What to see in Salzburg.
Yes this garden did feature in some scenes of the Sound of Music. Originally the Palace was called Altenau , built in 1606 by Prince Archbishop Wolf Dietrich for his mistress Salome and their 10 children. The marble staircase inside was built by Raphael Donner and leads up to the marble room, popular among those getting married. The landscaping and architecture reflects the wealth that was being created during the rule of the Prince-Archbishops (16-18thC). In the gardens is a small hut called the Zauberflotenhauschen where Mozart is said to have written the Magic Flute. Also check out the garden of Gnomes .
Mozart lived here for a short while between 1773 and 1780 with his family after leaving the less comfortable dwelling on Getreidstrasse. The building was reopened in 1996 after an extensive restoration programme from damage done during WWII. The life and works of Mozart are documented and an audio guide provides commentary and music. Open daily 9am-5.30pm, admission €6, €4 students. There are combination tickets available for here and the Gebertshaus museum, €9 adult and €7 students.
Recently reopened with a new interpretation on the living space. Mozart was born and lived here with his family until he was 17 when he wasn't touring the music halls of Europe. There are artefacts such as his first violin, viola, fortepiano, clavichord and his prized concert violin. Open daily 9am-6pm, admission €6, €5 students.
The construction started in 1077 by Archbishop Gebhard V. Helffenstein to protect his 'interests' from the ruling Emperor Heinrich IV. The succession of Archbishops that followed continued to live in the fortress, expanding as they went until finally finishing it in 1681. The end result is a mix of styles and construction techniques. The Archbishops had already moved to the less militant looking Residenz in 1595. The fortress is considered the largest completely preserved castle in Europe and the Bergmuseum contains displays of medieaval torture instruments and artworks. The Rainermuseum houses armoury exhibitions. Access is either a long walk up the hill or the Festungsbahn funicular, behind the St Peterskirche, it runs every 10mins, 9am-9pm; fortress open daily Oct-Mar 9.30am-5pm, Apr-Sep 9am-6pm, admission only €3.60, admission, guided tour and funicular €12.
The church is dated to 1327 and was a former chapel dedicated to St Blaise. The marble relief on the outside depicts St Sebastian and used to adorn the town gate.
Inside here are 2 huge theatres in what was originally the riding school and stable for the Archbishops. Austria holds many music festivals throughout the year, the most popular is the Salzburg Festival (Festspiele) held during July and August with many famous names performing here. The larger hall seats over 1000 people. After WWII ended they decided to enlarge the Festhaus an so blasted a thundering 2 million cubic feet of rock out of the terrace to make extra space between the 2 houses.
The original structure was completed in 767AD, by Abbot and Bishop Vergil from Ireland, and was burnt down 8 times. The latest remodelling went with the Baroque style and included detailed sculptures. The four saints at the bottom represent Saints Rupert, Peter, Paul and Vergil. Looking down on them are the four evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John while standing on the next level up is Moses with his tablets and Elias. The bronze doors were late additions in 1957 representing Faith, Charity and Hope. Mozart was christened here and later held the position of concert master. Free admission but donations are requested.
The cemetery may look familiar to some, but no, they did no filming here. The producers of the Sound of Music were impressed with it but decided to recreate it on a sound stage for that famous scene rather than film in it. The catacombs behind the St Peterskirche were inhabited by religious hermits seeking solitude. Admission €1, May -Sept Tue-Sun, 10.30am-5pm; Oct-Apr, Wed-Sun, 10.30am-3.30pm.