Sound of Music Tour The Joint PANORAMA TOURS & TRAVEL Gesellschaft m.b.H. Schrannengasse 2/2 A-5020 Salzburg Phone: +43 662 / 88 32 11 0 http://preview.tinyurl.com/ymbjjx Cliff St. Gilgan, on theWolfgangsee This is a great 4-hour tour. November 2006 It was much better in November 2004 (although the weather was better this time around), owing to a much smaller vehicle and tour group size. Note to prospective participants: find out before you book whether you’ll be doing the tour on a giant tour bus (seating about 100) or perhaps in a minivan. The minivan is in my opinion, a much better deal. Both times I have taken the tour, we had Sue as our guide, who is very informative and enthusiastic. Gabe and Cliffand Brian inNovember 2004 But I liked it better when it was just her and me and Brian and Gabe and the Vietnamese Family from Canada and Team Malaysia* piled into the minivan. Sarah Despite the number of people on the tour bus, this was a really good time. Sue, our guide, was so knowledgeable and personable. And even though she must be sick to death of this movie, she’s able to infuse her commentary with enthusiasm. Plus, given the variety of locations, you get a great opportunity to see much of Salzburg and the surrounding area.
Sternbräu The Joint Griesgasse 23 5020 Salzburg Austria Cliff Started off this trip through Austria correctly; that is, with a nice Schnitzel. This place had great big portions of traditional Austrian cuisine in what looked to me like traditional Austrian decor. Nothing fancy or high-falootin. And we were all happy with our stuff. I’d come back here again. The neon sign, nearly visible across the river, gave me doubts as we approached, but they were unfounded. Our waitress was friendlier than most, so that was nice too. Sarah This place was outstanding! We found it in the Frommer’s Austria that Carolyn brought us and we were not disappointed. It’s in the old city area, about a three-minute walk from the house in which Mozart was born. There might be more than one dining room, as the one we were in looked sort of small. The place was decorated with lots of murals depicting the history of the area and old dark wood and brass around the booths. The service was wonderful and the beer was worth writing home about. But the best part was the food! Big portions for small prices and the quality of the ingredients and preparation was outstanding. I had the Schweinebraten (pork roast) with Semmelknödel (bread dumpling), a dish I’ve had several times since moving to Germany and I can easily say this is the best permutation I’ve had yet. Don’t miss the Sternbräu if you’re ever in Salzburg!
K & K The Joint Waagplatz 2 Salzburg, Salzburg Austria Cliff Started the trip off with…goose, since I’m a Michi…gander! This place was nice and quiet on a Sunday afternoon, if a bit smoky despite there being only one other party in the downstairs luncheon room. The smoked breast of goose was very good, if a bit pricey. But hey – it was goose, so what was I to expect? The plum strudel and walnut ice cream afterwards was delightful. Sarah This is one of the restaurant offerings in the hotel K & K. I had the small sauerkraut and bratwurst, and for the price I expected something a little more impressive than what I got. The kraut kind of lacked seasoning and the brats tasted like the ones I just buy from the grocery store here. But the dessert was wonderful and the location of this place is pretty unbeatable.
NH Salzburg The Joint Franz-Josef-Strasse 26 A-5020 Salzburg, Salzburg Phone: +43 662 8820410 Fax: +43 662 874240 http://preview.tinyurl.com/yl7cm9 Cliff Sarah scoped a great price. Too bad it didn’t include breakfast. We found out only after chowing on it that it was €14 per person. Yowch. Sarah The price was pretty unbeatable (59€/night!) for the location, but finding out that breakfast wasn’t included was a nasty shock. But it was an awfully tasty and varied breakfast. The hotel has a very sleek, modern lobby – somewhat japanese in style. This was kind of misleading when it actually came to the rooms themselves. They were plenty comfortable and the bathrooms (my personal obsession) were very clean with good water pressure. But there was nothing of the style from the lobby. A big bonus here is that they have a fitness and sauna facility for all guests to use. Make sure you go down to the sauna already in a robe and carrying your towel – there’s no private changing room down there!