How crowded is Salzburg during the mustic festival?
 

We will be stopping through Salzburg on our way to Vienna Aug 28, 29, 2006--at the very end of the festival. Attending concerts in Salzburg although worthwhile, we won't totally miss out on the experience because we could see concerts in Vienna. Will Salzburg be so crowded that we will regret the stop? Is there a second choice between Zurich and Vienna that would be as interesting?

It will be crowded. (Some time ago, one of the hotels cancelled my reservation unbeknownst to me, because they were overbooked.)

But the Festival atmosphere is kind of fun to experience.

Will you be travelling by car or train?

You might stop overnight in Prien or Traunstein. Take the train to Salzburg (less than an hour), return to your overnight place and continue the next day to Vienna.

I probably would avoid driving into Salzburg, because parking is scarce, and the parking garage inside the mountain at the Felsenreitschule (nearest to the old town) is expensive and might be full.

A friend tells me that 2006 is Mozart's 250th birthday (or maybe it was his 200th). I'm sure there will be lots of stuff going on during the year because of it. It make make the festival bigger that before.

We will not have a car which will help but it still sounds like it will be crawling with people, crowded restaurants etc. If we do decide to stay in Salzburg, is hotel a/c a necessity at the end of August? Hotel Elefant offers a/c but requires a 3 night minimum. Our next two choices in the old town are Hotel Wolf and Goldene Ente--neither have a/c. We really prefer small, quaint, charming hotels vs the larger ones further away from the Altstadt. Any suggestions?

We liked the Goldenen Ente. It is a 700 year old building but I suspect the linins are newer than that. Lots of charm in the middle of the altstadt. Salzburg is small so almost everything is within walking distance.

Hello Richard,

We were lucky enough to get tickets to 4 performances during the festival a couple years back. Quite thrilling for a gal from Texas!

Anyway, about the crowds and A/C. I can't remember that the crowds were something that caused a problem for us. Lots of people milling around, yes, but there are everywhere anyway.

As far as A/C, our hotel did have it, but we were on the outskirts of town (had to take a bus or 10-minute walk into the old town). It was a nice relief at the end of the day to come back to a cool room, plus we used it at night. But we were there at the beginning of the festival, so a couple weeks may make a difference.

Happy travels!