We recently spent 3 days in Salzburg, Austria. With so
many tourism websites online, it usually becomes an information overload and it
is difficult to shortlist what to visit and what not to. So I thought of
putting together a real experienced itinerary.
Please note these 3 days were spent in winter season
towards the end of December. Someone visiting in summer might need to modify a
bit due to increased day light timings.
Before moving on to sightseeing, I would recommend
purchasing a Salzburg card. Salzburg card costs 30 euros for 48 hours (or 35
euros for 72 hours). We purchased it at the Salzburg station. However I believe
it’s available at almost all major tourist information centers / hotels. The
card validity starts from the time of its first usage. (more information on: http://www.salzburg.info/en/sights/salzburg_card)
Day
1
Start your trip with Hohensalzburg Fortress at the
Festungsberg mountain: There is a cable car from the “festungsbahn” stop right
behind the Dom. Salzburg card covers the cable car and the entry inside the fortress.
There are two ways to explore the castle – A & B. Both are covered by the
card and both are worth doing. While B covers the interiors and you get to see
the state room and museum; A is a walking guide tour of the exteriors and the
highest point on the fortress. From that point, you get a very good view of the
city. Keep approximately 3 hours for this attraction. Some side information:
The fortress is one of the largest medieval castles in Europe. Look out for the
evolution of castle in Walking trip A as each Archbishop developed the castle
during its reign. Also don’t miss the Golden Room where the entire hall was
decorated by either gold tapestries or had gold buttons in the ceiling.
Come down and see the Dom: Once you come back (again by
the cable car), you can go inside the Dom. The Salzburg Cathedral is a 17th
century baroque cathedral and is grand and beautiful. Don’t miss the cathedral
excavations in the basement which sometimes have an art exhibition going on.
Keep approximately 1 hr for this. Entry is free. Some side information: Mozart was baptized in
the cathedral. Also the cathedral was destroyed by s single bomb in second
world war and took almost 15 years to restore.
Visit the Residenz in front of the Dom: Alongside with
the Hohensalzburg Fortress and the Dom, the Residenz Palace is probably the
most important historic building of Salzburg. Within Residenz place, you can
see the rooms in all its original glory and also visit the paintings in the
Gallery section. Depending upon how much time you want to spend in the
galleries, you can keep around 2 hours for the Palace. (Ticket price is covered
in Salzburg card).
In between for lunch, you can either eat at the numerous
stalls at the Altermarkt area or there is a nice cosy place called MyIndigo at
the river near Rathaus bus stop. This place serves quick lunch and I would
highly recommend it. There are also some 2-3 vegetarian options.
Move onto Mozart’s Geburthaus. Visit
the rooms and the museum inside the house. The place shows the early years of
Mozart and the room where he was born. Also covered are the stage models of his
performances. (Ticket price is covered in Salzburg card). Side information: The
Mozart family lived on the third floor of the "Hagenauer House" at
Getreidegasse 9 for twenty-six years, from 1747 to 1773.
With this, you have covered the 4 most important and
visited places in Salzburg. If you still have some energy left, you can close
your day by a visit to either the Salzburg museum or the Panorama museum just
alongside the Dom next to Mozart’s statue. While I didn’t get to visit either,
I understand the Salzburg Museum offers interesting insight into the city's history,
offering changing exhibitions. Panorama Museum offers wonderful views of the
landscaping of Salzburg. As per their official site: You can stand on the
visitors’ platform and marvel at the gigantic round painting (26-meter
circumference) of the historic city of Salzburg and its environs. Telescopes
allow visitors to take a closer look at the attractions and details from the
everyday life of Salzburg's residents 200 years ago. Please keep in mind in
winters, almost all attractions close at 5pm. Hence not much can be covered in
a day. In summers, you have the luxury of time and light by your side
In the night just stroll along the many streets in old
market and enjoy the lights and touristy atmosphere. There is usually an ice
skating rink (very reasonable) right next to Mozart’s statue and alongside are many
Glühwein stalls. So either you can have your dinner there or at one of the many
interesting restaurants in the vicinity.
Day
2
Start your day early as today you would be visiting the
mountains and experience some snow. If you fancy skiing, then this is your day.
Take bus 25 or 28 to Untersbergbahn. The bus can be taken
either from Mirabell platz or Rathaus. (by the way the local transport is
covered in Salzburg card). Mt. Untersberg is the nearest mountain from the
Salzburg city. The journey time is approx 25 mins. From the bus stop, there is
a cable car to the top of the range. The cable journey takes you up by around
1.3kms and takes approx 10-12 minutes. If you are visiting in winters, then
this is the closest place to see snow and ski. Although it is not a
professional ski resort but lot of people bring their gear and ski here.
Alternately, you can just enjoy walking on the snow. You can trek on the snow
up towards some interesting sights. Look for the large crosses and follow the
path laid out for you. Beyond a certain point, the actual path stops and people
take their own risk to venture further. There are also supposed to be some ice caves
for the more adventure trekkers. You can keep easily 4 hours for Untersberg.
On the way back, stop at Schloss Hellbrunn / Anif Zoo.
Depending upon your interest, you can visit the Schloss Hellbrunn or the zoo. In
winters, the palace is closed. But in summers, the biggest attraction here are
the trick fountains which are surely to make you wet. Both attractions are a
part of your card. (in case of shortage of time, these both can be skipped).
We didn’t visit the zoo but around 1200 animals of 140
different species live there including lions,
white rhinoceros, and vultures.
Then take the same bus and stop at Mirabell gardens.
Spend some time in the beautiful gardens. Look out for the view to the fortress
from one end of the garden. It is spectacular. The Palace of Mirabell is also a
popular location for weddings. (again if you are short of time, you can skip
it).
Just in front of Mirabell Place, is the Mozart wohnhaus
which was the living quarters of Mozart. If you have covered Mozart’s
geburthaus, then you can skip this although the information here is equally
enticing.
Alternately, take the elevators at Mönchsberg, Gstättengasse
13. There are 3 elevators that take you to the top of Mönchsberg hill. From
there, you get another view of the Salzburg city and the Hohensalzburg
fortress. There is also a museum up there (Museum der Moderne) however we
didn’t get time to see this. There is a restaurant at the top where you can sit
down and have a coffee / drink while enjoying the panoramic views of the city.
In the night, once again see the beautiful criss crossing
lanes and the lit city by the river. You can also visit the Franziskanerkirche
which is another beautiful church near the Dom.
Day
3
Once again you will need to start the day early as today
we will see some natural wonders, the mountains, valleys, lakes and the salt
mines.
Take bus 840 from Rathaus or Mirabell platz or
Hauptabahnhof towards Berchtesgaden. The place is in Germany but closer to
Salzburg. The day ticket will cost you 9.5 euros but it is still worth it.
Unfortunately the Salzburg card doesn’t work. Please keep in mind that the
frequency of this bus is very low (on weekends once in an hr; so plan
accordingly).
Get down at “Salzbergwerk” bus stop which is 2 stops
before Berchtesgaden. (overall journey time around 30-35mins) In winters, the salt mines open at 11am however a big queue starts forming an hr before that. So its best
to reach early. Prior to entering, you are given miners’ clothing which
increases the experience quotient. The tour underground takes approx. 1 hour. You
are first taken through a train deep inside the mountains. From there, a light
show is shown and then you slide down to the lower levels (which for some is
the most thrilling part in the overall tour). You are guided on how salt was
extracted and hydrated. In the end, is a wonderful experience of moving in a
wooden boat in pitch darkness from one end to another deep inside the
mountains. I would strongly recommend this tour if you have never been inside a
mine before. The audio guide is available in English. Salzburg card gives 20%
discount.
From there, either take a bus or walk to Berchtesgaden
hauptbahnhof (around 15 mins walk). Take bus 841 to Lake Königssee. Alternately
in summers, you can visit Obersalzwerg for Eagle’s nest however in winters its
closed. Lake Königssee is located amidst the steep rock faces of the Watzmann
mountain range. A boat trip on Lake Königssee is the highlight here. St.
Batholomä church is also located by Lake Königssee and is at one end of the
boating trip.
Depending upon how much time you have, you may decide to
extend / decrease your stay at Berchtesgaden. This is an area that alone can be
sufficient for a 3 day tour.
Take bus 840 back to close a memorable trip to wonderful
holidays in Salzburg.
There are lot of other attractions that are worth
visiting like the Museum of Natural History which has a really nice aquarium.
Depending upon how compact you want your schedule to be, you may decide to
increase or decrease the attractions. The above listed are some of the places
that I could cover and found worth visiting. Salzburg is a small city and most of
it can be covered on foot.
I hope you find the travelogue useful.
