Oct 2015 Austria, Germany, Switzerland Itinerary

It doesn't make sense to me to spend nights in Munich, Salzburg and Hallstatt. Hallstatt and Salzburg are only an hour away from each other, so I would choose one or the other and make a day trip to the one where you choose not to stay. I think you lose a lot of time checking in and out of hotels, etc.

Your Beilstein/Bacharach question - I think you would be better off staying in one place if you have a car. And, I would not call these places "cities"; Bacharach has a population of 1877, Beilstein, Rhineland-Palatinate (there is more than one Beilstein in Germany), a mere 137; which makes both villages in my book. This also gives a second reason to stay in Bacharach, much bigger therefore more hotels and restaurants.

But, having a car can be a liability. There are no roads to Mürren, only a railway or cable cars (pictures here and here), so for those 4 nights the car would sit in a car park at the bottom of the valley (Lauterbrunnen), which you would have to pay for. Plus in Salzburg and Luzern, city centre hotels may not have car parking; or, if they do, you have to pay for it.

October is the start of the off-season in the Alps, between the end of the summer season and the start of the Ski season in October. You may find some hotels and restaurants in Hallstatt and Mürren closed.

Thank you for the responses! I use the word "cities" loosely, just easier than writing cities, towns, villages, etc. And we are choosing to rent a car to give us freedom in choosing where and when to go on our own schedule, and taking paths that most tourists don't get to see. We are aware Murren is car-free and are planning to park in the Lauterbrunnen lot - a price that has already been put into the budget, but thanks for the advice!

Hi,

I agree, use one base for Hallstatt and Salzburg. Maybe St. Gilgen on the Wolfgangsee would be good, being between the two. On our visit to Hallstatt in mid Oct. 2007 it was very quiet. We also visited the Rhine and Mosel in mid Oct. 2007. Me, I'd take a night from Munich and add it to one of these. Beilstein is very tiny. I'd go with Cochem instead. If I had to choose either the Rhine or the Mosel as an area to stay, I'd pick the Mosel. Burg Eltz was the highlight for us during our stay along the Mosel.

Paul

This is almost exactly the same route we took for our honeymoon five years ago. I agree that staying in Munich, Salzburg and Hallstatt isn't necessary. I'd see Salzburg from Munich as a day trip using the Bayern Ticket before picking up the rental car and then spend the two nights in Hallstatt.

Actually, we stayed in Obertraun at Haus Hepi (http://www.haushepi.com) and would highly recommend it as a decently priced honeymoon stay. It's very close to Hallstatt and with a car you will have no difficulty seeing whatever you are interested in the Salzkammergut. The owners are British expats and will help you organize whatever you might want to do while you are there.

On the Rhine, I'd choose to stay in Bacharach and day trip to the Mosel. With a car you can 'see' both in one day but you won't really have much time to stop and explore too many castles, towns, etc. You will probably have to choose between one or the other if you have only one full day and want to make many stops. We stayed at Pension im Malerwinkel (http://www.im-malerwinkel.de) in Bacharach on our honeymoon and went back again on our next trip because we enjoyed it so much.

Cheers and Congratulations!