I am delighted to introduce the Austria and Hungary: A Curated Garden and Cultural Journey—an immersive exploration of some of the most elegant landscapes and hidden cultural treasures in Central Europe.

Over the course of our time together, we will explore Austria’s most enchanting regions—from the imperial beauty of Vienna to the sun-washed vineyards and rolling countryside of Burgenland, and Southern Styria, often referred to as “Austria’s Tuscany”, featuring rolling hills, vineyards and a Mediterranean climate. This journey is designed to reveal both the grandeur and the intimacy of Austria’s garden traditions, blending iconic landscapes with private and rarely accessed experiences.

We will visit celebrated formal gardens, including the magnificent grounds of Schönbrunn Palace, as well as exceptional private estates and gardens throughout Burgenland and Styria in Austria. Highlights include the historic elegance of Esterházy Palace in Hungary and its renowned rose garden, and special visit to Kohfidisch Castle during its garden and artisan festival, where we will enjoy a traditional strudel-making demonstration with a master pastry chef.

Our journey extends beyond Austria to Budapest, Hungary, where we will enjoy a memorable evening on a scenic boat cruise with dinner along the Danube—an unforgettable perspective of this historic city illuminated at night.

Cultural and sensory experiences are woven throughout the itinerary. We will visit the charming town of Rust, known for its stork sanctuary and observation tower, and travel by train through the Styrian alpine countryside to Mariazell, home to a renowned basilica and the beloved tradition of Lebkuchen, Austria’s classic spiced gingerbread. A visit to the innovative Zotter Chocolate Factory offers an immersive bean-to-bar tasting experience, while a traditional Buschenschank invites us to enjoy local wines and authentic regional cuisine in a relaxed vineyard setting. We will also discover the historic Klosterneuburg Monastery, including its tucked-away “secret” garden, and unwind at a luxurious thermal spa hotel, designed by the famous Austrian artist Hundertwasser, where access to thermal springs, pools, and saunas provides a restorative counterpoint to our days of exploration.

As a professional garden designer, horticulturist, and tour leader, I personally design and accompany each tour from beginning to end. This journey includes private coach transportation, a regional expert, and access to a carefully curated selection of gardens, estates, and cultural sites.

We stay in thoughtfully selected four-star accommodations that reflect the character of each region, from refined city hotels to serene spa retreats. Each property is chosen not only for comfort, but for its atmosphere and sense of place—ensuring that each evening feels like a continuation of the day’s experience.

Included meals highlight regional Austrian cuisine and provide time to gather, reflect, and connect, while still allowing space for independent exploration.

Claire Jones

Activity Level:

The tour has a Level 3 moderate/active level rating. The tour includes daily walking, often on uneven surfaces, inclines and slopes, as well as city walking and public transportation.

Travelers must be capable of meeting the activity level for this tour, including:

• Board and disembark a coach without assistance

• Walk a mile or more each day and stand for 30-45 minutes at a time

• Climb and descend stairs

• Walk on uneven paths, paved and unpaved

• Handle your own luggage, including loading it on the coach and carrying it to your hotel 
  

Travelers are responsible for ensuring they are physically able to participate in the daily activities of the tour. Health conditions that will impact or limit participation must be disclosed at the time of booking. We reserve the right to decline a booking if the condition or limitations may affect the ability to safely participate in the tour. By clicking the "Book Now" I acknowledge that I am physically able to participate in the tour/activity.

Travel Insurance:

Travelers are strongly recommended to purchase personal travelers insurance for the tour. Insurance policies can cover medical, medical emergencies, evacuation, trip cancellation, and potential losses including damage to or theft of belongings. Travelers insurance offer you access to 24/7 travel assistance and peace of mind while traveling abroad or if you have an emergency last minute and need to cancel the tour.

Deposit:

€500 Euro per person required at the time of booking to confirm a spot on the tour. Deposits are refundable until December 31, 2026.

Payment Options:

1. Payment in full

2. Two equal installments

   1. First payment due by January 13, 2027

   2. Balance due by May 13, 2027

Master Terms & Conditions:

Terms & Conditions

Passport:

A valid passport with an expiration date of six months or more is mandatory to depart the United States and to enter Europe. Some airlines will not allow you to board if this requirement is not met. If you need a passport or to renew your passport allow sufficient time.

ETIAS:

European Travel Information and Authorization System (ETIAS) will be required for entry into Europe beginning in late 2026 for visa exempt travelers. Travelers can apply online and submit a fee. The ETIAS is valid for three years or until passport expiration.

Travelers make their way on their own to the centrally located hotel in Vienna's 7th District in the historic Spittelberg quarter. Check in to the hotel and get settled.

4:00 pm the tour begins at the hotel with a welcome drink and orientation.

We take a stroll to acquaint you with the neighborhood on our way to the restaurant. The neighborhood is filled with artisan and local shops, cobblestone streets, near the MuseumsQuartier and Ringstrasse. We spend the evening getting to know each other at the Welcome Dinner.

Meals Included: Welcome Dinner

Hotel: Vienna

We take a stunning 2-hour train ride through the Styrian Alps to the small town of Mariazell, Austria's most significant Catholic pilgrimage site.

The day is yours to spend on your own exploring. Visit the Mariazell Basilica, a Roman Catholic church built in 1644, find out about traditional European medicine (stomach elixir) at the historical pharmacy, watch bakers making Lebkuchen, wander along the shops and cafes in the beautiful main square or visit the microbrewery.

Upon return to Vienna, the evening is yours to explore the city.

Meals Included: Breakfast

Hotel: Vienna

The private coach picks us up at the hotel and our day begins at Schloss Hof Palace located near the border of Slovakia. The estate consists of a Baroque Palace, extensive gardens and an estate farm. The Baroque gardens feature seven-tiered stunning terraces restored to their 18-century style. We take a private guided tour the Palace and gardens. After the tour you can enjoy lunch on your own in the Schloss Hof restaurant.

After lunch we travel to Rust, a small town in Burgenland, located on the western shore of Lake Neusiedl near the border with Hungary, Rust is the country's smallest royal free city and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

A local historian takes us on a walking tour of the beautiful Baroque/Renaissance historic old town. Rust is also known as the "City of Storks" due to nesting white storks who make the town their home during the season in chimneys atop the historic buildings. To learn more, we visit the stork observation tower and sanctuary.

Rust and the region are well-known for wine. We end the day with a group dinner at a fine dining restaurant located in a restored 16th century building. Our dinner will include regional dishes of the season paired with local wines.

Meals Included: Breakfast / Dinner

Hotel: Austria

In the morning we venture to Fertöd, Hungary and the Esterhazy Palace and Margit Cziráky Rose Garden.

The Palace and gardens are Hungary's best representation of the Baroque-Rococo style and often referred to as the Hungarian Versailles. The Esterhazy Palace is part of the Fertő-Neusiedlersee Cultural Landscape, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was the home of Joseph Haydn and his orchestra from 1766 to 1790. We take a private guided tour of the Palace and Gardens.

Our next stop is Steppenduft in Austria. an organic herb farm. We tour the fields and learn about the modern distillation process from farm to natural scents and oils. The tour includes on-site shopping of oils, room fragrances, room sprays, and fragrance crystals.

After lunch we travel through the countryside to the imperial city of Budapest, Hungary.

Our hotel is centrally located near the State Opera House and public transportation in Budapest. We have a city orientation before you set off on your own to explore the city and enjoy dinner on your own.

Meals Included: Breakfast

Hotel: Budapest

Our morning is spent on a guided walking tour exploring Buda and Pest, the two cities formed in 1873 to create the capital of Hungary.

The afternoon is yours to explore the city. Use your Budapest Card to visit a museum, one of the famous thermal baths, to go shopping or try a local restaurant.

In the evening, we take a Dinner Boat Cruise along the Danube to enjoy the illuminated and impressive views of the city.

Meals Included: Breakfast / Dinner

Hotel: Budapest

Today we return to Austria to the Kramuri Artisan and Garden Festival at Kohfidisch Castle, which celebrates nature, craftsmanship, and local culture. The festival features a variety of local foods. You will enjoy an authentic strudel-making demonstration and tasting with a master pastry chef.

Later in the day we head to Distillery Puchas Kukmirn in Southern Burgenland. The distillery specializes in over 80 award-winning fine brandies, gins, and whiskies. You will enjoy a tour of the production process, followed by guided tastings. We end the day with a 5-course regional buffet dinner at the hotel.

Meals Included: Breakfast / Dinner

Hotel: Austria

Today is private garden day! Our first garden tour is at Philemon’s Garden, a private global garden with 3,000 species. After lunch at a local restaurant on you own, we visit Naturgarten Scheidl, a garden that includes a vineyard, orchard, vegetable, Japanese and Mediterranean, and much more. Our tour is complete with afternoon cake and coffee/tea in the garden cafe.

Enjoy a farm-to-table experience featuring local wine and simple, hearty food prepared by winemakers themselves, with dinner served at a Buschenschank—a traditional and seasonal Austrian wine tavern.

Meals Included: Breakfast

Hotel: Austria

We begin our day with a guided tour and distilling demonstration at Andrea Bregar’s private nature garden in Styria. This unique garden focuses on the cultivation and use of various herbs. The morning provides an enriching opportunity to learn about herbal plants and their applications.

The afternoon is all about 100% organic, fair trade, bean-to-bar chocolate at the Zotter Chocolate Factory. Tour at your own pace to learn how the chocolate is made. The highlight of the visit is sampling chocolates at forty different tasting stations!

Before heading to the hotel, we stop to admire the breathtaking views from Riegersburg Castle. This medieval fortress, perched atop an extinct volcanic hill, overlooks the surrounding town and countryside, providing a memorable conclusion to the day’s adventures.

The evening is yours to relax and enjoy dinner on your own at the spa hotel.

Meals Included: Breakfast / Dinner

Hotel: Austria

Where art and architecture and nature meet relaxation! Today is the day to unwind, pamper yourself and learn about an important part of Austrian culture.

You will have the day and evening to explore and experience the enchanting Hundertwasser designed Bad Blumau complex. Featuring 14 different inside and outside pools and two hot springs and the Vulkania® thermal spring which is a mineral-rich inland lake at a depth of around 3,000 meters with natural salt content.

Nature is an integral part of the architecture and its design. Wander along the trails, discover green roofs, and artsy buildings hidden in and amongst the landscape.

Sign-up for a spa treatment or spend the day lounging in your robe by the pool. The spa day is yours to enjoy however you'd like.

Meals Included: Breakfast / Dinner

Hotel: Austria

Culinary culture is the theme today! Styria, is a region renowned for its distinctive pumpkin seed oil. Often referred to as “green gold,” this dark-green oil is celebrated for its nutty and rich flavor. We will visit the Fandler Oil factory where four generations of the family have specialized in producing cold-pressed organic oils from twenty different kernels and seeds, transforming them into premium, delicious oils. Following the tour, you’ll have the opportunity to taste a variety of these luxury oils. There will also be time set aside for shopping, allowing you to bring home some of Styria’s finest culinary treasures.

We head back to Vienna to have a late lunch and early dinner on a customized walking Food Safari tour designed by a trained chef. The food tour highlights historical sights combined with tastes to highlight Austrian cuisine.

The evening is on your own to explore Vienna.

Meals Included: Breakfast / Dinner (Food Safari Walking Tour)

Hotel: Vienna (same hotel as Day 1/2)

Today is all about Vienna! The morning is spent exploring the magnificient Schönbrunn Palace and 400-acre park, once the main summer residence of the Habsburg family. Schönbrunn Palace and park, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is a stunning example of Baroque architecture that includes sculpted gardens and more. In addition to the Palace you can visit the Palm House, built in 1882, and remains one of the largest iron-and-glass greenhouses in Europe, with around 4,500 plant species or take a coffee break while overlooking Vienna at the Gloriette, a hilltop arcade built in 1775 to glorify Habsburg power or visit the Schönbrunn Zoo, the oldest existing zoo in the world, founded in 1752.

The Schönbrunn Panorama Train will help you easily navigate the extensive park. The train has nine stops and allows you to get on and off at your leisure. Our tour includes a ticket of the Palace and Gardens or the Zoo and Gardens.

Vienna is a city of composers and classical music. We spend the afternoon at the Haus der Musik (House of Music) an interactive sound museum. The museum spans five floors, each dedicated to different aspects of music and sound. Exhibits showcase famous composers, trace the history of classical music, and the Vienna Philharmonic and examines the science and concept of sound, making it an engaging experience. You can explore at your own pace with a self-guided audio tour.

The evening is on your own to explore Vienna.

Meals Included: Breakfast

Hotel: Vienna

In the morning, we take public transportation and travel outside of Vienna to the historical Klosterneuburg Monastery and Abbey. Founded in 1114 and overlooking the Danube, the Augustinian Monastery combines tradition, culture and artwork from the Middle Ages. The Klosterneuburg Monastery blends together Romanesque and Baroque architecture and is home to the oldest winery in Austria. We take a guided tour of the Monastery, wine cellar and secret garden.

The afternoon in Vienna is yours to enjoy.

We meet for our Farewell Dinner to share travel memories at a traditional beer garden.

Meals Included: Breakfast / Farewell Dinner

Hotel: Vienna

After enjoying breakfast, our memorable tour comes to a close. It is the time to say goodbye to new friends and to Austria. You will return home with a suitcase filled with cultural experiences and memories from this unforgettable tour.

Meals Included: Breakfast

Extend the Austria & Hungary: A Curated Garden and Cultural Journey to the historic city of Salzburg. The city of Salzburg is located on the Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Alps. Founded in 696, it became a seat of the archbishop in 798.

The fortress of Hohensalzburg, sits atop the city and is one of the largest medieval fortresses in Europe, which dates from the 11th century. The city is known for arts, culture, Baroque churches and as the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Salzburg's historic and well preserved old town is listed on the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Learn more and book: Salzburg Extension Tour