Highlights of Austria Luxury Tour

Two days will be enough to circle around Vienna’s most important highlights. Set out with a guide this morning, with St Stephan's Cathedral an iconic first stop in the Old Town. Climb a narrow staircase for a panoramic city view, then complete your morning in Schonbrunn Palace, an immersion in Hapsburg grandeur. There’s a lovely cafe here for lunch, which should energize you for an afternoon in Hofburg, an unmissable district on the edge of Vienna. Here, the Kunsthistorisches is just one example of a city that holds untold historical secrets.

The Danube curls languidly across Central Europe, connecting capital cities and magnificent old-world towns. To follow the river is to follow Austria’s most romantic road, with Krems being your first stop in the Danube Valley. Sample wine in the old wine town of Durnstein, besides the remains of fortified walls. Then cruise along the Danube past vineyards, on a private boat that’s perfect for a picnic lunch. Melk is the day’s final stop and Melk Abbey is one of Europe’s finest baroque buildings, a rare juxtaposition of asceticism and excess.

The journey to Linz will keep you firmly in Austria’s low-lying valleys. Small towns and forests mark the riverbanks and the bucolic scenery is a delight for even the most fatigued traveler. With its masterly ornamentation, the Abbey of St Florian hints at Linz’s dazzling history. Yet Lentos Kunstmuseum Linz and the Ars Electronica Center are a complete contract, showcasing a more contemporary side to beautiful Austrian towns. Austria is famous for its desserts and none are as indulgent as the Linzer torte, a delicacy to sample in many traditional cafes.

Lakes mirror mountain peaks in their glassy surfaces. Snow-bound slopes jut towards the sky, even during summer months. Bells tinkle as cows pass you on green alpine valleys. Words can only attempt to do justice to Salzkammergut and photos only hint at the region’s ethereal beauty. Today you will be guided into the Austrian lake district for a day of ever-changing landscapes. With a private guide you can explore on your schedule. There are opportunities for hiking in the hills, as well as drives to the full selection of iconic viewpoints, before a night in the spa town of Bad Ischl.

After four days on the road, you will cruise into Salzburg where today has been left free. Note that you can take the train from Vienna to Salzburg in just over two hours, but then you miss so much of the beauty that makes Austria such a desirable destination. Perched beneath dazzling peaks, Salzburg is a small city of cobbles and charm. You may have the sound of music in your ears, or certainly the sound of Mozart, as you walk the pedestrianized streets to small cafes and churches.

Music is the iconic vessel for discovering Salzburg and today’s tour will ensure you experience all the important highlights. Valleys outside the city will start your exploration of Sound of Music filming locations, while a small townhouse will provide insight into Mozart’s early years. To really appreciate the musician’s genius you need to hear his scores, and that’s possible in a Salzburg church, as well as at an evening opera. There will be a point when you step back from the music and stand in awe at the surroundings, for there are few cities more picturesque than Salzburg.

Most visitors to Austria focus on the Vienna to Salzburg route, then miss the wonderful alpine scenery to the far west, close to Switzerland. This is where you are heading as your best of Austria tour continues, first with a guided transfer to Zell am See and lunch in the mountains. Schmittenhohe will offer a mesmerizing view back over Salzburg before the valleys contrast and converge. Hidden in this bucolic scene is Lienz, where old streets showcase Tyrolean history and a small palace hints at a hidden delight.

With its dramatic hairpins and switchbacks, the Grossglockner is not the easiest highway to drive. But what an experience! It’s only 30 miles to Heiligenblut but the Grossglockner will take all morning, as you twist higher into alpine bliss. Your guide can also take the wheel, although the world’s ultimate alpine highway is typically one visitors want to drive for themselves. Staying in the mountains you will spend the night in Kitzbühel, a famous Austrian ski resort that is beautiful every month of the year.

For the final two days you will be based in Innsbruck, a small and cute city enveloped by peaks in western Austria. Here the city sights are many, such as the renaissance bliss of Schloss Ambras, or the Wiltener Basilica. You can hear the opera at Landestheater and easily stroll out of the city to viewpoints, or ride up to the Hungerburg plateau. Nothing specific is planned and your guide will tailor the afternoon and evening, including reservations at one of Austria’s leading restaurants.

Waterfalls tumble from cliffs and glaciers seem to extend for eternity in the Otzal Alps. Folkloric villages sit beneath rolling slopes of snow, while jagged peaks cluster in harmony upon the horizon. This final day in Austria will take you to Austria’s most forgotten, yet probably most spectacular alpine region. The Tyrolean Arctic doesn’t have the fame or cultural attractions of elsewhere, but the landscapes can baffle your imagination. You can wander upon glaciers, ascend above the snowline, and feast your senses in a silence that few other countries can provide.

You will depart Austria from Innsbruck and a private transfer completes your itinerary. You may consider extending the journey in neighboring Switzerland or Bavaria.