Right after breakfast included in our hotel, we checked out. We took the train from Munich hbf, which took around 2 hours, and reached Salzburg hbf around 11:30 am. We bought the Bayern ticket, which can be used by five people to travel together on regional trains. On weekdays Bayern ticket is only valid after 9:00 am. You can also take the high-speed train from Munich to Salzburg, but the Bayern pass is much cheaper if you travel in a group. You can look at trains at the DBB site.
As we were approaching Salzburg, our view from the train.
At Salzburg station, we stored our luggage in the luggage lockers. We grabbed a map from the information desk and walked towards Mirabell Garden. We planned to do a free walking tour today at 12:30 pm. The meeting point was Spirit of Mozart after crossing the bridge, and Mirabell Garden was on the way.
Mirabell Palace The gardens are free to visit. It was winter, so the trees were not very green, but still, they were very well maintained. The dwarf garden was closed too. There was a wedding going on in the banquet hall. The view of the Hohensalzburg Fortress from the garden was amazing. There was a small Christmas market next to the gardens.
Pegasus fountain in the Mirabel garden.
Beautiful staircase at the Marble hall.
We arrived at the meeting point and met our tour guide and other people in the group who were mainly from the neighboring countries.
Mozart’s birthplace Mozart’s family lived here on the third floor, and it is a museum now which you can visit for a fee. We didn’t go inside, but if you are a music fan and like Mozart, you should see it.
The views of the Hohensalzburg Fortress from the bridge. It is also called the “love lock bridge” because of thousands of locks attached to it by lovers.
Getreidegasse street We crossed the river and entered Getreidegasse street, the most famous street in Salzburg. It is famous for old-style signs. It was very crowded with people.
The street was filled with holiday decorations.
We crossed University Square, visit the monastery of St. Peter and look at the cathedral from Kapitelplatz.
We passed Residenzplatz and end the walking tour in front of the Mozart statue. Our tour guide was deeply knowledgeable about the history and culture of Salzburg. He shared a lot of insights about the places we visited on the tour. The tour lasted for about 1.5 hours and covered all the major sights.
After we rested for a bit, we visited the famous Salzburg Christmas market at Residenzplatz. It was the highlight of today’s visit. Walking around the Christmas stalls and looking at all the food and craft vendors was amazing. We sample a lot of sweet and savory local delicacies.
I booked the train ticket from Salzburg to Vienna in advance on the high-speed train using the OBB website. We still had time for our train so we visited the famous beer hall Augustiner Braustubl suggested by our tour guide.
The beer hall was a self-serve basis so we didn’t realize what to do so we followed other people. First, pick up a beer mug from the shelf(half or one liter), and next rinse it with cold water. Then you go to the cashier to pay for your beer and then take your token to get your mug filled with beer from barrels. You can take your beer and sit anywhere, there were plenty of food options to buy at the stalls to eat with beer.
On our way back to the train station, nice views of the fort.
We picked some sandwiches for our dinner and got on the train to Vienna. It took less than 3 hours and arrived in Vienna hbf. Our hotel was conveniently located within 5-minute walk.