Europe, Hiking, Slow travel, Travel Diary, Trip Planning, Walking Holidays

Why I LOVE Salzkammergut

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couple kissing at mountain viewpoint in Salzkammergut Austria
I know it’s a bit of a mouthful, but truly the Salzkammergut region of Austria will make you believe that Heaven might possibly exist on earth.

Salzkammergut Hikers Paradise

Lake water so clear you can see the bottom. Forests with moss covered rocks & happy cows coming down a mountain with flowers festooned on their heads. Mountain huts welcoming the weary hiker with warm food & a beer or schnapps. A culture of people who seem happy to take life at a slower pace. A place where tradition is genuinely portrayed by the architecture, clothing & local celebrations. What ISN’T there to love about this place?

walking path from Obertraun to Dachstein with mountains

Nestled at the north central part of Austria near the alps, the pristine lake region of Salzkammergut is a hiker’s paradise! From easy flat walks along pristine alpine lakes to challenging long distance hikes along mountain peaks — this place has it all. Which is another reason why we chose to stay at Haus Hepi in Obertraun.

View from Haus Hepi with mountains in Obertraun

Hiking Base Obertraun

Obertraun is located in the southern part of this region, about 1.5 hours from Salzburg. It’s a small village with one grocery store, a church, a bakery, an excellent recreation complex, & quaint homes. What really makes it stand out for me (besides the totally awesome Haus Hepi) is that the train & bus stop is within easy walking distance & it doesn’t feel like a tourist town. You could spend two weeks in this one town without a vehicle & never get bored because hiking trails are all around you & beautiful towns are either across the lake or within a quick bus ride.

river crossing from Obertraun to Dachstein
On our first full day in Obertraun, we walked through town, past an amazing bike arena, through a forest up to the Dachstein Cable Car. This was about a 40min walk with some ascent but it wasn’t difficult & it gave us a chance to see the town. You can also take the bus, if you’re trying to save your stamina or your knees.

Once we arrived at the cable car station, we purchased our Panorama tickets for the ride up. The tickets cost €30 per person (ouch), but that’s our fault because we could have gotten a discount had we heeded our innkeeper’s advice. So, two cable car rides up & a short walk to the 5 Fingers lookout & we had views like this…

Salzkammergut viewpoint at 5 Fingers
The walk to 5 Fingers was full of tourists and not the greatest walk but it offered amazing views of Hallstatt and Obertraun far below. Certainly not worth €60 but what WAS worth that cable car price was our next walk.
signpost on Heilbronn loop trail in Austria
Heilbronn Loop

Heading back towards the cable car, we took the Heilbronn Circular Trail which was a 3hr, 8km walk around the mountain & up to the 3rd cable car, which we took down. That hike was AMAZING! It began with a steep descent then turned into windy paths with snow & breathtaking views.

woman hiking Heilbronn Trail in Salzkammergut Austria

Then we reached Heilbronner Kreuz, a cross marking the death of 13 students & teachers from Heilbronn Germany in 1954. Once we rounded this part of the mountain the sun began to shine, the snow disappeared, & green trees & meadows began to appear.

mountain hut in Salzkammergut Austria

We saw some crude alpine huts (didn’t look comfy but they did look warm, dry & clean). Three hours seemed like a short hike to me when we first began walking, but by the time we hiked the last trek up to the cable car, I realized three hours was just fine.

hiker standing in snow on Heilbronn Trail in Austria

Thoroughly awed by what we had seen that day, we took the cable cars back down the mountain & walked back for dinner. Visited with our innkeeper’s mom & “the Brits,” then settled in for some German television. Got hooked on a gameshow called Spiel Fuer Dein Land (Play for Your Country), which had German-speaking celebrity representing their respective countries answering questions about the Deutschland. Then we switched to German QVC and watched a guy gyrate on a mini trampoline and fell asleep to the German MTV equivalent. I blame lack of sleep & high altitude for our entertainment choices.

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Europe, Slow travel, Travel Diary, Trip Planning, Walking Holidays

Why I LOVE Haus Hepi

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Haus Hepi exterior with mountains in background
Have you ever stayed at a place where you thought, “I could live here” or “I would like to be adopted by these people?” Well that is EXACTLY how we felt after a five night stay at Haus Hepi in Obertraun, Austria.
A year ago when I began planning a trip “somewhere” in Europe, I knew two things: we wanted beautiful landscapes for hiking & a place to stay that felt like home. I looked at farm stays all across Bavaria & Iceland, coastal cottages in Portugal, villas in Costa Rica. I used a lot of non-English search terms, trying to find lodging that only the locals would know about…and that’s when I discovered Haus Hepi. I had never heard of Obertraun, but Haus Hepi’s site said they had a hiking package which included customized advice on hiking itineraries plus transportation from Salzburg plus the option to add dinner prepared by a professional chef. PERFECT! I built the rest of our two week trip around this place, & boy am I SOOOOOO glad I did.
haus hepi obertraun austria
My love for Haus Hepi began when I first contacted them via email about a possible reservation & it increased through the phone conversations that ensued. It was so easy to talk with them & ask questions about transportation & international payments & they chatted like we were old friends. My respect increased with the taxi that they scheduled for us. The driver was prompt, very friendly (didn’t speak English but that was no problem), & got us to Obertraun with no tense muscles or thanking God for bringing us to our destination alive. It was a pleasant drive.
view from balcony at Haus Hepi
View from our balcony

Upon arrival, we were greeted by our hosts Larry & Lisa Hepi, who originally hail from the UK & have lived in Austria for the past 14 years. Before “retiring” to bucolic Austria, Larry was an executive chef in England & Germany & Lisa was in hospitality management. They immediately made us feel welcome & Larry sat down with us over water & coffee to introduce us to the area with a welcome packet, complete with topographical maps, bus & train schedules, & local attractions. He was FULL of useful knowledge & eager to share it but recognized we were probably missing half of what he was saying because we were travel weary. So, he graciously let us go with the knowledge that we would see him again for dinner at 7. We passed out in our room shortly thereafter.

dining room at Haus Hepi
My undying adoration of Haus Hepi began with dinner that first evening. Pan fried pork schnitzel with chantarelle & chive sauce. For dessert, apple strudel with homemade walnut ice cream. OH. MY. GOODNESS!
Pork Schnitzel with chantarelle & chive sauce
Larry had provided us with a menu in our welcome packet, but words on a sheet do not prepare you for the meals that he creates. He is a SUPERB chef who clearly understands how to pair seasonal ingredients in a way that presents as gourmet but tastes like comfort food. Beer, wine, & coffee were included in the meals & best of all…WATER! We wouldn’t fully appreciate this unlimited access to H2O until later in our trip, but looking back it was an oasis amidst water-hoarding Europe.

Our room was a typical Euro style bedroom & bath, so nothing fancy. But it had a balcony with gorgeous views & a radiator in the bathroom which worked great for drying unmentionables. For larger clothing, Lisa offered their outdoor boiler room for us to dry clothes & that worked wonderfully! We had access to a guest living area, complete with Ikea Poang chairs (which made Eric happy) & complimentary espresso, tea & water. Eric enjoyed perusing their travel books & I enjoyed basking under the skylights munching on Viennese hazelnut wafers.

haus hepi obertraun austria

But back to my love for Haus Hepi. Each morning we were greeted by a cheery Lisa & four of the jolliest Brits & Irish lady I’ve ever had the pleasure to meet — Vic, Pam, Shirley and Lauren. Shirley is Larry’s mum, Vic & Pam are his aunt & uncle, & Lauren is the friend from Ireland. It was a hoot listening to them at meals each day (they probably thought we were quiet but the truth was we just enjoyed listening to their accents & lively chatter). They made us feel part of the family & we truly lucked out being there at the same time as them.

As we finished breakfast, Larry would arrive to help us plan our day (whether that meant hiking up a mountain, adapting to rainy weather, visiting neighboring towns for artwork, bus/train routes…you name it). Lisa would also give advice, & the one time we didn’t heed her suggestion…we missed out on a good lunch because of it. We learned quickly to do everything they suggested — they never steered us wrong.
church and buildings of Hallstatt Austria
Hallstatt is across the lake from Haus Hepi

One word of warning: if you don’t arrive in your own vehicle, be prepared for a climb every time you leave Haus Hepi. The bus & train station are VERY close, but they are at the bottom of a steep little hill. The good news is, you always have a warm welcome & hearty food waiting for you at the top.

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Europe, Hiking, Slow travel, Travel Diary

Salzburg Austria City Tour: Part 2

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Salzburg skyline and river
Our third day in Salzburg didn’t go as planned, & I blame it solely on a cantankerous bus driver (& maybe a little bit on my husband).

The original plan was to hop on a bus to Hellbrunn Schloss, a quirky pleasure palace about 20min from the city. We timed it so that we could get in free with our Salzburg Card, which was good for 24 hours from the first time you use it. Our hotel concierge told us exactly what bus to get on & when to get on it. All was going smoothly until the bus arrived & I told Eric to hop on it.

bike and courtyard in Salzburg Austria

Now here’s the problem: Eric is a smart man & he generally listens to me, but when the back door of that bus opened instead of the front door, my poor logical husband just couldn’t wrap his head around that. We had just been chewed out two days hence for not using the correct door & Eric knew that door was supposed to be the exit (not the entrance). So despite my frantic urging to “just get on it,” we missed the bus. In fact, the bus driver shut the door in my face as I was trying to step on — I even banged on the door before he took off…don’t think he liked that too much.

Salzburg Austria

Thoroughly disgusted with Salzburg bus drivers (& our own ineptitude), we decided to forego Hellbrunn since it would no longer be free by the time the next bus came around. Instead we opted to explore the market & do more walking up Monchsberg. I’m glad we did, because the views of the city from atop Monchsberg are INCREDIBLE! My only regret is that I was wearing jeans, which were fine if I’d leisurely been strolling pleasure gardens…NOT so fine for trekking up & down a mountain in warm weather. At least I had the foresight to wear my boots that day.

couple eating a pretzel at market in Salzburg Austria
Watching for pigeons

Lunch at the outdoor market consisted of mohnstrude (poppy pastry) & brezen mit speck und kase (pretzel with meat & cheese). Eric loved the cheese cutting table.

Salzburg Austria Altstadt cheese table

Before leaving Salzburg, we squeezed in a quiet walk through the cemetary at St. Sebastianskirche. We never found the Mozart burial plots, but we DID see some elaborate tombstones.

cemetery and trees at Sebastianskirche in Salzburg Austria

We stopped at a cafe for plum pastry and melange (milk coffee) before being picked up by a taxi for our next destination. The cab driver didn’t speak English so it was a quiet and beautiful drive south to Obertraun, which gave me plenty of time to reflect.

view from Monchsburg in Salzburg Austria
View from Monchsburg

My conclusion? I LOVED Salzburg & would visit again in a heartbeat! It’s a romantic city with old charm & a slower pace. Even the tourists who seemed only interested in consuming all things Sound of Music were subdued by the sheer majesty of this place. With good sturdy shoes, it’s also a walker’s paradise. I mentioned Monchsberg already, but there’s also Kapuzinerberg on the opposite side of the river which offers breathtaking viewpoints, an old Capuchin abbey, & a cool fortress wall with watchtowers.

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