Budget · 3-hour walk · Salzburg
Mozart's Salzburg in three hours
The Mirabell Gardens, the footbridge over the Salzach, Mozart's birthplace, the prince-archbishops' squares, the cathedral and St Peter's cemetery.
Salzburg's old town was rebuilt in the seventeenth century by prince-archbishops who wanted a Rome north of the Alps, and it is small enough to cross in fifteen minutes. This route starts in the gardens on the right bank, crosses the river to the house where Mozart was born, and works through the cathedral squares to the cemetery under the cliff. Go early: by mid-morning the Getreidegasse is full of tour groups.
The route, stop by stop
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Mirabell Gardens
Baroque gardens round Mirabell Palace, which Prince-Archbishop Wolf Dietrich built in 1606 for Salome Alt, the mother of his children. The Pegasus fountain and the steps beside it are where the children sing "Do-Re-Mi" in The Sound of Music.
25 min here Walk here → -
Marko-Feingold-Steg
The footbridge over the Salzach, long called the Makartsteg and now named after Marko Feingold, a Holocaust survivor who led Salzburg's Jewish community. Its railings are hung with lovers' padlocks.
5 min here Walk here → -
Mozart's Birthplace
Mozart was born on the third floor of Getreidegasse 9 on 27 January 1756, and the family lived there until 1773. The museum shows his childhood violin and family portraits.
45 min here Walk here → -
Alter Markt
The old market square with St Florian's fountain in the middle. Café Tomaselli, on the square, has been run by the Tomaselli family for more than 150 years.
15 min here Walk here → -
Residenzplatz
The great square of the prince-archbishops, with the baroque Residenz fountain in the middle. The Glockenspiel's 35 bells, in the tower on its east side, play at 7, 11 and 6 o'clock.
15 min here Walk here → -
Salzburg Cathedral
Rebuilt by Santino Solari after a fire and consecrated in 1628, one of the first baroque churches north of the Alps. Mozart was baptised in its bronze font the day after he was born.
25 min here Walk here → -
St Peter's Cemetery
A cemetery of wrought-iron grave crosses under the Mönchsberg cliff, with catacombs cut into the rock above. It inspired the hiding scene in The Sound of Music, which was filmed on a studio copy.
20 min here Walk here →
More walks in Salzburg
More in Salzburg
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