Recommendations for Austria Itinerary Using Public Transport

Hi there, We’re planning our itinerary for a month in September 2025 and would love your input, please.

We’re starting from Montreal, arriving in: Paris – 2 nights (already visited, just going back to see Notre-Dame again, 🫠) Ljubljana – 4 nights (we’ll explore the surrounding area, Bled +++) Vienna – 10 nights (we’ll visit nearby spots) Hallstatt – 2 nights Salzburg – 4 nights Innsbruck – 4 nights Barcelona – 4 nights on the way back to Montreal (the flight ticket was cheaper than returning from Vienna, plus it lets us visit another city 🙃😎)

We’ll be traveling by public transport 😎

Any relevant tips—activities, accommodations, or other info—would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance

hi how do you get from Austria to Catalonia? I’m guessing you take a quick flight?

Yes, exactly! 🙂

Otherwise, during your 10 days in Vienna, you could take a little trip to Bratislava. The historic center is small but really pretty to visit. There are a few trains from Vienna’s Süd Banhof (check to be sure), and the journey takes less than an hour. Up to you!

Thanks so much for your comment!

Very close to Bled, there's the Vintgar Gorge (link), which is really amazing, especially if you go early in the morning (around 8 AM, the light is fantastic). There’s a bus/shuttle that leaves from the center of Bled. Ljubljana is my favorite city—I never get tired of going back. The terraces along the Ljubljanica River are lovely. If you like Art Nouveau, there are some really interesting buildings on Miklošičeva cesta, very close to the center ("Triple Bridge"). The city museum gives a good overview of the Yugoslav era. For Vienna, I second the suggestion of Bratislava. The old town and the Blue Church (St. Elizabeth’s, a bit outside the old center) are nice. In Vienna, there’s a great museum of terrestrial and celestial globes (link) attached to the national library, which is also worth a visit.

I might’ve added a day in Salzburg and taken one away from Innsbruck. About an hour from Salzburg by city bus (link), there’s the beautiful alpine lake Königssee (boat rides and easy hikes). There’s also, of course, the Hitler-related site near Berchtesgaden.

In Barcelona, aside from the Gaudí sites, we really loved two works by Montaner: the Palau de la Música Catalana and especially the Hospital de Sant Pau (not far from the Sagrada Família). Two architecturally significant sites with a fraction of the tourists you find at the Sagrada, Park Güell, or Casa Batlló. And also Kinza, an excellent Georgian restaurant (in Barcelona—who would’ve thought?).