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Exploring Hohensalzburg Fortress Salzburg

Hohensalzburg Fortress or “High Salzburg Fortress” looms over Salzburg rising above the city’s towers. This 900-year-old fortress is one of Europe’s largest medieval castles. Its whitewashed walls have darkened through the ages but it was still a magnificent structure. We were only in Salzburg for a day trip from Munich but knew we couldn’t miss exploring it. See what awaited us inside this massive fortress.

Hohensalzburg Fortress Mirabell

Archbishop Gebhard von Helfenstein built the fortress in 1077 with a primary purpose of protecting the bishops and the city. Salzburg’s Archbishops were powerful political figures during that time. It was extensively enlarged by Archbishop Leonhard von Keutschach and became the “largest, fully-preserved fortress in central Europe”. Its exterior has remained largely unchanged.

Hohensalzburg Fortress Salzburg
Built on top of the Festungsberg mountain rising 400 feet above the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Salzburg’s Alstadt or Old Town, this imposing structure and its location deterred enemies and attacks. The fortress remained unconquered by its enemies for 1,000 years but the city did surrender to Napoleon. Those castle walls were pretty high and a great vantage point to see enemies coming from many directions.

Hohensalzburg Fortress
The fortress was more than a fortification over the years. It was also the prince archbishops’ temporary residences, a military barracks and prison. Today, it houses museums, an educational facility and is a popular concert venue.

So, how does one get up to the fortress? Some do the steep hike to the fortress that takes about 30 minutes but can be quite scenic. Since it was raining a bit and we were short on time, we rode the funicular instead. The Festungsbahn was fast (about 1 minute), convenient and the kids enjoyed it. Try to get to the front when going down.

Hohensalzburg Fortress funicular
One of the reasons visitors trek up to the fortress is the amazing panoramic views it offers of the city, the countryside and the surrounding mountains.

Old Town Salzburg
It wasn’t the best day to see Salzburg with the dark clouds and rain threatening our every step even on a summer day. But, it was still beautiful. I can just imagine how spectacular the whole area must look during a clear, sunny day. It’s another reason to return.

Salzburg Landscape

We climbed up another staircase to reach the castle grounds. This wasn’t the most accessible place to get around for those with strollers or wheelchairs. It was a pleasant surprise to find the Marionette Museum by the entrance. These were some of the collections from the Salzburg Marionette Theatre.

Hohensalzburg Fortress marionette
There were a couple of stations to try out the puppets which my kids loved. There were puppets from Mozart’s Magic Flute and the Sound of Music – two things also synonymous with Salzburg. We found various puppets on display and some were created with great artistry and details. Some were a bit creepy. This colorful scene was one of our favorites from among the few that depicted some of Salzburg’s history.

Hohensalzburg Fortress puppet
My kids don’t hesitate to stick their heads in these touristy cutouts.

Hohensalzburg Fortress marionette cutout
The Fortress Museum was an interesting look at the castle’s rooms and history. The exhibits ranged from historical artifacts, weapons, armors and even torture instruments.

Hohensalzburg Fortress armory

My then 10-year old daughter wasn’t too interested in the museum exhibits. It didn’t live up to her idea of a castle and after seeing Germany’s Neuschwanstein and Linderhof the day before; this was a dark and stark contrast. But my son and especially my husband enjoyed seeing the weaponry and military exhibits.

Salzburg Fortress Museum

The Golden Chamber was the most beautifully furnished room of the royal chambers. The long walls were once lavishly decorated and covered in cloth or leather. Unfortunately, it didn’t survive the ages. There were plenty of Gothic wood-carvings that decorated the Golden Hall. This was usually used for candlelit concerts.

Hohensalzburg Fortress Golden Chamber

The large and colorful glazed Majolica stove by the door was the Golden Chamber’s most eye-catching object.

Hohensalzburg Fortress Majolica stove

The stove was divided into 3 segments. The lower part had four rows of tiles and was decorated with fantasy, flower and fruits that were inspired by European seafarers expedition in late 15th century. This added a bit of interest to unfurnished rooms.

Hohensalzburg Fortress Mojolica stove

The sun came out briefly and we darted outside to explore the courtyard. Surrounded by the high walls, we could almost imagine what life must have been like as a small community here. The surrounding buildings were once occupied with tradesmen, craftsmen, bakers, knights, blacksmiths and residents that sustained the fortress’ daily life.

Hohensalzburg Fortress courtyard
These grounds are transformed into a festive marketplace with food and handicrafts booths during the Advent Season. We found frescoes and one of the more interesting building walls.

Hohensalzburg Fortress frescoe
St George’s chapel was one of the buildings inside the courtyard. This was dedicated to St. George who was protector of horses. It was fitting for a fortress with an army on horsebacks at that time. We couldn’t go in but there were opening at the doorway for visitors to take pictures and admire its altar, red marble reliefs and intricate wood carvings.

Hohensalzburg Fortress church

The Hohensalzburg Fortress is a great alternative to those not into the Sound of Music or a Mozart tour when visiting Salzburg.  It was undoubtedly the best place to go for a bird’s eye view of Salzburg and its Alpine surroundings. It was worth the trek up the mountain een with the rain since the museums were worth seeing too. Here’s wishing all of you a sunny and clear day when you visit the fortress.

Tips for Visiting the Hohensalzburg Fortress

  • Admission Price: Adults € 11.30; Children (6-14 years) € 6.50; Families € 26.20 (Cheaper without the funicular ride)
    Get the Salzburg Card for free admission to the museums here, a free funicular ride and admission to many of the city’s main attractions for one low price.
  • Audio guides were available in nine languages but we decided to do a self-guided tour instead. The audio guides allow access to the Recturm watchtower, gallery and torture chamber.
  • If you’re staying for more than a day, look into the Fortress “Dinner and Concert” which will be a great way to experience the castle.
  • Entrance to the funicular is by the Kapitelplatz (Chapter Square) near the Sphaera statue with a man standing on a gold ball.
  • Opening hours: January-April and October-December: 9:30 AM-5 PM; May-September: 9 AM-7 PM

Have you visited Hohensalzburg Fortress?

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Hohensalzburg Fortress with kids

34 thoughts on “Exploring Hohensalzburg Fortress Salzburg”

  1. I have never heard of the Hohensalzburg Fortress – despite going to Salzburg so call me clueless of my memory is going.. What a massive, imposing building it is. Too bad the weather wasn’t more cooperative but still impressed with your photos and what a view of the city.

  2. This put a smile on my face, Mary! My aunt went house shopping for me last summer in Germany and Austria. I’m still living in the States and still a few years away from retiring. After all of her house hunting she said, “I would pick one place for you honey…Salzburg” :)

  3. When I visited Salzburg it was a lovely sunny summer’s day and we loved the views from the fortress … BUT the whole place absolutely stank of pig manure, and I mean really stank and we couldn’t work out why. That is until we looked over the back views and saw a farmer spraying his fields with the stinky stuff. This was 6 years ago and it’s my son’s (who was 8 at the time) over-riding memory of Salzburg!! Hopefully if we go back it won’t smell so bad!

  4. What a stunning fortress – so imposing – and the views, Wow! I would like to live in a castle but I think this fortress might be a bit large even for me! Salzburg though is definitely on my place of must visits one day from all your stories.

  5. I think the photos looking down on the town are very good and I liked the atmospheric cloud shot too. I remember being there for a day or two a long time ago. Your kids in the cut-outs are fantastic. I bet they have a collection of those shots from around the world!

  6. I love Salzburg. In fact, I was just there last weekend. We didn’t go to the fortress this time, but stayed down in the city near the cathedral. There is so much to do there. Great photos! Looks like the kids are having fun, like always!

  7. It looks very imposing – very grand inside, as well! The cloud shots are really atmospheric. I’ve never been to Salzburg, but would love to go :).

  8. What a beautiful castle!
    The views from atop it are lovely, gives a real birds eye view of the city really.
    Those doors and the architecture
    are a treat to watch, thanks for sharing Mary :)

  9. Gorgeous! I have a feeling that my fiancé would love this. I would too, but he’s more into old buildings and things like fortresses than I am.

  10. I really adored Salzburg. I was only there for a day as well and I definitely want to go back. The fortress was a lot of fun to explore and I had a lot of fun with the marionettes too. I can see why your kids enjoyed it!

  11. Fantastic tour, that stove is so stunning and ornate, not that I would need something like that in Hawaii, although it would make a nice chicken coop :)

  12. I love Salzburg, and we’ve been there couple of times already! However, we’ve never made it to the fortress. Will put that on my to-do list. I am kind of crazy about funiculars (we’ve got a small one in Zagreb and we take it quite often). Photos are amazing, despite the bad weather. And the park within the fortress looks really lovely.

  13. Great pics. We have visited these places a few times now, and there’s always something new to see! My favourite part about visiting Salzburg has to be the sache torte and watching visitors try to recreate The Sound of Music! :D

  14. I have not ventured to this part of the world yet, so I have to be sure to try to get there. I am a sucker for a funicular (manly because I am lazy…. not sure) Thanks loads for coming back again to link up to #SundayTraveler

  15. We were just there in October last year. Had an amazing picturesque day there with clear skies and 65 degrees. Salzburg is a wonderful place.

  16. Looks like you had a much better experience at the Salzburg Fortress than me! I hiked the whole way up – bad idea – only to find that the ticket office had closed only five minutes before we eventually arrived! The views though were spectacular.

  17. Salzburg was one of the first cities we visited in Europe with our daughters. We enjoyed the fortress (even though we’re into both Mozart and the Sound of Music!). It was all great, but what the girls loved most of all was the funicular ride.

  18. Wow! This looks like a stunning place to spend the day with the kids! I love the historical sites that are interactive as well as informative. Otherwise if the place feels like one big museum exhibit, it’s easy to get “castled out” or “churched out” as we called it when travelling Europe. We haven’t been to Salzburg yet but your photos are very inspiring :-)

  19. Hohensalzburg Fortress is amazing. We visited in winter just a few weeks before Christmas and there was a small Christmas market there that I loved. I was surprised at how many exhibits were in the museum. Very interesting history up there in additional to the awesome views!

  20. What a fantastic report Mary! I was just there in early December but didn’t have the time to ascend to the fortress! I would have loved the funicular and exploring the entire fortress! And what a view!!

  21. I climbed this in December last year and was just blown away by how beautiful it was, especially as the sun was starting to set! We couldn’t stay up there as long as I’d hoped though because my fingers felt like they were about to fall off from the cold after I took my gloves off to take pictures! Gorgeous photos you have here!

  22. We also spent a day in Salzburg and enjoyed those views this summer (and liked going on the funicular railways). We found there was so much to do in the city and wished we’d had longer. The kids had a brilliant time at the water gardens at the Palace Of Hellbrunn, which is about 15 mins away from the centre by bus and great fun (we wrote about this on our blog!). Love your post – brings back memories.

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