Things to do in  Austria

Because it was February in Salzburg, we enjoyed the intimate mini van transportation to the locations. Our guide was super knowledgeable and made the entire experience memorable. Did not expect to see so much of the Austrian country side and loved every minute of it.

The tour to Hallstatt is superb. Melk is not suitable after 3 pm during winter. The town is dead. For first timer to Austria, the tour operator should advise what the best times are to visit interesting places.

This tour was great! Our guide Max was wonderful. Hallstatt was incredibly beautiful. You get about 2.5 hours to explore the city itself, although it doesn’t sound like a long time I thought it was the perfect amount of time. I’d recommend this to anyone who wants to see the Austrian countryside without having to drive themselves.

Very beautiful drive an Nena saw to all our needs and was very informative along the way! This is a great way to see the countryside of Austria and end in Vienna.

Pleasantly surprised to be taken in a minibus as opposed to a coach. With only 8 passengers it felt more personal. Our tour guide / driver Ben, was absolutely fantastic. He was so knowledgable and gave us such an insight into the areas of Upper Austria. The ride didn’t feel that long as it was a comfortable vehicle and the information Ben provided made the time go by quickly. We decided to do the Skywalk, but in retrospect wish we hadn’t bothered. Yes you get an elevated view, but it wasn’t worth the money in my opinion (not included in tour). Ben advised to only spend 1/2 hour up there, but it ended up being longer after waiting in queue for everyone to take their photos! This ate into our time exploring the beautiful village below. Unfortunately, the tour doesn’t allow enough time to visit the Salt Mine (3hrs req’d). My advice would be to bring a packed lunch with you, as it can get busy at the food spots and you won’t have time to explore properly otherwise. I would definitely recommend taking this tour. We are so glad we did.

This was an incredible day trip to Salzburg. It gave us a taste of the Austria countryside and Salzburg was an amazing town to visit. Marco, our driver, was professional and courteous and drove safely in a clean, roomy van. David, our guide in Salzburg, made history fun and interesting. we loved this trip. First time with Alligator tours, would definitely do it again!

The tour guide, Walter, was brilliant, giving us lots of insightful and historic facts and information. The bus journey was not too long and gave us a chance to see a different part of Salzburg and some wonderful views of the mountains. The salt mine was very interesting and the slides, train and boat rides made it great fun. The stop afterwards in the beautiful village of Berechtsgardten was a lively end to the trip, with a wander around the Christmas market, time to enjoy a coffee or a glühwein, take photos or buy a last minute souvenir. The bus journey back to Salzburg was relaxing with a wonderful selection of Music by some of the great Austrian composers to listen too. Our party of 4 people thoroughly enjoyed this trip and would highly recommend it!

This tour is absolutely worth the drive and the long day. The guide was very good about breaking up the 3 hour drive with stops to get yummy food and see other sights along the way. Hallstatt is GORGEOUS. And the views from the Sky Walk are incredible. The town is quaint and everything you want to see in a small quiet Austrian town. Highly highly recommend this tour.

"Zachor", "Remember" -- the Hebrew to English translation of one of the first monuments on the walk to the camp entrance says it all. Mauthausen has been well maintained and includes 2 museum sections. The 3 hours we spent on site was not enough time to visit all of the areas, including the areas where the foundations and markers are all that remain, and both museums -- there is a lot of important reading at each stop. Be sure to visit the quarry to see the steps and the "Parachute" area. The stone foundation is all that remains of the Jewish block, #17, and is located behind the buildings, and the mass cemetery also is behind buildings. Visitors should make it a point to get the headphones for the onsite tour, included with the Viator tour. Our driver, Eckard, was an informative and warm guide. My only regret is following the suggested tip advice I found online for travelers to Austria. My advice is to tip more than what is recommended.

This was a very efficient way to see Budapest if you can’t stay for more than 1 day. Marco was excellent! He was very knowledgeable, professional, and thoughtful. Also a mater at finding parking. Great high level overview. Driving to Budapest from Vienna was better than driving back due to check point on the Austrian side. My only complaint, unrelated to Marco, is that sitting in the back, all the road bumps were felt. It would have been better if the transport was more comfortable but then commuting in the city and parking would have been challenging,

If you don't want to read this whole thing, I will summarize by saying that this is not a tourist boat, and this is not Dubai, as someone pointed out. This is Vienna, and the waterfront is not as beautiful as Budapest or Dubai or New York. But I will not deduct stars from the operator because they don't operate in New York. But I still enjoyed the cruise and would recommend it. Maybe the tour has changed, but this was not a lap out and back as was stated in a 2018 review (maybe things have changed). You start on the Donaukanal and sail on the Danube towards where the Donaukanal starts, and then loop back in. You go through two canal locks, and you never see anything twice. As others have said, it is a little difficult to find the boat. The dock is at the canal level and there is a large building over the dock accessible from the street level. You can exchange your voucher for a ticket if the ticket office (in the building above) is open. However, if it's not open (which it wasn't for me), they can still check you right in on the boat. Bring your voucher or have it available on your phone. Don't worry about getting there too early: Your table is pre-assigned to you. The live music is on the lower deck. If you would rather be away from it, you could try requesting a table upstairs, however they will still pipe the music to you through speakers. Please note: Half of the trip is in the canal, and you will not see as much from the water level as you would up top. But you are free to move around the boat as you please. There was an open air section of the boat (open in October...I can't speak for December, January, February, etc), but if you stand there, I hope you like the smell of cigarette smoke. The food was okay; some in my group liked it more than others. There was a breaded chicken dish (not schnitzel, but the same flavor profile), braised beef, some rice, potato, salad, a mushroom cream soup, and absolutely delicious fresh bread with butter, plus cold cuts and dessert. The menu rotates every two months with at least a slight nod to seasonality. The food is not going to win any Michelin stars, but it was practically unlimited and available at the buffet for nearly the entire boat trip. Drinks, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic, are not included. This is not a narrated tour boat. Nearly every customer onboard spoke German. However, the menus did have English translations and everyone on the crew I interacted with spoke English. The music was most definitely Austrian. As an American, I recognized nothing except for Strauss' Blue Danube Waltz and the Radetzky March, only two of three pieces without words. The rest were folk songs that I suppose you would know if you grew up in Austria. And if you have any doubts as to the music's authenticity, a woman at a table across from me sang along to every tune, and by the end of the night, most of the crowd had joined in, too. The performers were a man and woman (maybe a husband and wife team). He had an accordion and she had a stringed instrument that had both a guitar and bass fretboard (!!). The man couldn't carry a tune if it had a handle, but no one seemed to notice or care. I see a lot of negative reviews for this tour, and I'm not sure what for, unless things have either changed, or if people had unrealistic expectations. I got a hearty hot meal, some Austrian culture, and got to see the city, warts and all. And I'd happily do it again.

While Hitler's connection to Vienna occurred mostly before his rise to power, our guide Dieter delivered an intriguing picture of the young, arrogant loner and failed art student evolving into one of the Twentieth Century's most inexplicably popular monsters. An ex-journalist, Dieter handled his subject with the skill, passion, grace -- and objectivity -- of a seasoned storyteller. His stories, the details he chose from Hitler's life, and the physical remnants of his time in Vienna all conspired to tell one of the world's most twisted tales. Here's the art school where a Jewish professor turned down the crestfallen young painter's application; there's the balcony where years later he rallied 200,000 roaring Austrians, united in anti-Semitism. There's the hotel that built a special bunker for him that's now used as a storage area for hotel supplies. A few blocks distant, we see the cafe where Adolf may well have sipped coffee with Karl Marx, Joseph Stalin, and even Einstein during their Vienna interludes. Dieter showed us all these and much more, and thoughtfully answered the group's many provocative questions. Great topic presented by a class act!

Absolutely wonderful experience in the Austrian countryside! Our tour guide was amazing and super flexible with the itinerary so we could maximize our time in the places we wanted to see most!