The trip
Overview
Austria in July is close to the perfect answer to a Dubai summer: alpine lakes warm enough to swim, meadow trails at village pace, and evening temperatures that ask for a light jumper. This week links Salzburg with the Salzkammergut lake district and the Tyrol — short, pretty drives between all three, and a hire car that earns its keep on lakeside detours.
Direct flights from Dubai reach Vienna and, in season, Zurich and Munich sit within easy reach of the western route — we book whichever works best for your dates. The trip suits families and couples equally: children live on cable cars, toboggan runs and lake lidos, while the scenery, beer gardens and Mozart do the rest.
Highlights
- ✦Salzburg's old town, fortress and the Mirabell Gardens
- ✦Swimming and paddle-boarding in the Wolfgangsee and Fuschlsee lakes
- ✦Hallstatt early in the morning, before the day-trip buses
- ✦An alpine toboggan run and cable-car summit day in the Tyrol
- ✦Cream-cake refuelling in lakeside coffee houses
Who it suits
- ●UAE families fleeing July and August heat with children of any age
- ●Couples who want walking, swimming and pastry in equal measure
- ●Drivers who enjoy short, scenic stages rather than long hauls
Why this journey works
- ✓Twenty-something degrees, green meadows and swimmable lakes — the exact opposite of a UAE summer
- ✓Nothing on the route is more than two and a half hours from anything else
- ✓Austrian family-run hotels deliver warmth and quality without luxury pricing
Day by day
Days 1–2
Salzburg — Mozart and the fortress
Fly from Dubai and drive into Salzburg. Two nights for the old town: the Hohensalzburg fortress by funicular, the Getreidegasse and Mozart's birthplace, the Mirabell Gardens, and dinner in a courtyard restaurant that has been serving since the Middle Ages. Sound of Music touring is available for those who must.
Days 3–5
The Salzkammergut — lake life
Thirty minutes east and the lake district begins. Three nights on the Wolfgangsee or Fuschlsee in a family-run lakeside hotel with its own bathing lawn: mornings in the water, the steam cog railway up the Schafberg for the three-lake panorama, a boat across to St Wolfgang for lunch, and an early start one day for Hallstatt and its salt mine before the crowds build. Evenings are apricot dumplings and sunset swims.
Days 6–7
The Tyrol — summits and toboggans
A scenic two-and-a-half-hour drive west into the Tyrol, to a village in the Zillertal or around Kitzbühel. Cable cars carry you to summit trails that need no mountaineering, the alpine coaster settles any family arguments, and mountain huts serve Kaiserschmarrn with a view. Two nights in an alpine hotel with a spa for the evenings.
Day 8
Home to the UAE
Drive to Munich or Innsbruck airport — whichever your routing uses — and fly home to Dubai.
When to go
June to September is the season, with July and August the warmest for lake swimming — expect afternoon thunderstorms that clear as quickly as they arrive. September is quieter with golden light and cows coming down from the alps in decorated processions. Many cable cars pause between the summer and ski seasons, so shoulder-month itineraries are checked lift by lift.
Planning around seasons, regions and style? Read the full Austria destination guide →
What’s included
- ✓Return flights from Dubai or Abu Dhabi
- ✓Hire car with full insurance for the whole route
- ✓Seven nights in family-run lakeside and alpine hotels, daily breakfast
- ✓Salzburg card for city attractions
- ✓PCT travel consultant support before and during travel
Not included
- —Travel insurance
- —Fuel, tolls and the Austrian motorway vignette
- —Cable cars and activities unless quoted
- —Lunches and dinners
- —Personal spending
Ways to extend it
- +Start or finish with two nights in Vienna
- +Add Innsbruck and the Swarovski Crystal Worlds
- +Extend into the Dolomites across the Italian border
- +Add a night at a lakeside wellness resort
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