Switzerland's Mountain Inns

Accommodation in Austria

Most accommodation can be booked as Half Board (Halbpension) or Full Board (Vollpension). You may also see With Breakfast (Mit Frühstück), Without Breakfast (Ohne Frühstück) and All inclusive. Breakfasts are normally “Continental” and consist buffets with cereals, rolls or bread, cheese, ham, jams, honey, fruit juice. You might also serve yourself to tea or coffee or you may be asked when to arrive in the breakfast room.

The system used for classification uses either Stars (Sterne), Edelweiss, Flowers (Blumen) or Suns (Sonnen).

Possible categories you will see are:

Hotels

• Categories from 1 Star (Stern) to 5 Stars (Sterne) and not categorised (nicht kategorisiert).

Inns (Gasthöfe)

• Categories from 1 Star (Stern) to 5 Stars (Sterne) and not categorised (nicht kategorisiert).

Private Landlord - Rooms (Privatvermieter - Privatzimmer)

• Categories from 1 Edelweiss to 4 Edelweiss, 1 Flower (Blume) to 4 Flowers (Blumen), 1 Sun (Sonne) to 4 Suns (Sonnen) and not categorised (nicht kategorisiert).

Mountain Huts and Hostels (Hütten und Herbergen)

• Categories from 1 Star (Stern) to 4 Stars (Sterne), 1 Flower (Blume) to 4 Flowers (Blumen), 1 Edelweiss to 4 Edelweiss, 1 Flower (Blume) to 4 Flowers (Blumen), 1 Sun (Sonne) to 4 Suns (Sonnen), private (privat), and not categorised (nicht kategorisiert).

Youth Guest House (Jugendgästehaus)

• Categories from 1 Star (Stern) to 5 Stars (Sterne) and not categorised (nicht kategorisiert).

Holiday Flats / Apartments and Holiday Houses (Ferienwohnung / Appartements und Ferienhaus)

• Categories from 1 Star (Stern) to 4 Stars (Sterne), 1 Flower (Blume) to 4 Flowers (Blumen), 1 Edelweiss to 4 Edelweiss, 1 Flower (Blume) to 4 Flowers (Blumen), 1 Sun (Sonne) to 4 Suns (Sonnen), private (privat), and not categorised (nicht kategorisiert).

Guest-houses (Pensionen)

• Categories from 1 Star (Stern) to 5 Stars (Sterne) and not categorised (nicht kategorisiert).

Farm Holidays (Urlaub am Bauernhof)

• Categories from 1 Flower (Blume) to 4 Flowers (Blumen), 1 Star (Stern) to 5 Stars (Sterne), 1 Edelweiss to 4 Edelweiss, 1 Flower (Blume) to 4 Flowers (Blumen), 1 Sun (Sonne) to 4 Suns (Sonnen) and not categorised (nicht kategorisiert).

European Alpine Accommodation

The types and standards of accommodation varies from country to country.

Most countries have some sort of classification. The "Star" system is common - Hotels are given a classification of 1 star (lowest standard) to 5 star (highest standard). The definition of how hotels are classified varies from country to country and whether it is a regulated scheme. Some schemes are voluntary and therefore a Not Categorised property can mean that it has chosen not to join the scheme.

As a guide:

• 1 Star - Tourist
• 2 Star - Standard
• 3 Star - Comfort
• 4 Star - First Class
• 5 Star - Luxury

Package Holiday

This normally includes the travel and accommodation. There are lots of companies that offer Package Holidays. Most offer air travel but some offer train or coach travel as well. Some allow you to just book the flight or the accommodation making it more like independent booking. You can book Package Holidays either online, through a Travel Agent or direct with the provider. If the flight is early you may need to book an overnight stay near the airport or use a hire car / airport car park.

Package Holidays may have more protection if the company fails and they may have an  local representative in the resort.

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