Has anyone been to the Schloss Hellbrunn, just outside of Salzburg? We will be there at a very busy time--August. It sounds as though there is no wait to tour the inside of the castle as this is done with an audio headset.

However, what we really want to see is the trick fountains. Would there be a long wait for a tour (given that it is August). Our itinerary is working out that we would get there at the worst possible time (mid-afternoon).

Or does anyone know if it is required to take a tour? Can one visit the trick fountains without a tour?

Thanks!

You do need to go on a tour since the tour guide operates the fountains for the in each section, otherwise it defeats the purpose of going. I have not done the tour inside the so I can not comment on that part, I have been there in July and never had any issues waiting for a tour.

We visited the Hellbrunn Palace in July 2005 as part of a two week stay in the Salzburg area. We got to the palace first thing in the morning and went on one of the first tours of the water gardens. We did the self-tour of the castle afterwards.

The tour lasted an hour, and was conducted in English and German. I recall another tour group coming along after ours.

You do need to be prepared for the possibility of getting wet. Some people (especially the children) love this. My husband did not. But our 12 year old daughter and I loved the water gardens and thought it was great fun. My husband didn't want to get wet, and he was also kind of horrified that an archbishop would have developed and enjoyed all this.

I'd suggest doing like we did and getting there soon after opening if you want to minimize any wait. Also, we had two-day Salzburg cards that covered many of the sights in Salzburg, including the Hellbrunn Palace. This might be worth looking into based on your other plans in Salzburg.

http://www.hellbrunn.at/hellbrunn/en...tart/index.asp

Kathy

I think you will find the trick fountains masterpieces of hydraulic engineering!! Go!! But, be prepared to get a little wet! We were there on a rainy day, so we were prepared for wet conditions before we got out of the car!

Yes, the grounds of the site are out from central Salzburg. We had a car and found parking without much difficulty. You will have to pay of course. I rarely go somewhere in Europe that I don't have to pay for parking. Perhaps at a rest stop on the autobahn!! Or in some remote Swiss village, but even there we were driving up a high mountain valley that I thought was WAAAAAAAAY up in the hills.
Surprise! When we got to the end of the road, there was a toll gate to enter the village itself.



Yes, a guided tour is mandatory because otherwise you see nothing in action. I am not even sure that unguided tours are allowed.

The inside of the castle or whatever it is was something of a let down after the trick fountains. Yeah, the guy was a prince bishop or whatever regal status he had, but the inside of the building was not something I remember much about, yet I went along with the crowd.

The trick fountains are quite surprising particularly if you view them with the date of their building in mind. After all, the builders and designers did not even have 1820 technology to employ.

We went to see the trick fountains Aug 1 of this past summer. We used our Salzburg card to take the 9:45 am Salzach Cruise (free) to get there. Once you get off the boat, there is a bus waiting to continue the trip to the palace.

I agree that it was required to take the guided tour of the fountains for the above reasons. We took the tour around noon as I recall. The tour was full, but it was able to accomodate all the people who had been waiting. I don't know if it would be more crowded later in the day, but it wouldn't surprise me.

In any case, it was well worth it! (and included for free with the Salzburg Card) You never knew when you would get sprayed, which was part of the fun. Markus Sitticus was quite the joker! He had a special "Prince's Table" designed to keep his friends awake if they drank too much wine (I won't give away any more) and had designed tiny vignettes which operated by small water wheels behind them. We left one area under an arch way of water sprays. Really quite beautiful. It is possible to do this tour without getting wet as long as you pay close attention to the tour guide. That, however, would take away some of the surprise, which is part of the attraction.

After the tour, you can stroll through the gardens or take the tour through the palace (we did it on our own without headphones, but we had limited time so they may have let us through for the quick run-through.) The Palace was rather empty as I recall - we weren't overly impressed. I do recommend, however, climbing the hill out back of the grounds to go to the small Folk Museum. Not only did it have olden Austrian costumes, furniture, artwork, and musical instruments, but also a great view of the Salzburg Fortress from the back. There is also a zoo off the grounds of the fortress. Our kids went exploring there while we went to the Folk Museum.

We returned to Salzburg by public bus - also free with the Salzburg Card, and very easy to use being just around the corner from the palace. The Tourist Bureau recommended taking the bus home since it was faster than the cruise.

I was there in July, late afternoon. Lots of people, but we all got in.

Yes, you will get wet. But hey, why else do you go there?

I kept my camera inside a plastic bag and took it out only when I took pictures. You never know when you get sprayed!

I did the tour of the trick fountains during a thunderstorm...Mother Nature can still outdo human engineering when it comes to waterworks. But it was very interesting. Go early or late. I went for the last tour of the day and there were only a handful of visitors.

If you have time, go to the folk museum up on a hill (past the fish ponds). Hardly anyone bothers to venture up there and it's interesting plus there are a couple of beautiful viewspots along the path.

Thanks for all the information and suggestions. We're really looking forward to this after reading all of your positive feedback. Sounds like a lot of fun. And, I guess we'd better bring a plastic bag to put over the camera!

And by no means take a seat at the table!