If you are on budget, then I say route 1 of course. I have not done some of the countries in route 2, but I did every place in route 1. I can tell you, there are landscapes aplenty in the Eastern European places, especially if you are willing to venture to some off-the-beaten track places. If you only stick to the capital cities, then I would say, you will not be able to find much for beautiful landscapes.
Turkey: I spent 6 weeks there. You get historical and cultural places aplenty in Istanbul. You can get some great landscape in Cappodoccia and Pamukkale. If you want some parasailing or other adventure experiences, can check out Fethiye. If you have time to get to Eastern Turkey, you will find lots of interesting cultural place as it is mostly Kurdish here.
Bulgaria: Check out Veliko Tarnovo. Small place but quaint and interesting to wonder around. Lovely and friendly people too. Plovdiv is a small place nice for wandering around. Quite typical Eastern European feel. The Balkans mountains are great for scenery.
Romania: Go for the small places. Sighisoara is a typical medieval Saxon town. Then there is Mamamures and Brasov (which has the name up on the hill, pretty much like Hollywood). You can go chasing for Dracula as Romania is the "birthplace" of Dracula. Lots of castles to wander around.
Hungary: Budapest of course. You can spend one day exploring "Buda" and another day exploring "Pest". Visit the forts and all. Wonderful views from the forts. Great for night shots especially if you are bringing your tripod. Then, of course, if carrying the photography equipments are too much for your muscles, spend a day at the thermal baths. They are really nice. I managed to check 2 out in my 5 days there.
There are some little villages that you can check out if you are into small towns feel. Otherwise, the other big cities are not so much to crow about.
Austria: Salzburg!!!!! This is the place to go for great scenery. The old town is really wonderful to stroll around, and you can get to the fort for some great views of both the old and new town. Otherwise, you can hop onto a local bus for which a 30min ride will bring you to the mountains. You can then take a cable car ride to the top of the mountains. Even in October, you will find the mountains covered in snow and the view of the green landscape below is really wonderful. 2 hours by train from Salzburg is a small town called Werfen. There is an ice cave there which makes an interesting day trip. You will be able to see for yourself what the countryside is like. Vienna has many old buildings which is nice if you are into architecture. If you are also into performing arts, you can have a pick of musicals and dramas every day.
Poland: Well, of course there is Auschwitz, which will be an interesting experience. Warsaw and Krawkov are interesting for the old buildings and all. Very typical Eastern Europe.
You may want to consider Czech Republic since you are in that area. Of course, everybody raves about Prague. But I will like to suggest Cesky Krumlov. It is 3 hours south of Prague. It is one of my favorite places in Eastern Europe. Quaint little medieval town. Really medieval feel with the cobbled-stone streets and tiny shops. There is a river running through the town, and even in late September, you can go for some rafting down the river. It is quite an experience to raft down the river, with a beer in one hand and lovely scenery on both sides of the river. You can even stop halfway for a beer and sausage over a campfire.
Hope these info helps. Feel free to pm me if you want to know more.
