One day in Salzburg, Austria

Usually I’m a big fan of foreign countries as far away from Germany as possible. But when I spent a day in Salzburg last summer I was hooked. Salzburg is the epitome of an idyllic city. The rugged rocks rising up behind the city form a great contrast to the picturesque historic center with its elegant baroque style buildings. And there are lots of nice things to do and beautiful places to visit. 
So here’s my little list of how to spend one day in Salzburg.



1. Climbing up to Hohensalzburg Fortress and the Rittershöhe

On one of the rocks, the Festungsberg, is the Hohensalzburg Fortress, the town’s landmark. You can either climb up a short but steep road to get to the fortress or – if you’re a little lazy – just take the Festungsbahn, a little train leaving every few minutes. I decided to walk but the beautiful view over the city with its beautiful turquoise copper roofs forced me to stop a few times. My little climbing adventure was ultimately stopped by an entrance fee for the fortress. Student that I am, I was a little short on money and decided to find an alternative. So I took a short 10-minute-walk to the nearby Rittershöhe which offered a great panaroma of the fortress and the landscape surrounding Salzburg. And completely free!

 

The Hohensalzburg from below

Festungsbahn

The Hohensalzburg from the Rittershöhe

Salzburg from above

2. Visiting the Kunstbasar at the Salzach river

 

When you get down from the fortress, taking a stroll along the Salzach river is a great thing to do. During summer you’ll find some tents along the bank where all kinds of arts and crafts stuff are sold. Whether you’re looking for individual gifts for friends or kids, alternative style clothes or cheesy souvenirs – you can find them here at the Kunstbasar. What really caught my eye though, was this really creative billboard. 

Salzach River

 

Cool billboard

3. Having a break on one of the colorful benches

Just like Berlin has its painted bear sculptures everywhere, Salzburg invites you to sit on one of its numerous designer benches which are installed at nearly every square all over town. Not only are they practical, they are also happy and colorful and offer travelers, shoppers and sightseers a great place for relaxing and people watching. I got a tasty Currywurst (sliced sausage with curry ketchup) from a stand where stars like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Russell Crowe have already been eating, and sat down on a bench on the Alter Markt to enjoy my lunch, the hustle of the city and the beautiful weather.

very special bakery

4. Walk down the famous Getreidegasse

Yes, the Getreidegasse is quite touristy. However, it is also really pretty, so it’s definitely worth a visit. H&M, Douglas, Zara - the small, narrow lane has it all. What distinguishes it from every ordinary shopping lane are the beautiful iron signs hanging from every building. Even the big franchise shops have their own signs with their emblems. Quite funny to see the big McDonalds-M as an elegant and filigree iron sign. Between all those shops and signs you can find the birth place of Salzburg’s most famous resident, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. I almost walked past without noticing it because, strangely, there is a Spar Supermarket in it now, at least in the ground floor. The rest of the house is nowadays occupied by the Mozart Museum. If you want to follow more of Mozart’s tracks there is also the Mozart Residence at the Makartplatz in which Mozart lived for quite some time.

Getreidegasse

 

Birth place of Mozart

5. Have an original Mozartkugel 

So I was told that you can’t leave Salzburg without having tried a Mozartkugel. I do love nougat but I’m not really into marzipan. Nevertheless I went and looked for the original Mozartkugel. Pralines from different brands can be found on every corner, for example the “Real Reber Mozartkugel”. However, those are actually from Bad Reichenhall in Germany. The original Mozartkugel was invented in Salzburg by the confectionery Fürst at the corner of Alter Markt and Residenzplatz. Luckily, the Mozartkugel from Fürst is more nougat than marzipan, so I actually really liked it. So to end my great day at Salzburg, I enjoyed my Fürst Mozartkugel with a nice glass of wine in a little restaurant at Mirabellplatz and decided that I am definitely coming back for a second visit.

And now I feel like I should  go and watch “The Sound of Music”, you know, to recap the day and get some new inspirations on what to visit on my next trip to Salzburg.

Reber Mozartkugel from Germany

the original Mozartkugel