Mid-range · 6-hour walk · Salzburg
The fortress and the Mönchsberg in six hours
The square behind the cathedral, the oldest nunnery in the German-speaking world, the fortress, a walk along the cliff top and the monks' beer hall.
The Mönchsberg is a long, wooded ridge of rock that runs along the back of the old town, with the fortress at its eastern end. This route climbs to it past Nonnberg Abbey, spends the longest stop in the fortress, then follows the paths along the top of the ridge to the modern art museum and comes down by the lift to finish at the Augustiner beer hall. Wear proper shoes; the paths are steep in places.
The route, stop by stop
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Kapitelplatz
The square behind the cathedral, with a giant chessboard and Stephan Balkenhol's "Sphaera", a man standing on a golden ball. The horse trough in the corner, the Kapitelschwemme, dates from the eighteenth century.
10 min here Walk here → -
Nonnberg Abbey
The Benedictine nunnery founded by St Rupert around 714, the oldest in the German-speaking world still in use. Maria von Trapp was a novice here before she went to the Trapp family as a governess.
20 min here Walk here → -
Hohensalzburg Fortress
Begun in 1077 and enlarged for six centuries, one of the largest medieval castles in Europe. Inside are the prince-archbishops' state rooms, and the walls look south across the plain to the Alps.
120 min here Walk here → -
Museum der Moderne Mönchsberg
A museum of modern and contemporary art on the edge of the cliff, opened in 2004, with a terrace above the old town. The Mönchsberg lift, cut through the rock, takes you down to the Gstättengasse.
60 min here Walk here → -
Augustiner Bräu
The beer hall where Augustinian friars began brewing in 1621, its beer still poured from wooden barrels into stone mugs. Food comes from the stalls in the hall, and the garden seats about 1,400; it opens in the mid-afternoon.
60 min here Walk here →
More walks in Salzburg
More in Salzburg
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