33 Best Sights in Salzburg, Austria

Background Illustration for Sights

Getting to know Salzburg is not too difficult, because most of its sights are within a comparatively small area. The Altstadt (Old City) is a compact area between the jutting outcrop of the Mönchsberg and the Salzach River. The cathedral and interconnecting squares surrounding it form what used to be the religious center, around which the major churches and the old archbishops' residence are arranged (note that entrance into all Salzburg churches is free). The Mönchsberg cliffs emerge unexpectedly behind the Old City, crowned to the east by the Hohensalzburg Fortress. Across the river, in the small area between the cliffs of the Kapuzinerberg and the riverbank, is the Steingasse, a narrow medieval street where laborers, craftsmen, and traders served the salt-mining industry and travelers coming in and out of the region’s important mercantile hub. Northwest of the Kapuzinerberg lies Mirabell Palace and its manicured gardens.

It's best to begin by exploring the architectural and cultural riches of the Old City, then go on to the fortress. Afterward, cross the river to inspect the other bank. Ideally, you need two days to do it all. An alternative, if you enjoy exploring churches and castles, is to go directly up to the fortress, either on foot or by returning through the cemetery to the funicular railway.

Stift Nonnberg

Just below the south side of the Fortress Hohensalzburg—and best visited in tandem with it—the Nonnberg Abbey was founded right after AD 700 by St. Rupert. His niece St. Erentrudis was the first abbess; in the archway a late-Gothic statue of Erentrudis welcomes visitors. The church is more famous these days as "Maria's convent"—both the one in The Sound of Music and that of the real Maria on which the movie was based. She returned to marry her Captain von Trapp here in the Gothic church (no filming was done here—"Nonnberg" was re-created in the film studios of Salzburg-Parsch). Each May evening at 7 pm the nuns sing a 15-minute service called Maiandacht in the old Gregorian chant. Their beautiful voices can be heard also at the 11 pm mass on December 24. Parts of the private quarters for the nuns, which include some lovely, intricate wood carvings, can be seen by prior arrangement.

To see the frescoes located below the Nuns’ Gallery as well as the altar in St. John’s Chapel, ask at the convent entrance for the key.

Stiftkirche St. Peter

The most sumptuous church in Salzburg, St. Peter's is where Mozart's famed Great Mass in C Minor premiered in 1783; his wife, Constanze, sang the lead soprano role while Wolfgang directed the orchestra and choir and also played the organ. During the Salzburger Festspiele, the work is performed here during a special church-music concert. The porch has beautiful Romanesque vaulted arches from the original structure built in the 12th century. The interior was decorated in the voluptuous late-Baroque style when additions were made in the 1770s. Note the side chapel by the entrance, with the unusual crèche portraying the Flight into Egypt and the Massacre of the Innocents. Behind the Rupert Altar is the Felsengrab, a rock-face tomb where—according to a legend—St. Rupert himself was originally buried. To go from the sacred to the profane, head for the abbey's legendary St. Peter Stiftskulinarium restaurant, adjacent to the church.

Church Free
Sankt-Peter-Bezirk 1, Salzburg, A-5020, Austria
0662-844576
www.erzabtei.at

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Stille Nacht Kapelle

The little village of Oberndorf, 18 km (11 miles) north of Salzburg, has one big claim to fame: it was here on Christmas Eve, 1818, that the world-famous Christmas carol "Silent Night" was sung for the first time. It was composed by the organist and schoolteacher Franz Gruber to a lyric by the local priest, Josef Mohr. The church was demolished and replaced in 1937 by this tiny commemorative chapel containing a copy of the original composition (the original is in the Salzburg Museum), stained-glass windows depicting Gruber and Mohr, and a Nativity scene. Behind the chapel, the Heimatmuseum documents the history of the carol. You can get to Oberndorf by the local train (opposite the main train station), by car along the B156 Lamprechtshausener Bundesstrasse, or by bicycle along the River Salzach.

Every December 24 at 5 pm, a traditional performance of the carol—two male voices plus guitar and choir—in front of the chapel is the introduction to Christmas.

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