AUSTRIA

🚶 Start exploring Vienna in the Innere Stadt: the Gothic St. Stephen’s Cathedral (Stephansdom) with its colorful tiled roof, the lanes of Graben and Kärntner Straße, the grandeur of the Hofburg, and cozy coffeehouses scented with strudel and freshly ground beans. Climb the cathedral’s viewing tower (weather permitting) — the city opens up with rooftops, spires, and domes all around. The atmosphere here is a blend of imperial stride and intimate European elegance.

🚶 Walk along the Ringstrasse from the Opera to the museums on Maria Theresa Square: on one side the Kunsthistorisches Museum (art museum) with Vermeer, Titian, and Bruegel, on the other the Natural History Museum with its meteorite hall and dinosaurs. Between them stands the statue of Empress Maria Theresa. Next is the MuseumsQuartier with its courtyards and terraces. It’s the perfect “museum” day: lots of art, lots of history, and greenery for a pause.

🚶 The Habsburgs’ summer residence — Schönbrunn Palace — is a succession of halls, mirrors, and gold, but the main highlight is the grand park with its alleys, “secret” bends, the Palm House, and the Gloriette pavilion with panoramic city views. Plan at least half a day here: interiors first, then a walk along the terraces and coffee with apple strudel at the foot of the hill.

🚶 The Belvedere complex — two Baroque palaces and terraced gardens — houses Klimt’s “The Kiss” and Austrian Art Nouveau classics. Afterward, stop by the Hundertwasser House, where wavy facades and “tenant trees” break the usual geometry. In the evening, head to the Prater park with its legendary Ferris wheel: the soft glow of the cabins, the lights of the amusement park, and an unhurried Danube breeze.

🚆 Morning transfer: Vienna → Melk by regional train/railjet: ~1–1.5 hours. Visit Melk Abbey — the pinnacle of Austrian Baroque on a cliff above the Danube, with a jasmine-wood library and views of the vineyards.

⛴️ Wachau cruise: Melk → Dürnstein/Krems (scheduled services run several times a day in season). Outside the windows: terraced vineyards, castle ruins, and the blue bell tower of Dürnstein Abbey. Stroll through Dürnstein — cobbled lanes and shops selling apricot jam. Return by evening train from Krems to Vienna (~1–1.2 hours).

🚆 Transfer: Vienna → Salzburg on the ÖBB Railjet (hourly): ~2 h 25–30 min. Check in, then head to the old town at the foot of the Mönchsberg: winding alleys, passages through courtyards, Baroque facades.

🚶 In the evening — ride the funicular up to Hohensalzburg Fortress: sunset over rooftops and spires, the Salzach River gleams with a steel shimmer, and the cathedral bells blend with the music of street violinists.

🚶 In the morning — the “Mozart’s Birthplace” house-museum on Getreidegasse, where the rooms with low ceilings and creaking floors bring the genius’s childhood years to life. Then — Mirabell Gardens with its alleys, parterres, “The Sound of Music” shots, and a view of the fortress. After lunch — a leisurely browse of the hanging-sign shopfronts on Getreidegasse, coffee by the fountains on Residenzplatz.

🚆 Transfer: Salzburg → Hallstatt by train (via Attnang-Puchheim) ~2 h 20–40 min, then ferry from Hallstatt Bahnhof station to the center ~10 min. Settle in by the water and stroll the promenade with views of wooden houses, reflections, and mountains descending to the lake.

🚶 During the day — viewpoints in the center, the photo spot by Marktplatz, the trail into Echerntal (glacial boulders and streams), the evening calm of the lake. Note for 2026: the salt mine/funicular/skywalk Salzwelten Hallstatt are closed until summer 2026 — plan alternatives (walks, boats, 5fingers on Krippenstein the next day).

🚡 In the morning — head to Obertraun to the Dachstein Krippenstein cable car: ride up to the plateau and take a 30–40-minute walk to the glass cantilevered “5fingers” terraces over the cliff. Views of the lake, glaciers, and karst walls are among the best panoramas in the region.

🚆 In the afternoon — transfer: Hallstatt → Innsbruck (~3 h 40–4 h with connections via Salzburg/Attnang-Puchheim). Evening in the Tyrolean capital: the Golden Roof house and Tyrolean delicacies on Maria-Theresien-Straße.

🚡 The “from downtown to the Alps in minutes” route: the Hungerburgbahn funicular from Congress, then cable cars to Seegrube and Hafelekar. At the top station: an alpine lunar landscape, sharp ridgelines, views of the Inn Valley and the distant peaks of the Zillertal Alps. Return with a walk through the Old Town and the imperial courtyards of the Hofburg.

🚶 Ambras Castle on the city’s southern edge — collections of knightly armor, the Renaissance “Chamber of Wonders,” portraits, and the quiet of the park with ponds. In the afternoon — the Tyrolean museums (Volkskunstmuseum/Zeughaus/Ferdinandeum — parts of the exhibitions are temporarily placed in outdoor areas due to renovation of the main building), the cathedral, a café on the Inn Bridge.

🚆 A long transfer: Innsbruck → Graz by ÖBB train (via Salzburg/Bischofshofen) ~5 h 30–6 h. We recommend leaving in the morning and choosing comfortable seats. In the evening — a short walk along the Mur riverfront, soft lighting of the “alien” Kunsthaus.

🚶 Graz is Styria’s cozy southern capital. By day — the Styrian Armory (Landeszeughaus) with kilometers of pikes, cuirasses, and halberds — the world’s largest historic weapons depot; then — the Kunsthaus Graz with its organic “bubbly” architecture on Lendkai. Climb up the Schlossberg to the Clock Tower — terraces, chestnut trees, and the roofs of the old town at your feet.

🚶 In the morning — the Eggenberg palace-and-park ensemble: the Baroque “cosmic program” with planet halls and peacocks in the garden. After lunch — depart for Vienna: Graz → Vienna by Railjet/InterCity ~2 h 30–2 h 45 min. Evening — a final promenade and a Sachertorte dessert in a classic coffeehouse.