someone interested in architecture.

Would you suggest, adding an extra full day in Vienna and shortening Salzburg to just 1 night (1.5 days)?

I would either take a day from Salzburg or Munich. There is a lot to do in Munich, but there is more, IMO, in Vienna, and I found Salzburg to be quite charming. You could do a decent job of Salzburg in a day, if you are overnighting and make sure you get that full day. If it were me. I'd try to add a day to the vacation.

I can't provide a well-thought-out opinion here because I haven't been to Vienna or Salzburg recently--and only briefly to Munich. But I'm excited about all the Secession architecture in Vienna, which I hope will be part of next year's itinerary. I also like art, so I'll probably allocate about a week to Vienna. You simply don't have time to do that, so you'll need to make hard choices.

I love all three cities, and I can't see taking any time away from Salzburg when you only have 1.5 days there. It's not as architecturally fascinating as Vienna or Munich, but it has a much prettier old city center with the fortifications rising up and the river cutting through it, and the view from up on the fort walls is one of the best in Europe. I highly recommend Boutique Hotel am Dom!

But if you want to hit a spa, Bad Tolz is not too far out of the way. I'd look close at the train schedules though, as buying a Vienna - Salzburg ticket and then another for the Salzburg - Munich leg is probably the cheapest option. There are a couple good spas in Munich south of the river.