Salzburg, Austria

Arrival, our cute pension, Mirabell Gardens, and one heck of a beer garden

Our bus ride from Cesky Krumlov was incredibly scenic. The hills and alps became more magnificent as we approached Salzburg.

We took an easy Uber to Pension Ballwein just on the outskirts of town. I visited Salzburg 20 years ago with DH and we stayed at another pension on this very same street. It's a peaceful alternative to the very touristy Salzburg center.

A great view from our balcony.

There was a convenient bus stop right in front of the pension so we hopped on and stopped at the famous and huge Augustiner Brewery. The beer garden was massive and incredibly crowded on a Thursday night. We had a picnic-style dinner of sorts and soaked in the festive atmosphere. It was fun ordering beer and having to rinse our own own steins before having them poured directly from giant casks.

After our dinner, we walked into town to see the beautiful Mirabell Gardens. This was one of several places where the Sound of Music was filmed back in the '60s. It was exciting to catch our first glimpse of Salzburg's magnificent skyline.

We walked further than we meant to and had a quick gelato stop before finally finding a bus headed back to our pension. It felt like a very full day and we were all excited to be in Salzburg.

Seeing practically all of Salzburg's center!

We had a delicious breakfast at our pension before heading back to the center with our handy dandy Salzburg Cards. These cards would last us 48 hours and included nearly all the attractions in and around town for just over $40 each. We were on a mission to see as many sights as possible!

We began with the majestic and iconic fortress which stood like a giant crown looming over the city. Luckily, our cards included a funicular pass to whisk us to the top. The views were amazing and it was so fun exploring all the rooms and passageways in and around the fortress.

A view from behind the fortress.

We came down and found the beautiful cemetery along the rock walls below the fortress. We explored the catacombs built into the walls. So interesting!

We popped into several churches and couldn't believe how different they all were. Every one was so dramatic in its own unique way. It's hard to fathom why there are so many amazing churches in such a small area.

We wandered the old town stopping in here and there before finding Mozart's Birthplace. We toured the very busy museum. What an impact he made on the world during his short but prolific life!

Our feet were exhausted so we decided to take advantage of the boat tour that was included with our Salzburg card. It was interesting how this boat pushed against the current to take us just outside of the city on the Salzach River. At the end of the ride, the funny boat driver spun the boat around multiple times in the middle of the river. Everyone applauded at the end of the ride

We found a nearby fish place for a quick lunch of fish and chips and Austrian potato salad.

We took an elevator lift to the top of town just down from the fortress. The Modern Art Museum was housed at the top so we took a quick peek. We were amused with some of the artwork and found another view of the city from the museum's terrasse.

Finally, I drug along DD#1 and my mom to two final museums. We really were getting our moneys worth out of those Salzburg Cards. The DomQuartier Museum was a happy surprise with its grand palace and view overlooking the interior of the Salzburg Cathedral.

Lastly, we popped into the Christmas Museum. The highlight of this was learning about the creepy Krampus legend. He was a monster who was the opposite of St. Nick. If you're a good little child, St. Nick will bring you something nice. If you're naughty, the Krampus will come and get you!

Amazing eggs and other decorations in the Christmas shops.

We were hungry and tired after a busy day of sight-seeing. We took a bus a couple of stops just outside of town to a great beer garden called Die Weiss. We had some tasty beers, yummy dumplings, and weisswurst sausages. We called it a day and took the bus back to our pension to rest our tired feet!

Untersberg Mountain, Hellbrunn Palace, and Steigl Brewery

I started the day with a run along our quiet farm road. We have been so lucky with beautiful weather! It's been sunny and in the mid-80s. The neighborhood church had the most beautiful cemetery with well-tended little gardens.

We took a long bus ride to Untersberg Mountain to ride the gondola to the tippy top. This was the perfect thing to do especially since we had been staring at this massive mountain from the balcony of our pension for two days.

The lift was a little scary but got us up close to 6,000 feet in 9 minutes or so. Once at the top, we had to continue hiking to the actual top. DD#1 and I took the challenge and hiked about 45 minutes to the actual top where she just had to sing "The Hills are Alive". It was perfect!

We headed down and bused to Hellbrunn Palace where we toured the gardens and interior. My mom was especially happy to see the gazebo made famous by the Sound of Music.

Creepy unicorn in the palace.

My favorite part of the the palace was the trick fountains in the garden. There was a lot of thought, ingenuity, and humor put into the clever fountains. Gravity powered the fountains and they were quite the spectacle back in the day. They were quite entertaining even today.

Our last stop of the day was at the enormous Steigl Brewery. We toured the museum, bought a few goodies, and enjoyed dinner and beers in the very entertaining beer garden. There were two bachelor parties going on and poor DD#1 ended up dancing with one of the grooms who was dared to dance with a stranger. So funny! She was a very good sport.

We definitely got the most out of our three nights in Salzburg. Wow! We saw so many things and learned a ton. Next stop, Vienna!