Salzburg: Alive With More Than the Sound of Music

I’m finding it truly difficult to put into words how much I loved Salzburg. A few days ago, when we arrived in Innsbruck, it was love almost instantly but then we arrived in Salzburg, we hardly remembered Innsbruck existed.

These are a few of our favorite things

Your Best Tip for Salzburg

Get the Salzburg card.  I wish every major city would do this.  You can buy the Salzburg card in 24, 48, and 72-hour increments.  You can get one at the major transportation hubs, online, or at your hotel.  It is a pre-paid access card to all the major tourist attractions, museums, and public transportation (including the fantastic concert bus).

Use the Salzburg card app onto your phone to get one time admission to the Hohensalzburg Fortress and funicular, Mirabell Palace and Gardens, Hellbrunn Palace and trick fountains, the boat cruise, Mozart’s Residence and Mozart’s Birthplace, plus many more.  There are also discounts to other sights and events in Salzburg to grab additional savings while in this amazing city. 

Public transportation is accessible and easy to navigate, and the Salzburg card will take you wherever you need to go for free. Again, this is awesome if you are still trying to figure out Euros and how to pay properly for things.

Pointing out the Obvious

Salzburg is the home of the Sound of Music

People in Austria, they don’t get it.  They aren’t “into” the movie like Americans, they just know it (and use it) as a tourist trap.  And it’s worth it, the tourist trap experiences, to stand where the hills are alive.

We had the amazing opportunity to stay at Schloss Leopoldskron.  Schloss Leopoldskron is the iconic Von Trapp home on the lake. While the movie was not filmed here, the exterior was used for outdoor scenes.

The Von Trapp Home – Schloss Leopoldskron

When I originally looked there were no rooms available, and I was very disappointed. But a month later I checked again on a whim. We scored two Sound of Music suites (we think they released a block from the wedding taking place there the night we arrived).  I will say, I’m not so sure the Sound of Music Suites were worth the extra money, but you do get the lovely view of the lake and the mountain in the morning.  Even though it is out a tiny window, it definitely makes for a better morning than the view of the courtyard.

But other than the view, the suite itself has only a souvenir shadow box of movie memorabilia and a signed picture of Julie Andrews (same picture is in the lobby, so not exactly an endearing relic).

However, the benefit of staying at Leopoldskron and why it’s a must for superfans, is that it allows you access to the grounds that aren’t available to the public.  It includes breakfast in the palace dining room, and it’s gorgeous (a buffet breakfast, but actually a great job for a buffet).  You can also check out all the palace rooms at your leisure, including the beautiful library, chapel, and the iconic patio and gate from the movie (the fall off the boat and stumble ashore when they realize father is home scene, and the awkwardly playing ball with the Baroness scene).

We were only able to score one night at the palace, but one night was enough and I was glad to be in town for the rest of our visit.

ssn – I was overwhelmed with Sound of Music geekiness. A pinch-me experience and I may have been moved to tears a little bit.

The Original Sound of Music Tour

They’ve pretty much cornered the market on this tour (The Original Sound of Music Tour from Panorama Tours).  The tour leader and driver were fantastic.  The downside, being packed on a tour bus filled to the brim with people.  So, 50 people at each stop with you, which kinda sucked at the gazebo as there are 50 people who all want the perfect shot.

But you do visit all the key sites:  Leopoldskron (which stops at a viewpoint across the lake – yay for us having stayed at the castle and having been on the grounds), the gazebo, a quick view of Nonnberg Abbey, the iconic spots from the Do-Re-Mi scenes, and the chapel where Georg and Maria marry.

The chapel is up in Mon See (Moon Lake), so it is a bit of a ride on the bus to the lake town, but it is beautiful. They also stop at a viewpoint, and sell water, prosecco and beer, so score on that making the trip more reasonable.

We had the amazing luck to visit the chapel while a wedding was in progress, it was gorgeous and a very moving experience. Yes, I cried a little (maybe it was the holy water burning my soul, but whatever).

It is a great tour for fans of the movie, and really is something that needs to be included in your trip to Salzburg.

ssn – the tour was great and the sing-a-long portion of the tour was fun – people really do get into it. However…you cannot leap from bench to bench inside the gazebo while singing “I am sixteen going on seventeen”, the gazebo is locked to prevent the injuries that would occur from this exact stunt. There is no trivia contest (and we were well studied). And there is not a stop for twirling in a meadow while singing “The hills are alive…”. My greatest disappointment.

And as for the rest of Salzburg

Where to stay in Salzburg

We moved on to our hotels.  Pat and I went cheap and stayed at our favorite chain, the Mercure, a bit out of old town.  Peggy used this as her splurge spot and stayed right at the entrance to Altstadt (old town) at Hotel Stein.  I would absolutely recommend this as your splurge spot, mainly due to it’s central location. 

ssn – I cannot say enough about Hotel Stein. I used my American Express Fine Hotels and Resorts (FHR) perks and it was absolutely a win. Perks include a room upgrade, breakfast and $100 hotel credit (which got well-used at the roof top bar). Everything was beautiful, the staff was wonderful and I will absolutely stay here when we return.

The Mercure was solid.  About 900 meter walk to town, so not terrible.  And Mercure’s are typically affordable, clean, and the staff has always been friendly.  If you are looking for a decent middle of the road price, Mercure’s are always a good choice.

A Mini Oktoberfest

Night one, we hit one of the best breweries we have ever been to.  Found on TikTok as it is the oldest brewery in Austria, it also came highly recommended by our hotel clerk.  The Augustiner Brau is huge, a big outdoor biergarten. As in Munich, only serving Augustiner beer, and that was fine, it became one of our favorites of the journey.  As it was still Oktoberfest season, there were plenty of big groups at large tables in traditional dress, but also many of the after-work crowds.  A fun, energetic experience. 

You go inside and pay at a counter, get a stein or Mass and then take it over to the beer counter to be filled.  Then there are stairs going up inside the building. On the second level there are two indoor seating halls, and the walls are filled with walk-up counters for food.  A counter for baked goods, a counter for schnitzel, and counter for all kinds of cheeses.  It was fun, and we loved it.  The potato crisps were amazing, and we loved the soft cheese selection. 

Altstadt Salzburg

Old town Salzburg. It’s beautiful.  Even crammed full of tourists.  For straight-up wandering, shopping, eating, and just “being in Salzburg” Old town is the place to be.  I could have wandered there every afternoon for hours, just because it was so wonderful.  We also found several places to stop for cocktails, which never hurts our experience.  There are also plenty of cute little cafés and bars with outside seating, great for people watching, having a snack and an Aperol Spritz, and just enjoying a slow and easy afternoon.

Cocktails, of course

We loved the sidewalk hospitality of the local bars. While on our way to the Whiskey Museum, we were drawn in to Superstanza. It was clearly a happy hour kind of vibe.  We knew we had to stop in, the energy was pulsating. There were no seats available, so the server and host simply went and found a table and chairs for us and set them out on the sidewalk.  Superstanza is an Italian restaurant, and their food and drinks were fabulous – get the Calamari e Spinaci, it will make you happy! 

We were approached by a bachelorette party that were adorable, they had to find their one, and only, party member who spoke English in order to explain to us that they were selling goodie bags to raise money for the bride. When we donated Euros to buy the bride drinks and wanted nothing from their bag, they whipped out their bottle of schnapps and poured us shots!  So, if you remember pocket ribs from KC, we now have sidewalk schnapps from Salzburg.

Eventually, we did make it to The Whiskey Museum, and this may go down as the best Irish Pub outside of Ireland.  It was tiny, they only served whiskey or beer (no mixed drinks – well, besides the gin and tonic they made me), lively crowd, and eventually live acoustic music.  It was quite the epic bar experience in Salzburg to find a piece of Ireland.

Dinner Splurge

The second night we had reservations at St. Peter Stiftskulinarium.  This restaurant has operated since the year 803, and while it is the oldest restaurant in the world, it has not operated continuously so it does not hold the Guinness World Record. It was amazing, built into a cave, open air at the entrance and the front seating area.  All the chairs have blankets provided for guests, so it can get chilly in the evenings.  But it was beautiful. They get a big thumbs up for the ambiance.

And the food

Start by getting the bread. It’s optional for the entire table, and priced per person, but you are going to want it.  The bread is baked fresh daily at a local baker, and it’s served with butter that has added flavors that change nightly.  We had a whipped molasses butter that I still dream about served with a rye bread.

Aside from their main menu of elegant dishes, they have three kinds of steak: Black Angus (American), Simmentaler (Austrian veal), and Wagyu.  We opted to go local with the veal.  It’s sold by the gram, and they bring out the current sheet to inform you of the sizes they have left.  They only get so many from the local butcher each night.  We had 5 pm reservations when they opened, Pat and Peggy got the last two of the evening of the Simmentaler, so if you are planning on a steak, plan to go early.  I opted for the gnocchi in a cream sauce that had sausage and roasted pears.  Naturally we had the burnt cream for dessert.

ssn – we literally got the last 2 ribeyes, and they were incredible! While we felt lucky (and special!), imagine getting there for your “early” reservation and not having any steak options left?

What else to eat in Salzburg

The dessert Salzburg is known for, aside from the apelstrudel, is the Salzburger Nockerl.  It’s a souffle dessert, almost like a meringue, but with a fraction of the sugar, so very much like a whipped egg white that has been put under the broiler and browned.  It has 3 “peaks” as a nod to the 3 local alpine peaks, and is served on a bed of cranberries. You get that tart cranberry taste on a bed of light fluffiness, and we loved that.  We had both the Nockerl and the Apelstrudel at the Café Mozart.

We made sure to make time for some authentic schnitzel.  For this go to Restaurant Meissl & Schadn Salzburg. You will know it by the big picture windows where you can watch them making the schnitzel.  This drew us in.  You have the option of ordering your schnitzel fried in vegetable oil, butter, or lard.  We had the one in butter and the one in lard.  The butter one was lighter, but the lard had a deeper flavor. 

Sightseeing in Salzburg – Our Favorite Sights

You Can’t Miss the Fortress

High on the hill (like a lonely goat herder) overlooking the city is the Hohensalzburg Fortress.  This is the biggest, fully preserved castle in Central Europe.  The views are spectacular, and the history of the fortress is well presented throughout the castle in the form of the Fortress Museum, the Marionette Museum, many chambers, halls, and displays.  There are several cafes, interactive games, and galleries. 

You can walk the entire way up to the fortress or take the funicular (included in your Salzburg card) the 200 meters to the top.  It runs every 10 minutes and takes only one full minute to rise to a height of 536 meters.

Salzburg Cathedral, Churches and a Cemetery

In Salzburg, you can’t look in any direction without seeing a Baroque dome or steeple. The “City of Churches” is also a UNESCO World Heritage site. The most famous and most sacred is Salzburg Cathedral. The dome and towers are impressive and it is definitely worth a peek inside.

On the walk down from the fortress, we detoured through St. Peter’s cemetery – it was fascinating and beautiful.

The Mozart Experience

Mozart was born in Salzburg.  And they won’t let you forget it.  There are museums at Mozart’s birthplace and his childhood residence. 

We opted for the residence as everything we had read told us they had similar knowledge and exhibits.

This was my husbands one big “Must Do”. 

So, we went. 

It was cool to see Mozart’s childhood piano, see original papers with his original scores, and to see the history of Mozart’s life (Interesting fact, he died in debt and poverty). His work is amazing, but wandering about looking at artifacts of his life is not quite so mind-blowing.  Let’s just say the highlight was the Bölzlschiessen targets – a dart shooting game in which they depicted satirical images to taunt their friends and family.

But it’s free with your Salzburg card and should only take an hour of your time, so do it.  For the love of history and the arts, it’s kind of cool for that aspect.

Mirabell Palace and Garden

We hit this up for the Do-Re-Mi effect.  The movie cut scenes of “town” were mainly shot in this area. The Pegasus fountain, the steps, and the tunnel they run through, all were shot from the Mirabell Garden.  The Gardens are beautiful, and a lovely place to wander.  We couldn’t figure out where the palace entrance was and ended up in yet another palace courtyard (which seemed to be a theme for us this trip, wandering into courtyards for places we couldn’t figure out how to get in to), but we wandered the grounds, and it was fun just to be around all the iconic places we had seen our whole life in the movie.

Salzburg Salt Mine Tour

Also on the “must do” list is a salt mine tour. After all, salt is right there in the name “Salz”burg! Salt, or “white gold” was the main trade industry that brought wealth and power to Salzburg. We hit the Berchtesgaden Salt Mine on our way from Salzburg to Hallstatt and it was quite the experience! The guided tours require that you wear coveralls, the underground mine is consistently cool 54 F/12 C.

It starts with an awkward train ride where you straddle the seat and basically spoon the person in front of you. From there, you have headsets to describe the sights – the tour guide presents in German. The highlight for most people are the series of slides that the miners use to get to lower levels. These STEEP, wooden slides are not for the faint-hearted.

Again, you straddle the double raised rail (as opposed to sitting down in it like a typical slide) and you, plus the up to four people riding with you all raise your feet to start the sliding. You keep your feet raised while zipping down and trying not to fall over. Yes, this is their idea of fun, clearly not mine. I almost chickened out the first time, and the second time, but I reasoned that it was only 30 seconds out of my life, and I was probably not the first fat chick to do this, so chances of survival were pretty good.

The rest of the tour is interesting although a bit long. The conclusion is a slow drift across Mirror Lake with the salt walls illuminated and sparkly. It was beautiful and unique.

So long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, good-bye

We found Salzburg to be a charming little city, and still can’t figure out why we left.  We expected to love it but were still blown away by the beauty, charm, and old European feel. This place is very worth a visit and an add to your Austria itinerary.

Related Posts from this trip

• Oktoberfest in Munich