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We are continuing to plan our ultimate Absolutely Alps family road trip. We have been talking more about everything we want to do and I have found the Alpine Tourism’s three wonderful itineraries to be so much help as we work through everything we want to see and do. One thing I know for sure is that we want to split the trip up with Pete driving in parts, and other parts taking the train. That seems like the best way to do it for us. We are basing our plans of off Pete’s high school trip to the 3 regions on the Absolutely Alps route: Switzerland, Germany, and Austria, but that was years ago, so the guides are very helpful as we fine tune the places we will be stopping in and the activities we will be doing. We are hoping to book this trip towards the end of 2017, but that might have to be moved up to even sooner because this Absolutely Alps video really got us all excited to visit. I’m not sure we will be able to wait! Thankfully the Alps is a great travel destination for spring, summer, and fall so no matter when we visit we are in for a wonderful vacation! We are all so excited to experience the culture, cuisine ( like these 9 must-try dishes), and hospitality of the Alps, with a big emphasis on the beauty of the Alps. I can’t wait to make memories together there!
Here is the itinerary we are still planning use:
For our road trip, we would plan to start in Switzerland and make our way to car-free Zermatt. It is located at the foot of the Matterhorn, and the Matterhorn is on Emmy’s list of things we absolutely have to see. Pete and the girls plan to ski some as the ski region here encompasses 63 mountain railways and over 220 miles of slopes! Since it is also known for the 250 miles of hiking trails throughout the Matter Valley, Ashley has asked that we make sure to plan time to hike some. I know we won’t be able to hike all of those 250 miles, but we plan to explore as many of them as we can. Another thing we have as a must do on our trip while in Switzerland is to ride the cog railway. It operates between Zermatt and the over 10,000-foot-high Gornergrat platform. We can’t wait to take in the breathtaking views of the Matterhorn and of glaciers. This is a 33-minute round trip on Europe’s highest open-air cog railway and is perfect for families. It is a pretty quick so it will hold the attention of little one. Plus I’ve always wanted to ride a cog railroad!
I can’t wait to see Matterhorn in person! Switzerland is so beautiful!
I’m also mesmerized by The Glacier Express. Can you even imagine the sights you can see from up there?!
Another must see on our itinerary is Oberhofen Castle, on Lake Thun. I have heard so many people talk about it and its historically significant past. An American even helped secure its place as a museum now. I think the girls would learn a lot from visiting a castle dating back to the 1200’s. Next on our trip will be Germany. I know it is also going to be a big memory maker along our road trip through the Alps, whether we decide to drive or take the train. When we are traveling, we try to see as many different sights as possible, so I know that we would definitely want to visit the Black Forest. It is quite the place to see with mountains, breathtaking views, deep lakes, and charming valleys. It is also the largest nature park in Germany, and it has an array of health and spa resorts, thermal baths, and delicious regional food along with towns filled with historic architectural treasures.
We would also want to visit Mainau Island to see the hundreds of species of plants and trees that have been planted there. The island is also well known for their positive environmental practices. Plus, we would really enjoy seeing these blue waters.
Our ultimate road trip would wind down in Austria. I would imagine that this part of our trip would be via car. Until I met Pete and heard about Austria from him, I really didn’t know what a rich history the county has, and all the beautiful areas there are to visit. He drove through on a bus with his group, and he really enjoyed all the little towns that they stopped at, so we would most likely want to do the same.
One such area that really caught my eye while I have been planning is Tirol. Tirol, which is located in the heart of the Alps and surrounded by majestic mountains, rolling meadows, and picturesque valleys has villages such as Alpbach (likely a permanent settlement for more than 1,000 years). This is another area that I would love to share the long local history with my girls so that they can learn about history where it actually happened.
The cozy homes here are surrounded by flowers and are crafted with bold, natural wood and stone that can easily withstand the rugged environment and its weather, while still blending beautifully into the landscape. I love seeing all the different types of architecture that are in the region, and climate specific. This seems like a place I would fall immediately in love with!
We are also planning to visit Salzburgerland to get a real feel for the people of Austria. It is a place where our girls would love to explore with us through hiking, enjoying the local cuisine, and watching the children of the area play in their traditional clothing.
We are still planning on a two-week road trip, but we are also going to leave some flexibility there in case we want to stay a bit longer, which I’m sure we will! Are you planning a vacation to the Alps too? Here are the 9 best hidden gems in the Alps and 9 fun facts about the Alps for you to help with your planning too!
We toured the Alps once a long time ago, and we’ve been itching to get back every since. It has a certain unique beauty that you can’t find anywhere else.
What fun way to see Europe!!! I would love to take a trip like this with my family!
Wow these pictures look like they came from magazines! So pretty!
Oh wow, these photos are breathtaking! I’d love to do this someday.
I am so jealous! this looks so incredible! Maybe someday!
What a beautiful place. I would trule love to visit.
Oh how I wish I had the time to travel more. Looks like paradise! Love all the pictures 🙂
I wish I had the money to travel here, flights are just so expensive from Australia. These pictures are beautiful.
This will be an amazing trip. The photos show such beauty.
Everything was great, cool and amazing esp. The Glacier Express. It was a very high wall and you can see on top of it is a train on an operation and I just cannot believe it. And the food was quite unbelievably tempting.
Wow! That would be an amazing trip! There’s so much in store for you guys when you visit Europe. It’s one of the best places to explore especially with the family!
Europe will always be one of my most favorite places! Going there was a dream come true for me! I’m glad you’re taking the kids with you, it’s going to be one memorable trip!
Wow, everything is so beautiful. This is the road trip of my dreams.
Oh wow, I can’t wait to hear about all your adventures. These are some of the places in Europe that I would love to visit one day.
Woah! How I wish I can visit those amazing and wonderful places in Europe.. Looking forward to hear your next adventure.
How fantastic! I will have to bookmark this as it’s something I’m talking to my kids about. I absolutely love the area! Look forward to updates!
It is all gorgeous but I am most drawn to Oberhofen Castle, on Lake Thun, especially since it is medieval and I do have a penchant for medieval architecture and history.
I have never been to Alps or heard of it. But it sure does looking beautiful! I would love to take a trip to Europe!
You live such an exciting life, the looks like so much fun! I too have never been to the alps, i need to go some day.
I really want to go to Europe soon. I have to talk to my husband about that.
A trip to Switzerland would be a dream come true for me. What a lovely place. It looks so serene! I hope you get to have a great time and keep us posted with lovely photos of your vacation!
Oh my goodness this is a dream!
This is really good for roadtripping. I love this place i hope my family will make plan to travel here.
This looks like it will be an amazing trip Heather!! Can’t wait to follow along and get some travel ideas!!
Thanks, Susan! We are so excited!
This sounds like a really fun place to head out to! I have never been out of the country, well on purpose. I think we will need to plan a trip someday!
This looks like an amazing trip! We visited Switzerland for one day on our trip to Africa, and we loved it. Can’t wait to go back!
europe is on my bucket list. i have so many friends in different areas, i probably wouldn’t need a hotel. especially loving the Austria photos.
Those are some gorgeous photos. I have never been there before. This makes me really want to go though. What an amazing view!
This looks like an amazing adventure. I would love to go visit the alps. I hope you have a great time. 🙂
I have been to Europe 3 times and each time we think about dong a road trip but haven’t done yet.
Omg I have always wanted to go to the alps!!!! Hopefully one day my travels take me there
Looks beautiful, wish I could go. I hope you all have an amazing time and that everything goes to plan, Iam sure it will! Have fun and I can’t wait to see the photos!
My goodness, I never realized how beautiful these areas of the world are. I will have to investigate more and put an Alps trip on our family’s must-do list.
What an amazing trip you have planned! You will love it! My mother is Austrian so I have been lucky enough to visit family in Vienna quite a few times. While visiting family, we also took trips to Salzburg, Venice, etc. The train ride from Venice to Salzburg was the most spectacular ride of my life!
Enjoy! Enjoy! Enjoy!
I really want to travel to Europe in 2017. It would be awesome to do a road trip and see many sights while on vacation. ^yolonda
Omg this is an amazing itinerary!!! I cannot wait to travel in Europe and explore! The pictures look beautiful and I am sure they did not give it justice !
Woah! Incredible and amazing places. Wish I can visit Europe someday. I love this.
Driving through the ancient streets of any European country is absolutely breath taking and SUCH an experience! I love, love, love this post! Everyone needs to try it!
I am dying to take a road trip through Europe! It’s filled with such beauty and each country is so individually gorgeous. I love this! Thank you for sharing such great inspiration!
I never know that Europe could be so breath-taking. Love all the pictures. They look so amazing I wanted to be there right now. I just bookmarked and pinned this. This is going tight in my travel list.
What an amazing adventure for your family! my family and I have never been to Switzerland…what fabulous memories that would be for any family
Amazing place, and amazing pictures. Thanks for sharing.
You are so blessed to have such an amazing opportunity to travel to Europe! I love all of these photos. The Glacier looks amazing! And I would love to visit the Oberhofen Castle! I think I would need a lot of SD cards for my DSLR camera because I would take so many pictures. I hope you have a great time!
What a lovely trip! These photos are gorgeous!
Oh I’d love to visit. I haven’t been to the Alps yet.
Such great tips and so many bucket list items being added. Sound like an amazing time. I agree stay flexible, makes trips so much more enjoyable.
Well, if I didn’t want to visit the Alps before, I sure do now! The beauty is unprecedented! I would absolutely love to see some of these things in person!
Look wonderful.. I love Europe and I’ve been to the Alps before. I didn’t spend much time and would love to go back.
I hope one day I’ll be able to experience this. Europe is so gorgeous!
Absolutely beautiful place to spend a holiday! I would love to have all those colored flowers surrounding our home for a refreshing and relaxed feel.