Favorite things I did that were not necessarily highlighted in the Rick Steves travel materials: In Salzburg I took Bus #150 to Fuschlsee (Lake Fuschl) about 30 minutes out of the city and did the whole walk around the lake. Took a little over 3 hours in part rain. Absolutely wonderful walk. Not strenuous; great scenery. Have a meal at the end of the walk at one of the resort hotels on the water near the bus stop. THEN, in Fussen I skipped the castle tours and bike rentals and walked about 30 minutes out of town along the river and through farms to the Kristalltherme traditional German spa. 15 euros for all pools and the saunas. They rent towels and swimsuits also. SO relaxing. Complete nudity in sauna areas. Felt wonderful and not touristy at all. Super nice experience. And FINALLY, in Chamonix two of us had had enough of gondolas and did the #4 hike in the Rick Steves planning materials for the tour. We would rewrite the description to make it clear that it's uphill just about all the way, but the destination, Chateau La Floria, is SO worth it. Won't even say more about this except that it provides nice exercise with a real treat at the destination. We both agreed it was one of our favorite hikes.
Posted by
Danville, VT
12040 posts
"15 euros for all pools and the saunas."
Wow. That's really cheap for a spa in Germany. Usually if you add the sauna option, your price goes up to around €25 (at least). A full day in Therme Erding costs over €40... but SO worth it.
Glad you enjoyed your trip.
Posted by
Seattle, WA
17358 posts
Chalet de la Floria is indeed well worth the hike up. We sat and had lunch with hummingbird hawk moths visiting the flowers just two feet from my shoulder.