salzburg! aka the home of mozart and sound of music. i would love to come back to this city in the warmer months, as our two days here were very cold and very rainy. that being said, it's worth popping by any time of year if you're in austria because it is very cute and the mountains are stunning. in my opinion, 2-3 days here is plenty. here are some must-do's if you're headed here.
1. WANDER THE OLD TOWN & GRAB A SCHNITZEL:
the cobble stoned streets are obviously adorable and never get old. get lost and stumble into a schnitzel spot. we ate here (Alter Fuchs) and liked it.
2. WALK UP TO THE VIEW POINT AT MONCHSBERG
the walk takes about 30-45 minutes and gives you great views over the entire city. depending on the weather, this might be a fun place for sunset. if it's rainy, it's a great thing to do before grabbing beers at augustiner bräu. which leads me to...
3. GRAB BEERS AND SNACKS AT AUGUSTINER BRAU
in an old church, st. augustiner mülln monestary turned brewery (dating back to 1621!) these guys have it completely dialed in. with an outdoor beer garden, indoor beer hall & a couple of food stands... pick your mug size off the wall, buy a ticket for beer, rinse the mug out & bring it to the guy at the tap. prost!
4. TAKE A DRIVE: DAY TRIP TO HALSTATT AND THE EAGLES NEST
- halstatt: the train is temping, but getting behind the wheel gives you the opportunity to stop and take pictures/explore wherever you want. we thought halstatt would be our highlight destination, then we ended up stopping in a completely random town in gosau valley after spotting a tiny pink church high on a hill and fell in love.
our car was about $40 for the day. - eagles nest: we didn't get a chance to see it, but heard only great things. read more about the daily tours here.
5. GET IN THE MOUNTAINS!
it was too cold for us to hike, but mountains surround the entire city and it's clear that in the warmer months, this would be an amazing way to explore. we slept at a little bnb that was 4 minutes by train from city center and loved it – haus christine is in the beautiful countryside with mountain landscape views and the staff couldn't be kinder.
