Appartementhaus Sonne

We had a fantastic week here in self-catering apartments. The owner was incredibly helpful with ideas for trips, and even allowed me to do a wash in the washing machines without charging. When you arrive she gives you a huge bundle of information (the stuff you would normally have to get from Tourist Info) including a map detailed enough for walking in the surrounding mountains, boat and bus timetables and ideas for swimming, walking and other activities. The Millstaettersee inclusive card means the toll roads and all the beaches are free and we had a wonderful week of walking and swimming, eating on the balcony every evening, watching the sun set over Millstatt and its lake. There is a road in front of the house, which didn't bother us on our side-facing balcony or indoors - you can hear the cars on the road-facing balcony, but it's not a big road. It's a swimmer's dream. Just over the road is the lake - the nearest swimming spot is less than 5 mins walk and although it has official opening hours in fact you can swim there anytime - we had a 6am dip before leaving. There is a nudist beach and a non nudist one, separated by a wooden screen. The water is warm (23 degrees) and perfectly clear with a beach which initially shelves gently, then drops off steeply (perfect for swimmers, smaller children would need supervision). The view is very pretty. Other beaches have more of a small child focus (Doebriach) or diving and climbing areas (Millstatt) or art (Grossegg). For walkers, there is easy access from the apartment to the hills behindthe village - there are easy walks or going along the top of the ridge is about like some of the easier walks in the English lake district - the hills have rounded non-stony tops. You can drive up to the huts and have drinks and food and do circular walks if you don't want to climb the whole 1400m, and there is a longer walk talking in all the hills round the lake. If you want harder, stony mountains with glaciers, it's a short drive to the Hohe Tauern massif. The apartment was spotlessly clean with numerous towels, tea towels, good kitchen equipment including teapot and coffee machine, two ring cooker and dishwasher with detergent tablets and kitchen paper ..... All you had to buy was food and drink. We had a car - worth noting that most of the public transport stops at about 6pm so after that, without a car, you would have to walk or get a taxi. Millstatt has a classical music festival in the summer and there are concerts to attend in a nice venue in the town. If you like pretty views, walking and swimming and want a holiday with no hassle and a welcoming host, this is a very good place.