Salzburg and The Sound of Music

Mozart’s birthplace and the set for the movie The Sound of Music, Salzburg is well known around the world . There’s much more to the fourth biggest city in Austria . Sightseers could easily spend a longer time in Salzburg. This baroque gem of a city is located on the Salzach River , and it also enjoys access to the northern boundary of the sturdy Alps. Salzburg’s Old Town is enrolled among the UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Salzburg  without any question captures all the vacationers to the city. This capital city of the Austrian state of Land Salzburg was in the first place a Celtic settlement. Later with the Romans it was called Juvavum until the the seventh century. After the Romans the town, Juvavum was all but in ruins . It was around 700 when Salzburg was founded by a bishop under the ruler of Bavaria. The city took its name from the salt trade and salt mines surrounding the city. The salt trade and the toll on salt helped the city raise money for the development of the city and it rose to be an significant center. A fortress was also started to be built in 1077 on Festungsberg hill which overlooks the city and was expanded over the following centuries. The mightiest fortress in central Europe, a powerful building sitting in a significant position, undoubted Salzburg’s top sight to visit and most dominant feature of the city′s view.

In 1816, Salzburg became part of Austria. It was in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries that a great deal of Salzburg’s houses were built , and many of them can be visited today for instance the Salzburg Cathedral, the seventeenth century baroque masterpiece. This cathedral was the place where Mozart was baptized. Mozart was born in Salzburg in 1756 and back then he was not appreciated but this has changed . His picture can be seen all over the city and the world renowned Salzburg Festival also exhibits most of his work. The house in Getreidegasse  9 was the living place of the Mozarts between 1747 and 1773 and here Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, whose name was actually quite a bit more complicated, was born on the 27th of January 1756. If you want to dig yourself into Mozart’s life, you can take a look at the Mozart’s birthplace.

Next to the the attractions in connection with Mozart there are other places to see including the seventeenth century Mirabell castle. The Baroque masterpiece of Mirabell Palace was initially built as “Schloß Altenau” in 1606. It was a gift for his concubine Salome Alt and most renowned for its splendid park .

Besides Mirabell Palace another site to visit is St. Peter’s Abbey and St. Peter’s Cemetery. St. Peter is the oldest monastery in the German-speaking world; some say the oldest continuously active monastery North of the Alps. The graveyard itself is known as one of the most charming graveyards in the world, and plenty of Salzburg’s past aristocratic families rest in peace here, including Mozart’s sister Nannerl.

If you are in Salzburg you can buy a Salzburg Card in order to visit most attractions for free, to use free public transportation and get some per cent off on assorted Salzburg tours. One of these tours relate to the Oscar-winning film, The Sound of Music. The Sound of Music Tours started when first visitors arrived Salzburg in 1965, briefly after the release of the film, trying to find locations like the lakeside castle or the gazebo.

Once deciding on a visit make sure you book the appropriate Austria accommodation.