Austria
For Christmas this year my family took an amazing trip to Hallstätter See in Austria. It was our first time flying internationally since the pandemic and our first time flying with our children who are both under three. Thankfully, the kids were absolutely amazing on our flight and slept through most of it. We landed in Munich late at night, picked up our rental car and proceeded to drive three hours southward. Sadly we missed a lot of the beauty Bavaria has to offer as it was too dark and stormy to really see anything. Finally, after over fifteen hours of travel, we arrived safely at Dormio Resort Obertraun on the South-East end of Hallstätter See.
Pictured: Hallstätter See as viewed from Obertraun
The weather was absolutely brutal the first three days, with a lot of fierce wind and unrelenting rain. We spent the time indoors hanging out with the extended Family that we had flown to see and packing presents for the holiday. Still, I managed to grab a pic or two of the beautiful mountains that surrounded us by opening the doors to our back porch
Pictured: One of the many mountains surrounding Hallstätter See as viewed from our porch
On December 23rd, despite the weather still not clearing, we decided to head into Salzburg to check out the Weihnachtsmarkt (Christmas Market). Luck was on our side and when we arrived the rain had finally subsided, allowing us to walk from the parking garage to the market down the beautiful Linzer Gasse. The Christmas Market was a really unique experience, we enjoyed some hot spiced gluhwein among other Austrian delicacies leaving us all joyful and ready for the holiday.
Pictured: The Weihnachtsmarkt in Salzburg
On Christmas Eve, we had plans to visit my Father-In-Law’s hometown, Rauris. We piled into the car to take a short two hour drive through the Alps to visit his childhood home which he, his father, and his mother had built by hand over the course of several years. A few of his childhood friends welcomed us warmly to their beautiful hotel, Wander-Hotel Rauriserhof, for some tea & coffee. I’d highly recommend you stay there if you ever find yourself in Rauris. We took some time to head to the local church where my son’s great grandparents were married & later on buried to pay our respects. It was a special time for our family and it was great for my son & I to learn a bit more about his maternal grandfather’s roots.
Pictured: The Alps as viewed from Rauris
We spent Christmas inside with the Family, but the day after we decided to make our way to the famous town of Hallstatt. The town was incredibly picturesque, with beautiful Austrian architecture and scenic mountains to frame it. We grabbed a delicious jelly filled donut and walked up and down Seestraße where we saw several elegant swans among other various water fowl. I snapped several photos, but the one pictured here is my absolute favorite.
Pictured: Hallstatt as viewed from the south
Our short trip had come to an end, the next day we packed up our things and drove back to the Munich International Airport. It was awesome to make that drive during the day and see all the scenery that we had missed the night that we arrived. What beautiful country, both Austria & Bavaria. I’m grateful that we had such an amazing family trip and rekindled our love of international travel after such a long hiatus. It was wonderful to meet my wife’s extended family and get to know everyone over many drinks and games. Special thanks to my Father-In-Law for flying us out and my Brother-In-Law for hosting us at his resort.
Pictured: One final goodbye from the mountains of Hallstätter See
