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There is so much to say about Salzburg. Some come here for Mozart, the town’s favorite son. Some come for a more recent musical legacy, The Sound of Music.
But either way, the people who come to this city in north-central Austria are immediately spellbound by its beauty. I know I was.
Salzburg is very much a Baroque city, and the streets of the Old Town reflects that.
The interiors do, as well — Salzburg’s Dom is one of the city’s most striking architectural wonders.
Amazing, right?
Salzburg is filled with museums — I kept thinking of how much my museum-phile best friend, Beth, would have loved it here! — and the best way to see them all is to get a Salzburg Card. It gives you free entry to most museums and attractions, as well as free public transit.
Of all the activities, the one you must do is take the funicular to Hohensalzburg Fortress (pictured in the top photo), which you see from everywhere in the city — and you’ll be rewarded with this view:
For that view alone, it’s worth it. (For the record, you can also walk to the top for free, but…IT’S NOT A FUNICULAR!)
From the back of the fortress, it’s a completely different view:
Wouldn’t you love to live in that little house in the middle of that huge yard? (My friend Ken Kaminesky and I quickly dubbed it “THE. HOUSE.” “Where do you live?” “THE. HOUSE.” “Oh, I love THE. HOUSE!”)
In terms of other destinations that capture the beauty of Salzburg, I definitely found the catacombs to be interesting…
As was just about everything alone the riverfront.
And the riverfront looks so different at every moment of the day! I was constantly taking pictures of the river, and they were all markedly different.
My only problem with Salzburg is the problem of Florence and other small cities in Europe with large tourist populations: it can be very difficult to get away from huge crowds of umbrella-led tour groups, mostly of older couples who will MOW DOWN EVERYTHING IN THEIR PATH rather than lose the umbrella out of the corner of their eye.
It’s easy to travel to Paris or Vienna or Rome and disappear into the fabrics of those cities; it’s much more difficult to do so in the old towns of Salzburg or Florence, particularly in high season.
But stick with Salzburg and you’ll realize just how special of a place it is. There’s a reason why all those tour groups come here in the first place.
My trip to Salzburg was sponsored by the Austria Tourism Board and the Salzburg Tourism Board. All opinions, as always, are my own.
Hi Kate,
I’m a friend of Anthony Middleton’s and was directed to your site via Man vs Clock. I worked in Salzburg for 6 months and have often visited for a day trip as it is 2 hrs drive from Regensburg, where I live. It is indeed a nice city but now to the reason I am commenting and that is it is NOTHING compared to Regensburg. I read your statement that you would like to visit Germany. May I then recommend the best small city in Germany – Regensburg as a destination. The 2nd being Lüneburg and a close 3rd Rothenburg ob der Tauber. In addition to this, the best large city is Munich by a long chalk. It can be like a trip back in time. Berlin is 2nd and Cologne 3rd. At the bottom of the list is Stuttgart and Hamburg, however what Hamburg doesn’t have in looks it makes up in personality. Best medium-sized city is Nürnberg. I am from Liverpool originally but have lived here in Germany since 1998. Please attempt the same approach with the German Tourist Board as you applied with the Austrians. I’m sure you’ll be succesful and I look forward to reading what you will report!
BR,
Simon
Simon, great suggestions for cities to visit in Germany – Would totally agree with all of them, but I wouldn’t put Hamburg on the bottom of the list – it’s actually pretty nice and well worth a visit. I’d put Dusseldorf on the bottom instead. Another great place to visit is Heidelberg.
Kate – I hope you get to do some more traveling in Germany at some point 🙂
Simon, thanks so much for your comment and the recommendation! I did get to visit Munich and enjoyed it very much. 🙂
That’s great news – did you enjoy your Mass at the Wies’n?
Hi Kate, as to Heidelberg I agree as I have been there often with work as SAP is close by. I have beenb currently working in Hamburg for 5 mths this year and I agree partially, bits of it are great. Düsseldorf was a complete disappointment and the Altbier is vile. Off to Weimar start of December – will let you know how we get on!
Tres gorgeous!!!
What a lovely-looking place. I’ve been umming and arring over whether to add Austria onto my itinerary for a trip to Europe in Spring 2012. I was worried it might be a bit on the expensive side. Definitely tempting me though! 🙂
Salzburg (and Austria) in general has always been on my list of places to see especially after watching SoM as a kid at least a thousand times – no kidding, my Mom’s favorite movie is Sound of Music. Anyway, your pictures just make me want to go even more (though I do hate cities like Florence that get overcrowded.)
Great blog- thanks for sharing!
Visited it in the winter. Those who hate crowds should consider going there around christmas. What a magical place.