Group Travel Insurance Center

Austria - What To Do When The Snow Melts

For many of us, our image of Austria is of stunning mountain ranges, covered in snow. That’s probably the reason that the ski season is the peak time for tourists to visit Austria. But if you want to see a different side of Austria, and avoid the worst of the crowds of tourists, why not visit in summer?

Vienna is certainly a beautiful city, with something to offer almost every traveler. But there’s another area of Austria that is worth visiting in the warmer months - the Salzkammergut, or Lakes District. It’s located east of Salzburg, and is a picturesque region dotted with more than 80 lakes amongst the mountains. If you want to do some hiking, indulge in some water sports or just relax, then this is the place for you to go.

Bad Ischl is at the heart of the Lakes District, and so makes a great base for you to explore the whole region. It’s easy to access from other parts of Austria and Europe, and there’s a wide variety of accommodation to suit every taste and budget. Once there, it’s also possible to get around the district by either bus or train, although having your own car does make it easier to explore any out of the way places.

Bad Ischl has always been a spa resort, and nowadays is also a very popular place for retirees. Interestingly enough, it’s also the place where World War I was declared in 1914, which hardly seems in keeping with its laid back and relaxed image. Still, Emperor Franz Josef had his summer residence here, and he was visiting when events took a turn for the worse at that time. Nowadays you can still visit his villa on a guided tour, or visit the photo museum that used to be his wife’s teahouse.

Hallstatt is also worth a visit, mainly because of its interesting history. It’s now a UNESCO World Heritage site, with evidence of human occupation from as long ago as 4,500 years having been found there. It’s also a breathtaking location - the village clings to the side of a mountain, right beside a beautiful lake. Salt mining in the mountains above the village was the main source of industry for the village for many centuries, but nowadays tourists are a more common sight than miners. It’s a great destination for a day-trip, but it can also be interesting to stay overnight and see how things change when all the visitors are gone.

There are also some interesting places to visit close by, including the Beinhaus, or Bone House, which is located near the village parish church. It contains a collection of decorated skulls from around the 15th century. You can also visit the Giant Ice Caves, although these are mostly stone, but they are magnificent anyway! You can also take a funicular ride to the Salzbergwerk (Salt works), which is worthwhile just for the ride.

There’s plenty more to see in the Lakes District of Austria, including Wolfgangsee, a very popular lake close to Salzburg. So give yourself plenty of time to explore, and you’ll return home having experienced a side of Austria that most people never get to see.

If you want to find out more about great places to visit in Austria, click over to Gordon’s site at http://www.travelaustriainfozone.com.

Share This

   Post in Travel Insurance    Add a comment

Vienna - Historic Buildings You’ll Love

One of the biggest attractions of Vienna is the exquisite architecture that you can sample in so many areas of the city. It’s easy to just take a stroll and enjoy the thrill of discovering yet another beautiful building. Or, you can grab a map and set out to find some of the historic buildings that are considered the finest in Vienna.

The Belvedere is a good place to start. It was originally Prince Eugene’s summer palace, and was originally built on the southern outskirts of Vienna. Nowadays the Belvedere houses a number of important museums of Austrian art, so you can get a dose of culture once you’ve finished admiring the building itself. Another summer palace, the Sch

Share This

   Post in Travel Insurance    Add a comment

Visiting Vienna with Children

Vienna is an incredibly beautiful city, with architectural and cultural delights that can enthrall you for days, if not weeks. But what if you’re traveling to Vienna with children? The last thing you want, when you’re admiring a particularly delightful building, is the dreaded words - ‘I’m bored’.

There’s a great deal in Vienna for children too, giving you the opportunity to sample this city’s delights without boring your kids. One of the best is the wonderful Prater amusement park. This funfair contains playgrounds, ponds, sandpits and plenty of room to run around, as well as the more traditional attractions of a funfair. These include the big wheel that will be familiar to James Bond fans.

Vienna contains many parks and gardens, but you need to be a little careful if you’re taking children to one of these. Many are designed to be attractive to walk through, rather than fun play areas. Keep an eye out for signs saying ‘Bitte nicht betreten’, which translates to the familiar phrase ‘Please don’t walk on the grass’.

Many hotels offer a babysitting service, so talk to the concierge and find out what can be arranged if you want a night out on the town without your kids. Check what time you need to return, as you may find you need to pay the babysitter’s taxi fare home if you get back any later.

Restaurants vary in their attitudes to children. Many will tolerate them if they are quite and well behaved, which doesn’t help much if your children don’t co-operate! So check first to see if the restaurant is happy to have children as guests, and whether they offer children’s portions. Some of the bigger hotels offer special meal deals for children on Sundays, which can be a good way to save some money. In the warmer months, the many informal street cafes, or Heurige, are also good places for families to eat.

Like all major cities, Vienna also has its share of zoos, museums and sporting events. This means you are sure to find activities that will appeal to your children’s interests and ages. Traveling with children can be a wonderful experience, giving you the opportunity to experience the world through their eyes, and Vienna is no different.

If you want to find out more about traveling in Austria with kids, click over to Gordon’s site at http://www.travelaustriainfozone.com.

Share This

   Post in Travel Insurance    Add a comment