I went to Salzburg for the weekend with a few friends and it really does look like the Sound of Music. Before this summer, I had never been to Austria and now I was visiting 2 cities, Vienna and Salzburg. There was a lot to see in Salzburg even though it was about a fifth of the size of Vienna.
Here are just some of the attractions to visit:
1) Mozart House
Mozart lived in this house for just 5 years but it is where his original works are located as well as items and belongings from the Mozart family. There is an audio guide available for those who want to find out more about the house. The building has been restored since being destroyed in WWII. The museum is open daily from 9:00 to 5:30pm and until 8pm in July and August.
2) Mirabellgarten
The gardens outside the Mirabell palace was the setting in the Sound of Music where Maria taught the Trapp kids to sing ‘Do Re Mi’. The gardens have been around for more than 200 years, laid out during the Archbishop Johann Ernst von Thun’s ruling. It was then redesigned in 1730. The gardens are in the centre of Salzburg and offer a peaceful place to rest and wonder around without bumping into too many tourists.
3) Rathaus
The Rathaus is located in the heart of Saltzburg, near Mozart’s house. It was once a family tower but was sold to the city in 1407. It is a beautiful building and prime example of Italian influence on Salzburg’s architecture.
4) Glockehnspiel
This is one of the attractions to see in Salzburg, although when we went there was no music playing as we had hoped. Apparently, the Glockenspiel has now been playing since 1794. The clockmaker Johann Baptist Fischer incorporated a clockwork mechanism in 1873 which used a special device to trigger the musical mechanism. The valuable clockwork still exists today. We missed the daily performances which are at 7am and 11 am and 6 pm but are now worked by electricity.
5) Festung Honhensalzburg
It cost 11 euros to go up the Funicular it and was definitely worth it. There were fantastic views of Salzburg. The Hohensalzburg Fortreess is the largest fortification in Europe.
These are just some of the many attractions you can visit the next time you are in Salzburg. We were only here for a weekend, but there is plenty more to see if you come for a few days. Have you been to Salzburg? Where did you go? Get in touch with me on Twitter or Facebook.
