Austria

[Roosty38]

Hi
My husband, myself and 2 kids 8yrs and 4 yrs are wanting to try Austria next year but really stuck on where to go as there are so many options also if its enjoyable with young kids? Happy to drive a couple hours from airport as we hiring a car. We basically want somewhere that's close to a town like 20 mins drive. Also walking and waterfalls. Accomdation wise somewhere that has a pool and kids play park. Hoping someone can point me in the right direction please

We are going to innsbruck in August - booked easyJet flights from Gatwick.

Is the plane journey awful? The Madeira landing was a surprise and we decided not to go again as one of the DCs can’t cope with it

@AutumnComing2 "Once in Morzine you can use the buses or walk around they have a multi pass card too with fab swimming pool complex. I budget around £1000 for an apt."

Exactly the same sort of price in Austria, and a similar situation with the local Tourist Cards.

Private transfers from Salzburg Airport to Zell am See/Saalbach/Maria Alm cost about €200 each way for a family of 4. Public transport is far cheaper - see the Zell/Saalbach thread for more info - as a family ticket from Salzburg to any resort in Salzburgerland only costs €19. From next summer it is my understanding that public transport within the State of Salzburg (which includes numerous resorts) will be free of charge for guests holding a Tourist Card.

OK thanks everyone. I think Morzine or a resort in Austria (Zell am see or saalbach) are at the top of my list. I love the idea of the summer guest card. It would save a lot of money.
My only stumbling block is accommodation. We'd love a centre parks type set up because my children (7 and 10) love swimming everyday. I haven't been able to find such a place so I'll do some research and find apartments nearby to public pools with slides.

@Catsdogsfish I can’t comment on Austria but the pool set up in Morzine is fab 50m outside pool great for proper lane swimming, a smaller shallow outdoor family kids pool, a toddler splash bit only one slide then inside 3 different pools my kids loved it we went every day plus full sized proper ice rink next door. Austria sounds similar set up so I was looking at whether total cost was cheaper or same as it’s nice to explore other countries we’ve only done Austria in winter skiing before.

Saalbach has an outdoor pool complex - called "Kap'n Hook" - admission to which is free with the Joker Card. Some apartment complexes also have indoor pools, as do almost all hotels and aparthotels. Saalbach is not very big - all of the accommodation is clustered around the centre and you can walk from one end of the village to the other in 10-15 minutes.

Zell am See of course has the lake which is popular with swimmers. There are a number of "Beach Club" areas on the shoreline, including one in the centre of Zell am See which has a normal pool with slides as well as access to the lake if swimming in the lake itself is too daunting. There is also the amazing Tauern Spa complex at nearby Kaprun which has a number of pools, saunas and steam rooms etc. and is a great destination for a rainy day - but be aware that if the weather is bad then the Spa sells out very quickly.

There isn't really anything like Center Parcs but a company called "AlpenParks" manage a number of aparthotel properties. Some can be out of town locations, but others are old hotels in the village centres that have been modernised - or sometimes demolished and rebuilt, such as the Sonnleiten in Saalbach (up on the hill about 15 mins from the centre of the village) or the Residence in the centre of Zell am See.

@Roosty38 I'm not sure you need a centre parks type place. In fact i'd view the whole of Zell am See as centre parks!
We went to a lido every day for swimming (thanks summer card). There's an indoor pool complex too just up from the town lido. We didn't go as the kids loved the outdoor one.

Hi Everyone. Thanks so much for everyone's tips. We booked to stay at zell am see. We can't wait. Anything we need to know about or helpful tips for the area? We decided not to hire a car and going to use public transport. Do we just need the sommer card?