Wish I took more pictures of this fantastic garden. I am ecstatic that my husband and I took the…read moretime to walk from our hotel to the English Garden. We brought sandwiches, snacks and water which made for a little picnic. The garden is enormous and beautifully maintained. Wish we had gardens such as this in the USA. I think this may even be bigger than the Central Park in NYC - most certainly safer! We went on a Monday but it was still full of people. From what it seems, it's a favorite among locals and tourists alike. Locals wade into the water and there are even some spots where they surf! I believe there's even a lifeguard in one of the areas. They don't just let anyone surf though and there are some warning signs about its dangers. Hubby and I were able to find a bench in the shade where we just enjoyed the scenery for a while. It was perfect for our jet lag recovery The park is also within walking distance from many other landmarks in Munich, such as The Residence, the Odeonsplatz, Mariensplatz, The Munich Cathedral, among many others.

This park is larger than Central Park and is arguably the largest park in Europe. We only spent a…read morefew hours with our bikes exploring, but we were thrilled with what we discovered around every turn. There's a beautiful river with plenty of waterfront space to relax and even a place to watch surfers practicing. There's a huge beer garden by the Chinese Tower, great for a break or people watching. There's lots of well maintained pathways for walking snd bikes. Munich residents are lucky to have this space!

Of course when in Salzburg, we had to visit the Mirabell Gardens and not just for the Sound of…read moreMusic movie spots! Flowers and gardens were in bloom. The heatwave that hit the EU didn't deter visitors but it was still good that we visited in the morning before it got hotter or crowded. There were a few die hard SOM movie fans prancing around the Pegasus fountain before running up the steps, posing by the gladiator statues at the entrance or running through the Hedge Tunnel. The garden of dwarf statues was quieter and I wondered if visitors knew they had to cross a bridge (near the Pegasus Fountain) to gain access. The Mirabell Palace was somewhat open as we could really only climb the Angel Staircase but couldn't enter the hall where Mozart played or really anywhere else unfortunately. Still worth seeing. Lastly make sure to check out the Orangerie where the Panorama Museum was just relocated and opened in a very modern setting in June. The Sattler Panorama painting inside was a 360 degree view of Salzburg from the early 1800s. Make sure to also view the interactive terminals to do a side by side comparison between the panorama of now and the . Admission was included as part of the Salzburg Card.

I don't know why I felt like singing Do a Deer, a female deer, as soon as I entered and kept…read morelooking up at the trees! Famous for the filming of the Sound of Music, these gardens are beautiful. Definitely a must stop when in Salzburg. I was here in November and they were so well maintained. I can only imagine how beautiful they are in the spring and summer with all the flowers.