Austria has always been a dream vacation spot of mine.  I knew it would be gorgeous from the pictures I have seen and I couldn’t wait to explore myself.  Because we had limited time, and the Sound of Music tour was at the top of my bucket list, we chose Salzburg as our stop in Austria.  Had we more time, I would have loved to explore more of the country side and gone further into the Alps.  But we made the most of the time we had and couldn’t have enjoyed it more.

Accommodation

We stayed at Hotel Mozart.  It’s a little bit outside of Old Town, but don’t let that put you off.  It’s an easy and picturesque 10 minute walk to the river to cross over into Old Town, with lots of shops and restaurants along the way.

The hotel is beautiful.  We had a triple room, which was spacious and comfortable, with a large bathroom.  Breakfast was offered daily, however it was not included with the room price.  We passed on the hotel breakfast in lieu of the cafés that were nearby, which was the right choice, as they were excellent.

Getting Around

Getting around Salzburg is all done by foot.  There are taxis, but everything is so close you really don’t need them. It’s a very small city, so you can honestly walk anywhere within 15-20 minutes.  And there are views every where you go, which makes the walk even more enjoyable.  The city streets are cobblestone but relatively flat, so walking is pretty easy.  However, if you plan to see the fortress and don’t want to take the funicular, be prepared, because the walk up is STEEP.  Totally worth it for the views though.

As Austria was our middle stop, we had to figure out travel between cities.  Thankfully train travel in Europe is super easy and trains are frequent.  I highly recommend checking out The Man in Seat Sixty-One if you ever have any train travel questions, because his website has lots of information and links that makes it easy to plan your own trip, based on the countries you are visiting.  We took the short one and a half hour train ride from Munich into Salzburg without any trouble.  The German trains were so nice, with comfortable seats, clean bathrooms and free wi-fi.  But a piece of advice, if you have not reserved your seat, make sure you check the labels above the seat to make sure it does not say “reserved.”  Any open label means that seat it up for grabs.

Food and Drinks

Stieglkeller
As a reward for walking up and down the steep hill to the fortress, stop for a drink at the Stieglkeller beer garden.  It’s a great spot to catch your breath and enjoy the sunshine, but more importantly to take in the incredibly stunning views of Salzburg down below.

Pescheria Backi
Pescheria Backi was recommended to us by our hotel concierge.  It’s very easy to miss, as it’s tucked inside a little courtyard and very non-descript.  They have no menu, only serving what fresh fish and seafood they have that day.  I was a little nervous about it being super pricey, given it’s a seafood restaurant and there are no listed prices; but it ended up being ridiculously cheap.  It was probably my favorite meal of the whole trip.  Because I don’t eat shellfish, I ordered the fish of the day.  Ryan and Robin, however, orders the mixed seafood plate.  Both were cooked to perfection and delicious.  This would be a must visit restaurant in my opinion.

Cafe Fingerlos
Café Fingerlos wound up being our daily breakfast spot.  It was just down the street from our hotel, so in addition to having a nice menu, it was convenient.  I think this is the only place we ate inside the whole trip, because of rain one morning.  The food was great and the pastries were delectable.

Café Bazar
Café Bazar was our afternoon cocktail spot on our first day in Salzburg.  It has fantastic outdoor seating, overlooking the Salzach River.  Although we only had drinks, the pastries and cakes here looked amazing.

Sacher Café
Sacher Café also had outdoor seating overlooking the Salzach River, which was another perfect stop for our daily afternoon cocktails.  While we were perusing the menu, we noticed they are owners of the original Sacher Torte recipe.  The Sacher Torte is one of the most famous Viennese cakes.  It is super dense and served with whipped cream, and in my opinion, was only okay.  I’d prefer any of the fancy pastries we had along the way over the Sacher Torte, but still glad we tried it.

Taj Mahal Indian Restaurant
We decided we needed to switch up the cuisine about half way through our trip, and we all agreed on Indian. We found the highest rated Indian restaurant in Salzburg, called Taj Mahal.  Thankfully the Yelp reviews were right, and the food was fantastic.  We also had an Indian white wine, which was surprisingly tasty.  I love good Indian food and this place really delivered.

Sternbräu Biergarten
We happened to wander into Sternbräu when we were shopping for clothes better suited for the summer temps we were having.  It’s a cute little courtyard beer garden between the shops and restaurants.  Obviously we weren’t gonna pass up on an opportunity for day drinking at a beer garden on this trip.  But be aware, it is self-service at the little bar, so don’t sit and wait for a server to come take your order.

IMLAUER Sky-Bar
We stopped at Sky-Bar for happy hour and had a great time.  It’s not actually that high up, 6th floor I believe, but the views were gorgeous.  Drinks here were a little more expensive than other places we went, but still very reasonable. And come on, a drink at a rooftop bar is worth the extra few bucks to admire the view, while enjoying the cocktail.

General Tips

1 – Austria also uses the Euro.  As I’ve said before, in comparison to what I’m used to living in NYC, nothing seemed crazy expensive, even with the exchange rate.  Just live it up, you’re on vacation after all.

2 – Take the Panorama Tours Sound of Music tour in Salzburg. It’s the original and it’s the best. They were the transportation company that actually drove the cast to and from set during filming in the 60s, so they know their Sound of Music stuff.  The tour is a great way to see some of the Austrian country side as well.  They take you outside of the city to see the lake district and the charming town of Mondsee, where Maria and Captain Von Trapp’s wedding was filmed.

3 – Eat all the pastries.  Viennese pastries are so good and there is no shortage of them anywhere you go.  We figured a daily breakfast pastry, a mid-day snack pastry and a dessert pastry was reasonable, so that’s what we did.  No judgement please….we were on vacation!

4 – Find a way to get in some Mozart while in Austria.  Visit his childhood home or go to a concert, but take advantage.  I’m not a classical music person, but I found it interesting learning about his short life and his legacy.

 

Salzburg, you are forever scored on my heart.  From the rolling hills, to the mighty alps, to the spectacular lakes…it just doesn’t get much better.  Austria is as close to heaven on earth as I can imagine.  “I Have Confidence” that you will love it as much as we did.