Day 4: Stelvio Pass and Umbrail Pass.
After driving a few hours to Stelvio, we stopped at Hotel Gallia. The owner there named Martin was very helpful and told us lots of information. Unfortunately the very top of Stelvio Pass was still closed, the winter was long this year and the snow hasn't yet melted, but you could still make it almost all the way up and it was a very fun road. Martin also suggested we drive for about 40 minutes and cross the Switzerland border (no vignette needed) to drive the Umbrail Pass, which was very awesome and breathtaking!
View from our Hotel:
Highly recommend this hotel:
Lots of car enthusiasts can be spotted before Stelvio:
Stelvio Pass:
Before heading to Umbrail pass, we stopped at cars first carwash:
Umbrail Pass (this pass was amazing
):
After Stelvio and Umbrail Pass and about 5 hours of driving, we headed to our next destination - Lake Garda, Italy.
Day 6: Lake Garda, Italy
The drive to Lake Garda was very scenic. In Italy you don't need a vignette since you just pay before entering the highway. We noticed people did not really follow the speed limit here. It seemed like going 200km/h was totally okay. We stayed in the very Northern part of Lake Garda. There were a few restaurants and hotels by the water. There wasn't too many people as it's not as popular a place like Lake Como. The most interesting places to see are along the water so we rented bikes and rode along the shore and it was great.
After spending a full day in Lake Garda, we headed to our next destination the following morning which was Hotel Kolfuschgerhof via Gardana Pass.
Gardana Pass:
Day 7: Hotel Kolfuschgerhof via Gardana Pass.
This place was a suggestion from
Dackelone , and WOW - was this an amazing place! First of all the roads around this area are incredible, with lots of nice cars everywhere. Hotel Kolfuschgerhof is nestled in the middle of the mountains and was one of the best hotels we have ever stayed at. The service and food was indescribable. They make their own bottled sparkling drinking water from the alps. They personally take you up to your room. The lower level of the hotel was a state-of-the art Spa. There was a pool, jacuzzi, various saunas and steam rooms, and lounging areas. My wife got a massage and she really enjoyed it. We came out of this hotel feeling pampered, well-rested and well-slept, ready to take on the rest of our trip.
View from our room was incredible!!:
Day 8: Grossglocker High Alpine Road -> Salzburg Austria
After waking up totally refreshed we headed to Salzburg Austria, which we really liked from our first ED in 2016. On the way there we also took the highly recommended Grossglocker High Alpine Road. This mountain pass is the most expensive out of them all, but the benefit is that it is made to be like a National Park. Maps are provided by the staff upon entry. The map tells you the altitude of all the stops and which stops have the most scenic photos. This was also an incredible road to drive on.
Spotted these classic on top of the Pass:
This was on the same day that our Toronto Raptors NBA team won the Championship, and I came prepared with my flag. I had my wife take photos of me holding it beside the car with the nice mountain views. People came up to us and took some photos of it too, haha.
Salzburg is an awesome city to visit. They have tons of places to eat, of course you have Mozart's popular childhood home and you can also visit the city's castle on top of the city. There is plenty to do for a day or two.
