The Grain and Grape

From our home base in Stuttgart, Germany, we planned a road trip to visit a few places that have been on our bucket list, and realized that with our route we would visit 4 countries in 4 days. Our plan included visiting Neuschwanstein Castle in the Bavarian Alps, then heading south to Innsbruck, Austria for a few days. Next, we head west through the Central Alps to see the tiny country of Liechtenstein. Lastly, we would stop in quaint St. Gallen, Switzerland, as we circled back home to Germany.

Each stop is only a few hours at the most from the next one, by car. We drove out early on a Friday with Rocky, all of us excited for a road trip through the Alps.

Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany

The fairy tale castle that inspired Walt Disney is a must-visit in Germany. We arrived at 09.30, and along with crowds of tourists, we hiked up to the castle, and then beyond it to Marienbrucke, Mary’s Bridge. The bridge stretches out over a gorge, and offers some of the best views of the castle.

Parking for the castle is in the village of Hohenschwangau, which is full of shops and restaurants for tourists, while retaining its German charm. The yellow Hohenschwangau Castle, set on the shores of the Alpsee (alpine lake), is another beautiful sight. This is an ideal location to visit in Germany, with so much beauty, as well as many paths for biking and hiking.

Innsbruck, Austria

We continued on our trip, driving south through hairpin turns of the scenic Alps. Innsbruck is tucked in an alpine valley, with the fast Inn River running through it, and views of mountains in all directions. It is beautiful in September, and the picture-postcard views in winter, with snow, must be amazing.

The Old Town is compact, with a good number of cafés, restaurants, and shops. We enjoyed traditional Austrian foods and wine while watching street performers and listening to buskers. There is something special and delicious about apple strudel in Austria.

Always looking for Irish Pubs around the world, we found one right in Old Town. The walk into Limerick Bill’s Irish Pub looks and smells like walking into a dungeon, a bit musty and dark. We were pleasantly surprised by the excellent Irish decor, atmosphere, and service once inside. This is definitely a fun place to pop into for a drink; cash only.

From in-town Innsbruck, we took one tram and two cable cars up to the the Hafelekar peak, at 2300 m (about 7500 feet) high. We hiked around admiring the views, and looking, but not finding, mountain sheep. On the way back down the mountain, we stopped off to admire some more views and have a snack.

A hike on a beautiful path brought us to the Alpine Zoo, a wonderful zoo on the side of the mountain. We saw ibex, moose, wolves, wild boar, eagles, owls, and more!

Liechtenstein

We left Innsbruck and went through more hairpin turns in the mountains, this time with no guard rails. There were also many tunnels, some several miles long, going through mountains. We reached our next stop in Liechtenstein, a small, beautiful country with many biking and hiking trails through rolling mountains.

The capital city, Vaduz, has a castle on a hill overlooking a tiny Old Town, which can all be seen in a day. It’s a nice walk up to the historic Red House, and this is a good spot for photos of the castle, the cathedral, and neighborhood vineyards. Additionally, there is an old covered bridge on the border with Switzerland just as you enter Vaduz that is very picturesque. Note, there are only a handful of cafés in Old Town, and on a Sunday in September, most were only open for lunch.

Although you should see Vaduz, the real draw is visiting the beautiful countryside. The Liechtenstein Weg is a 75 km trail that goes from south to north, or vice versa, through the entire country. It is generally recommended that hikers take 5 days, and bikers, following a slightly different route, 3 days, to complete the trek. You can do this on your own, or there are options to book a tour, or have a group transfer your luggage to each stop for you. We hiked a small part of this trail in the Malbun area, and would love to go back for the full experience.

St. Gallen, Switzerland

Looping back north to home, we stopped in quaint, historic St. Gallen. Winding streets of half-timbered homes with painted murals and elaborate details lead to the cathedral and monastery, founded by St. Gall in the 600’s.

Once called “the memory of the world,” the monastery holds some of the oldest writings in Europe. The tour is very interesting, and a real highlight is the Abbey Library.

During the drive back to Germany, we decided to make one more stop, and have a lakeside picnic lunch at the Bodensee (Lake Constance).

---

Our weekend travel included 4 countries in 4 days, and we never felt rushed. We enjoyed the tour, and are so thankful to have this opportunity to travel from our home base in Germany.

Prost!

---

This page contains affiliate links and we earn a commission if you make a purchase through one of the links, at no cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.