Tjo YEE WONG
The Ultimate 19-day Europe Road Trip: Vienna to Munich
Austria - Hungary - Italy - Switzerland - Germany
3 October 2023
If you're planning a trip to Europe and are looking for inspiration on where to go and what to see, look no further!
Embark on an unforgettable 19-day road trip through 5 countries with my travel guide! This journey will take you through breathtaking alpine views, charming cities, and bucket-list destinations that will leave you in awe.
Whether you're a seasoned traveller or new to the world of wanderlust, my detailed travel guide is the perfect tool to ensure that you enjoy every moment of the journey and provide you with all the information you need to plan your own amazing adventure through Europe.
Tip: Fly to and back from different countries (eg. we fly to Vienna, Austria and back from Munich, Germany for this trip). This provided us with extra time to explore different parts of Europe.
Best times to visit Europe:
- Late March to early June
- September to November (fall szn in Europe is my favourite and the weather is perfect. Accommodations are cheaper during these times and there are fewer people at major attractions.)
DAY 1 & 2: VIENNA, AUSTRIA
Upon arriving in Vienna after a long flight from Singapore, picking up our rental car, and buying water and food for the week, we were all really jet-lagged & decided to drive straight to Innere Stadt - Vienna's Old Town, to do a little shopping before ending our first day. We stayed 2 nights at an Airbnb which was near the city centre.
Our visit to Vienna was made complete by spending our second day exploring the best the city has to offer. We started early at the Bauernmarkt Leibnizgasse, discovering delicious fresh produce. After a leisurely stroll through the farmers' market, we headed to a cute narrow street where Fenster Café is located, for a unique coffee in a waffle cone.
We continued our day walking around Stephansplatz and visiting St. Stephen's Cathedral before we drove to the stunning Schönbrunn Palace. (Note: To enter the palace, you will need to purchase tickets depending on which tour you prefer. Highly recommend visiting the palace garden which does not need any ticket fee to enter.) In the late afternoon, we visited the Museum of Natural History Vienna to soak up architectural beauty, followed by the colourful Hundertwasser House.
Places to eat in Vienna:
Joseph II. - Das Schloss-Restaurant Schönbrunn
Where to stay in Vienna?
Where to park near Schönbrunn Palace?
DAY 3 & 4: BUDAPEST, HUNGARY
Nestled between Austria and Romania lies the idyllic city of Budapest, a mere 2.75-hour road trip away from Vienna. Step into a world of enchanting beauty and history as you explore the Matthias Church, Fisherman’s Bastion, and Buda Castle.
To get to Buda Castle, you can either walk up or park your car near the Budapest Castle Hill Funicular and take a ride up to reach Castle Hill, between the Royal Palace and the Sandor Palace. The funicular offers fantastic panoramic views of the beautiful city. After soaking in all the sights, unwind at a restaurant for dinner, or take a leisurely stroll by the Széchenyi Chain Bridge, which connects both sides of the city, Buda and Pest.
We'll start our 4th day at the Czakó Termelői Piacz (Note: only on Saturdays), a bustling open-air farmers' market where you can sample some of the freshest local produce and traditional Hungarian dishes. From there, we'll make our way to the Great Market Hall, a majestic indoor market filled with local artisanal products like paprika, wines, and handcrafted souvenirs. We also visited some of the city's iconic landmarks like the St. Stephen’s Basilica Budapest and the Hungarian Parliament Building before heading to Cirkusz for a late lunch.
In the afternoon, we relaxed at the Gellért Thermal Bath, one of the most beautiful thermal baths. Lastly, we ended the day with a dinner and cruise along the Danube River, where you'll be able to take in the stunning views of the city's illuminated skyline. This was one of my highlights in Budapest. Highly recommended.
Places to eat in Budapest:
Where to stay in Budapest?
DAY 5 & 6: HALLSTATT, AUSTRIA
Day 5 will be one of the longest travelling days for this trip. We did a 5 hr 45 mins road trip adventure from Budapest to the charming lakeside village of Hallstatt. This magical village is a destination that everyone should add to their bucket list. With its alpine surroundings and beautiful lake, it's no wonder this town is considered to be one of the most beautiful in Europe.
Along the way from Budapest, we made some pit stops at the picturesque town of Györ and the historic city of Graz, before arriving at our final destination. The apartment we stayed at had breathtaking views of the town and the surrounding mountains. The check-in process was seamless, and the host was very accommodating and friendly. I highly recommend this accommodation for anyone looking for a cosy and comfortable stay in Hallstatt.
Day 6: Parked our car at Dachstein Krippenstein carpark (Note: purchase your tickets at the ticket booth beside the carpark) and took a cable car to Krippenstein Mountain which offers a unique travel experience for adventure seekers and nature lovers. There are many different trails you can track, but we just did a simple 20-minute scenic walk to reach the 5 Fingers Viewpoint from Dachsteinbahn Bergstation Krippenstein. At 5 Fingers, you can enjoy the stunning views of the Alps and Lake Hallstatt.
For lunch, we took a different cable car and enjoyed a delicious Austrian lunch at Gjaid-Alm and took the cable car back down to have a little picnic at Parkplatz P4 (6 min drive from Dachstein Krippenstein carpark). If you still want to explore more of Dachstein Krippenstein, you can visit the Dachstein Giant Ice Cave and Mammut Cave.
Places to eat in Hallstatt:
Cafe Bäckerei Konditorei Maislinger
Places to eat in Krippenstein:
Where to stay around Hallstatt?
DAY 7: HALLSTATT, AUSTRIA
Our day started with breakfast at Cafe Bäckerei Konditorei Maislinger, followed by a visit to Viewpoint Hallstatt for a postcard-perfect panoramic view of the town. We drove to the Salzbergbahn funicular station and took the funicular to the Hallstatt Skywalk Welterbeblick Aussichtsplattform and Salzwelten Hallstatt. The Salt Mine is Highly recommended as this was definitely one of the highlights of this trip. We got the opportunity to learn about the rich history of the Salt Mine and there's even a slide in the mine. So fun!!
For lunch, we drove 25 minutes to Bad Ischl, from Hallstatt. We walked around the town before heading back to Marktplatz Hallstatt for a leisurely walk around, ending the day on a high note with beautiful views and amazing memories.
Places to eat in Bad Ischl:
DAY 8: GROSSGLOCKNER HIGH ALPINE ROAD, AUSTRIA
There's nothing quite like the stunning vistas of the Grossglockner High Alpine Road. My family and I stayed at Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe for a night to take in the incredible views of Heiligenblut am Großglockner. If you want to experience something truly unforgettable, take a trip through Austria's incredible high alpine road. You won't be disappointed!
Pit stops from Hallstatt to Grossglockner High Alpine Road:
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Salzburg (1h 14m from Hallstatt)
-
Zell am See (1h 28m from Salzburg)
Places to eat in Grossglockner High Alpine Road:
Where to stay in Grossglockner High Alpine Road?
DAY 9: LAGO DI BRAIES, DOLOMITES UNESCO, ITALY
We left Grossglockner High Alpine Road and made our way to Linz, Austria. It takes about 3h 30 mins to reach Linz. After exploring the town, we went to a grocery store (Fachmarktzentrum Bad Hall) to grab some food before arriving in Villabassa, Italy. Upon reaching Villabassa, we checked into our cosy Airbnb and then headed out to explore the magical Lago di Braies (located in the Fanes-Senes-Braies Nature Park and is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Dolomites), which was just 15 minutes away from our accommodation.
Places to eat in Villabassa:
Mexico City Ristorante Pizzeria
Where to stay in the Dolomites?
DAY 10 & 11: DOLOMITES UNESCO, ITALY
Our hiking day in the Dolomites for Days 10 and 11 was truly a remarkable experience, regardless of weather conditions. We still went according to our plan and decided to hike the Lago Limides Hiking Trail (Total: 1 hr). This trail has great views and is perfect for beginners. You can take a break at Ristorante Grill da Strobel Paolo Michielli and refuel before continuing on to your next destination at the famous Cadini di Misurina. Despite, the foggy weather, we did not manage to track this trail, but this is a must-see if you are at the Dolomites. We ended the day in perfect peace by the tranquil Toblacher See and headed back to our accommodation to rest well before our second hiking day!
On our second day in the Dolomites, we were blessed with better weather. We went on an exciting 6-hour hike, which consisted of 2 trails - Kaserill Alm Funes Valley Hike (1.5 to 2 hrs) and Adolf Munkel Trail (Val di Funes) (3.5 hrs). These two scenic trails will be worth the hike but we really enjoyed the Kaserill Alm trail from Zanser Alm. We would recommend the Kaserill Alm Funes Valley Hike to beginners as the paths are more even and easier to hike.
Note: No cars are allowed to drive up. You can only park your car at Zanser Alm (8 euros/day) and hike up.
Tip: There are many different trails to take at Dolomites and it can be confusing. If you are a beginner at tracking in the Dolomites, I will advise you to use Google Maps to keep track of where you are heading.
Places to eat around Val di Funes:
DAY 12: ZILLERTAL ALPS, TYROL, AUSTRIA
We started our day early by making a small detour to Bolzano, Italy, the gateway to the Dolomites and the largest city in the region, before heading to the Zillertal Alps. You can make a pit stop at Centrum shopping mall in Bolzano for some last-minute essentials or grab some food if you're feeling hungry. Next, we drove back to the alpine region in Austria and got lunch at one of the most beautiful McDonald's. After driving for about 3 hours, we finally, arrive at Schlegeis Stausee. (Note: you will need to pay a toll of 15.50 Euro to access the Schlegeis Alpenstrasse Alpine Road.) We took a short stroll along the Schlegeis Reservoir dam and took some beautiful photos of the blue lake with a backdrop of the snow-capped mountains.
The following 3 hours were spent driving to our next Airbnb in Warth, Austria. This accommodation has stunning views of the Austrian Alps and we were lucky to see some snow-capped mountains the next day. We visited this ski town during its off-peak season, so the town was not as busy as usual and was less touristy.
Pit stops from Bolzano to Schlegeis Stausee:
McDonald’s Schönberg im Stubaital
Innsbruck - 'Capital of the Alps'
Where to stay in Warth, Austria?
DAY 13: ST. GALLEN, SWITZERLAND
Switzerland would be our 4th country on this trip. We took a day trip to Appenzell, Switzerland from Warth, Austria and the car journey will take about 1h 45m. Our adventure in Switzerland started by taking the Ebenalp Cableway, which offers stunning views of the Swiss Alps. We did a short and easy walk through Wildkirchli Cave before reaching the famous Äscher Restaurant. The restaurant overlooks the stunning mountain range and is the perfect spot for lunch. After lunch, we slowly made our way back to the cableway station and we spotted many people Paragliding off the mountain. It was so cool!!
The next stop is St. Gallen. This beautiful historic town is known for its Baroque architecture and vibrant cultural scene. We explored around the town before driving back to Austria. On the journey back to Warth, we stopped by a cute pumpkin farm (Winderhof) that was selling a variety of pumpkins that came in different shapes, sizes and colours for the fall season.
DAY 14: NEUSCHWANSTEIN CASTLE, GERMANY
Our trip to Europe includes Germany, which is the 5th country on this trip!
We visited the renowned Neuschwanstein Castle, on a day trip from Austria. It was our second time coming back to this fairytale castle after 8 years. This time, we had more time to explore the surroundings of the castle, one of which is the Neuschwanstein Castle viewpoint: the Marienbrücke. We did a morning hike up to the viewpoint which offers a perfect view of Neuschwanstein Castle and a lovely photo opportunity. This viewpoint is usually really crowded, so we just took some photos and left. (Note: In winter, the Marienbrücke may be closed due to bad weather conditions.)
Later, we took the Tegelberg Cable Car up to the Ammer Mountains and had lunch at Tegelberghau with amazing views of the Bavarian Alps. Before we ended our day trip in Germany, we took the Summer Toboggan Run (5 Euro for a single ride), which is situated at the Base of the Tegelberg cable car station. Would recommend this, if you are looking to do a fun activity with your family and friends.
DAY 15: STUTTGART & TÜBINGEN, GERMANY
The car journey from Warth, Austria to Stuttgart, Germany is about 3h 20 mins and our first stop of the day was at the Porsche Museum. If you are a car enthusiast like my dad, you will enjoy this museum as they offer a wide range of car displays there. We made our way to Milaneo shopping mall for lunch and some shopping before driving to the charming old town of Tübingen.
Tübingen was one of my favourite towns where there were fewer tourists and the locals there were really friendly. We strolled the quaint streets of the old town and enjoyed some delicious gelato. The last stop was to check in to our Airbnb in Hechingen, where we will be staying for 2 nights before heading to Munich.
Where to shop in Stuttgart?
Where to stay around Hechingen, Germany?
DAY 16: ROTHENBURG OB DER TAUBER, GERMANY
Started the day by taking a 2h 30m scenic drive through the beautiful countryside from Hechingen to Rothenburg ob Der Tauber. By the time we arrived, it was about 9 am and we managed to get some photos of the beautiful town before other tourists started to arrive. We walked around the quaint old town and discovered hidden gems around every corner.
Things to do in Rothenburg ob der Tauber:
From Rothenburg ob der Tauber, we will continue our journey to Lichtenstein Castle, one of the most beautiful and iconic castles in Germany. The castle is nestled on a hilltop and offers breathtaking views of the surrounding landscape. You'll be amazed by the stunning medieval architecture and the rich history of the castle. Don't forget to bring your camera to capture the picturesque scenery!
DAY 17: MUNICH, GERMANY
First on the agenda was to drive to Munich, from Hechingen. We took a stroll down the city centre of Munich, Marienplatz, and New Town Hall, which offers a variety of shops and restaurants. Next up is a visit to the English Garden, a sprawling park filled with natural beauty. We sat along the river, watched people surf, and soaked our feet in the cooling water. With its beautiful landscape and relaxing atmosphere, this garden located right in the city is definitely worth the visit. We checked in to our final Airbnb in Grafrath, a cosy little town, 30 mins away from Munich.
Things to do in Munich, Germany:
St. Peter - Munich's oldest church
Where to stay around Munich, Germany?
DAY 18 & 19: KÖNIGSSEE & MUNICH, GERMANY
Day 18 was our last full day of this trip and we wanted to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city by doing a day trip to Lake Königssee. But first, we visited a local farmers market in the city before taking a 2-hour drive to Königssee, the Berchtesgaden Alps of Bavaria. We took the Königssee Lake Ferry Boat Tour, which offers some truly breathtaking views. The route will take about 35 mins to reach Saint Bartholomä Church and another 20 mins to reach Salet (Obersee). (Note: The full ferry route to the end of the lake and back takes 2 hours round trip.)
We decided to stop by Saint Bartholomä Church before heading to Salet (Obersee) for lunch. After spending the afternoon in the Alps, we made our way to Rosenheim to walk the old town. By the time we drove back to Munich, it was dinner time. We had Thai food for dinner and headed back to our accommodation to pack before flying back to Singapore the next day!
Day 19: Our flight time was late at night so we still had some time to spare to explore more of Munich. In the morning, we visited the BMW Museum and then headed to Hofgarten and English Garden to have a little picnic before we made our way to the airport.
Travelling is all about experiencing new things and making unforgettable memories.
I had an incredible time travelling through Europe for 19 days, and I hope that my trip has inspired you to plan your own adventure and explore the world. Whether you're planning a trip to Europe or anywhere else, make sure to take the time to immerse yourself in the local culture and enjoy every moment. <3