Salzburg & Salzburgerland - Austria - page 484

SALZBURG FOR CHILDREN

With dancing marionettes, chocolate galore and a big fairy-tale-like fortress, Salzburg is kid nirvana. If the
crowds prove unbearable with tots in tow, take them to the city's adventure playgrounds (there are 80 to pick
from); the one on Franz-Josef-Kai MAP GOOGLE MAP is a central choice. In summer, children love to race
down the slides at Austria's largest outdoor pool, Leopoldskron (Leopoldskronstrasse 50; adult/child €4.40/
2.40; 9am-7pm May-Aug), just 1km south of the centre (take bus 21 or 22 to Nussdorferstrasse).
Salzburg's sights are usually half-price for children and most are free for under-six-year-olds. Many galleries,
museums and theatres also have dedicated programs for kids and families. These include the Museum der Mo-
derne ( Click here ), which has 90-minute Sunday art workshops for children (€4), which begin at 2.45pm, and
the matinée performances at the enchanting Salzburger Marionettentheater ( Click here ). The Salzburg Museum
( Click here ) has lots of hands-on displays, from harp-playing to old-fashioned writing with quills. Pick up
'Wolf' Dietrich's cartoon guide at the entrance.
Kids will love the Haus der Natur MAP GOOGLE MAP ( www.hausdernatur.at ; Museumsplatz 5; adult/
child/family €7.50/5/18.50; 9am-5pm), where they can bone up on dinosaurs and alpine crystals in the
natural-history rooms, gawp at snakes and crocs in the reptile enclosure, and glimpse piranhas and coral reefs in
the aquarium. Blink-and-you'll-miss-them baby clownfish splash around in the 'Kinderstube'. Shark and oc-
topus feeding time is 10.15am on Mondays and Thursdays. On the upper levels is a science museum where bud-
ding scientists can race rowboats, take a biological tour of the human body and - literally - feel Mozart's music
by stepping into a giant violin case.
On the arcaded Bürgerspitalplatz, the Spielzeugmuseum MAP GOOGLE MAP (Toy Museum;
www.salzburgmuseum.at ; Bürgerspitalgasse 2; adult/child/family €4/1.50/8; 9am-5pm Tue-Sun) takes a
nostalgic look at toys, with its collection of doll's houses and Steiff teddies. Wednesday-afternoon Punch and
Judy shows start at 3pm and cost €4. There's also dress-up fun, marble games and a Bosch workshop. Parents
can hang out in the 'adult parking areas' and at the free tea bar while the little ones let off excess energy.
Outside Salzburg, near Untersberg, the open-air Freilichtmuseum ( www.freilichtmuseum.com ; Hasenweg;
adult/child/family €10/5/20; 9am-6pm Tue-Sun Apr-Oct) harbours 100 archetypal Austrian farmhouses and
has tractors to clamber over, goats to feed and a huge adventure playground. Kids can come face to face with
lions, flamingos and alpine ibex at Salzburg Zoo ( www.salzburg-zoo.at ; Anifer Landesstrasse 1; adult/child/
family €10/4/23; 9am-7pm, to 4.30pm in winter) near Schloss Hellbrunn.

Alter Fuchs
MAP GOOGLE MAP

AUSTRIAN €€

( 88 20 22; Linzer Gasse 47-49; mains €10-17; noon-midnight Mon-Sat; ) This sly old fox
prides itself on witty service and old-fashioned Austrian fare - both rarities in the Alt-
stadt. Go for a schnitzel fried to golden perfection or pumpkin-seed-coated cordon bleu.
Bandana-clad foxes guard the bar in the vaulted interior, and there's a courtyard for good-
weather dining. In the cosy Stube (parlour) out back, scribbling on the walls (chalk only,
please) is positively encouraged.

Sarastro
MAP GOOGLE MAP

INTERNATIONAL €€