Last Updated on June 9, 2023 by Brooke Thacker
Salzburg, Austria is really centrally located in Europe, so you can get just about anywhere quickly (and cheaply) if you take a train or bus, which is what I’ve relied on to get around. Since arriving, I’ve participated in a mixture of AIFS excursions and my own weekend trips, and there are definitely advantages to both.
Here are a few of my favorite places to take weekend trips from Salzburg:
1. Budapest
My roommate and I started our fall break by taking a bus to Budapest. The thing I loved most about the city was the way that you could feel it as a crossroads of so many things or elements. Budapest is a blend of east and west, old and new, Baroque palaces or Soviet trams and nature parks. You’ll find any kind of food you could want. There’s plenty to do and a really exciting energy no matter where you end up.
2. Munich
Munich was our first AIFS excursion to a new city and it was a day trip right before Oktoberfest began. At an hour away, it is really easy to get to from Salzburg because of all the trains and buses that travel between the two cities.
Our tour guide met us at the train station and showed us the highlights before we were given our flexible return tickets. This way, we were able to get back to Salzburg at our leisure. We then set off into the city. I went to the BMW museum, saw the Olympic stadium, and got some dinner before heading home.
I later went back to Munich by myself and it was such an easy day trip. I visited the Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial Site, went to a coffee shop, and did some shopping!
3. Vienna
Our first program-led trip during a long weekend was to Vienna, Austria. I loved that AIFS took care of transportation, hotels, and several tours, not to mention the chocolate that our wonderful chaperone kept passing out throughout the whole trip! Vienna was the capital of the enormous Hapsburg empire for centuries and the city feels as grand and commanding as they come.
We arrived in Vienna from Salzburg around noon, at which time we had a tour from a wonderful guide who really helped me get a grasp of the history and layout of the city. We had most of Friday and Saturday free, which was wonderful to get a chance to explore all that Vienna had to offer. I found a wonderful coffee shop, enjoyed the symphony, and loved our city, art museum, palace, and abbey tours!
