February 15th, 2009 
Sheila Simkin As a lifelong Chicagoan, you know I have to like winter to continue living here but flat Chicago doesn’t come close to measuring up to Austria. “…the hills are alive, with the sound of music…” And winter-und sommer in the small towns of Austria is a completely different experience. Surf through my website for past articles on snowshoe hiking and read about ex-Marine’s (husband, Steve) and my passion for this activity. Davos, St. Moritz, Zermatt, Italy, France…wherever there are mountains, you’ll find us.
The first step of me is to check out airfares from Chicago to Munich, Paris, Zurich and Milan, the easiest and most popular destinations to fly into before training to the chosen town. The fares change daily so don’t get discouraged and keep surfing websites for discounts on airfare, hotels, car rentals.
Next, research to pick a destination for this year’s snowshoeing. Lots of time spent on the Lech, Austria, Swiss, Val d’Isere, Tignes (both Val d’Isere and Tignes in France with Tignes one of my personal favorites) websites checking out hotel prices.
Caveat, it will not be cheap if you choose a hotel with half-pension (breakfast and dinner included) whether it be a 2** or 3***, 4**** and 5*****’s being completely out of the ballpark for us. Less to book a condo/apartment and do your own cooking, anathema to me. Hey…I cook at home all the time. It is also no cheaper to take breakfast only and eat out at night. Average dinner prices in Europe have always been double the price of an American meal. We are so spoiled with giant pizzas for $5 U.S., etc. A restaurant meal will always run from 25-35 Euros a person. Opt for half-pension.
It’s also important that whatever ski area we pick has a giant ski circus with predominantly blue and red trails (easy and medium) for us to hike up on snowshoes. There are so many different Austria ski resorts to choose from that fit my parameters. Especially St. Anton am Arlberg, the granddaddy of them all.
The last step was to examine train ticket prices. Would it be less to buy a pass from Rail Europe or just roundtrip tickets? Visit the SNCF (France), SBB (Switzerland) and Deutsche Bahn (Germany) websites.
Back and forth, pros and cons, France, Italy, Switzerland or Austria, eeny-meeny-miney-mo, a drum roll please….the winner is…..St. Anton am Arlberg.
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Please note that the correct URL to St Anton am Arlberg website is http://www.stantonamarlberg.com
Thanks for the correction!
This write up shows how to economise your trip. You don’t have to be disheartened.There are hotels who can offer you the services you need.
Stacyclerke
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http://www.scottdunn.com/ski/genres/skiing-scott-dunn-ski-chalets.html
Hi,
We are traveling to Austria/Germany in April of 2010. Anything you would reccomend staying away from while we are there. I’m ex-Army, formerly stationed in Germany, so I know a few things, but found the Nuermberg Area to be very different than when I was there.
We are staying in the Salzburg area (Maria alm) and plan to see several castles, the Ice caves, Salt mines and such. Eagle’s nest is closed til May, so that is out. Also heard that “Sound of Music” tours are a bit over done.
Germany is the Garmisch area, and I’m familier with that area! We are planning on doing a lot of hiking, but will have a rental car.
Thoughts?
Jim from WI
Dear Jim:
What can I tell you!…. My husband and I usually visit Austria for the hiking rather than cultural although cultural figures in to the hiking. There are so many charming areas in Austria. Mayrhofen and the Zillertal area has a lot to offer. Au and the Bregenzerwald is filled with charming small villages. Even the Kitzbuhel area is great. We did spend some time in Germany in the Oberammergau area. I’m sure whichever area you choose will be enjoyable but don’t count Salzburg out…you can always do “The Sound of Music” stuff on your own and even stand on a mountain and belt out your own tunes! I can’t think of anything to stay away from and know you’ll have a good time. If you have any other questions that I can answer, let me know.
Best regards,
Sheila