Salzburg Information

Salzburg's old town, on the south bank of the river, is a Baroque fiesta of churches, plazas, courtyards and fountains, oozing the waves of charm that you would expect from this Mozart Mecca. Museums, houses, squares, chocolate bars and liqueurs are all part of one giant homage to Wolfgang.

The Salzburg that everyone knows and loves was largely built by three bishop-princes in the late-16th and early-17th century, which is what gives the city its Italian flavour and its skyline punctuated by countless medieval spires, domes, belfries and turrets.

Situated on both banks of the Salzach River, Salzburg, Austria's fourth largest city, is bounded by two steep hills; the Kapuzinerberg on the left bank and the Mönchsberg on the right. The compact old part of town, mostly pedestrian-only, is on the left bank (known as linkes Salzachufer), with the hard-to-miss Festung Hohensalzburg dominating the southern tip of the Mönchsberg. Most of the city's attractions are on this side of the river. The new town, the centre of business, is on the right bank (rechtes Salzachufer), along with most of the cheaper hotels. Locals may also talk of the old town as being on the south or west bank.