We were invited back to Austria's Hotel Laurentius for another week with our friends from Zurich. Since we had such a great time last year, we booked a room and flights and then brainstormed what to do after skiing.
For the trans-Atlantic flight we decided to try out the direct Austin to Frankfurt route on Lufthansa since Heathrow is not our fav. Then we decided we would go back to Zurich for a few days and use it at a home base in Switzerland then take advantage of extending a layover in Iceland on the way home.
Winter weather packing always proves difficult when trying to squeeze everything into a carry on bag. This time we brought our bigger Uppababy stroller because you can maneuver one handed and carry stuff in the basket. I also brought the rain cover which proved very useful for the snow and rain we encountered.
We received a ride to the airport from my best friend's mom. As we unloaded, S realized his personal bag was still at home, so they had to rush back to get it as R and I worked on getting to the gate. First w had to get a boarding pass for R since we could not check him in online. Made it to the airline desk with 7 mins to spare! Again, here we were very thankful for not needing to check a bag. I spoke to a gate agent and sadly my CARES airplane harness was not allowed on this flight, but we have used for domestic flights. So it took up precious space in our bags and was useless.
S made it to the gate a little before we boarded. He got upgraded and I could have also flown business class there, but R would have been stuck in coach by himself. That does not sound fun for a 3 year old or for patrons around him.
Flight left at 430p and R was gifted an adorable stork lovey that he used the whole trip. We played tons of tiny trucks and play dough on the tray table until it was time to sleep. I do not think I slept much at all, but thankfully he slept about half the flight, until the lights rudely awoke him as breakfast service started. After eating he slept until we landed.
We had a couple hours layover in Frankfurt and found a giant pretzel to snack on as there were not a ton of food options past passport control. Maybe we should have looked at options beforehand. The flight to Innsbruck was on Air Dolomite and the flight attendants were so kind and the flight was really empty. We napped pretty much the entire flight.
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| Getting energy out on the moving sidewalks |
As we approached Innsbruck, you glide through the Alps and here we noticed there is not much snow yet! After landing, we got the stroller back at the over-sized baggage window and then headed to catch a bus to the train station. Then we took a train to Landeck and enjoyed the scenery along the way. Here Ian picked us up in his car and took us to the hotel. His sister and her family also joined the party from Sweden.
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| a very sleepy buddy |
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| loving the view from the train station |
We spent the rest of the day (Saturday) getting settled, played in the playrooms, and enjoyed a delicious meal. Sunday was spent getting over jetlag, renting ski/board gear, and watching the snow start to come down. I also signed R up for a day of ski school.
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| super fancy dessert |
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| before snow arrived |
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| Laurentius hotel! |
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| view from the hotel (pre-snowstorm) |
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| Each night Laurentius the Star since songs (in German) and dances with the children |
Monday morning R and I took the yellow gondola over to the ski school area and I finally figured out how to get his locker and dropped him off with the other 3 year olds. Y'all, ski school was a big nope for him. Poor thing cried and cried. The lady that spoke English was able to tell me that he did go out and try for a bit after snack, and then ended up playing in the playroom the rest of the day. Since we had access to Star Club (included) at the hotel, we did not do more ski school.
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| my poor child crying and crying |
Got my beloved Ziachkiachla with lingonberries (donut like dish) again, took R sledding for a bit after ski school.
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| beautiful view of the snow covered towns |
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| gorgeous view before heading down the slopes |
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| Ziachkiachla |
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| thankful for the fresh powder |
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| one of our favorite huts |
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| the crew heading up a lift (the seat is heated!) |
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| S strapping on board to head down |
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| sledding fun |
The slopes received more snow overnight! I had a massage Tues morning then we went back up on the mountain for a couple runs. We had a 5 day pass so could come and go as we pleased. Note that the lift passes here are quite reasonable compared to the US. Fresh powder everywhere made the scenery gorgeous, so I took a ton of photos and a fraction of which are below. After our runs, went to pool area and R camped out in the baby pool with all the vehicles.
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| new play room |
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| Star Club |
Wed was Ian's birthday so after breakfast we hit slopes again. That afternoon we found the huge slide. Dinner was really delicious that night. Each morning we pick what we want for dinner. I started to make notes because I kept forgetting what I chose since sometimes it was hard to choose from so many delicious dishes. That evening the four of us hung out to celebrate Ian up at the adult pool.
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| fun on the little playground at the hotel |
Thursday we spent the day in the playroom and then sledding. In the afternoon we took the red gondola all the way up and down.
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| always impressed with the food |
We got one more boarding session in on Fri morning before some more snow started falling.
Took R up one last time on red gondola for a snack at the top and to see what it looked like up there as the "storm" rolled in. Had fun at the water park and who knows how many times he did the slide that day.
One funny thing from the trip is that R wanted his drinks in 3's (bubble water, milk, OJ) and he loves cheers-ing.
Saturday morning we checked out and headed to Zurich for part 2 of the adventure.
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