AUSTRIA - Best of Europe 2014 - page 147

Cost: You'll pay to enter the castle, whether you reach the castle on foot (the walk is
easier than it looks), or, for a couple euros more, by funicular.
On Foot: If you walk up to the fortress (or walk over from the Mönchsberg, reachable
either by stairs from Toscaninihof or the elevator from the west end of Griesgasse/southern
end of Gstättengasse), you'll pay €7.80 to enter (at the fortress gate), which includes entry
to the fortress grounds, all the museums inside, and your funicular ride down—whether you
want it or not. Within one hour of the museums' closing time, the entry price is reduced to
€4.
Via Funicular: Mostvisitorsenterthefortressbytakingaone-minutetriponthefunicu-
lar(Festungsbahn). Thelower station isonFestungsgasse, which isjust offKapitelplatz, be-
hind Salzburg's cathedral. The top end of the funicular is inside the fortress complex. Your
round-trip funicular ticket includes admission to the fortress grounds and all the museums
inside—whether you want to see them or not (€11, €25.50 family ticket). If you board the
funicular within one hour of the museums' closing time (i.e., May-Sept after 18:00 or Oct-
Aprilafter16:00),youpayonly€7.80,or€6.40ifyoudon'twanttotakethefuniculardown;
this is a good deal if you only want a glimpse of the museums. After the museums have
closed, the funicular continues to run until about 21:30 (later if there's a concert) and costs
€3.80 round-trip, or €2.40 one-way.
Hours: The museums in the fortress are open daily May-Sept 9:00-19:00, Oct-April
9:30-17:00, tel. [phone]. The grounds of the fortress stay open and the funicular
continues to run even after the museums close—usually until about 21:30 or 22:00, espe-
cially when there's a concert (300 nights a year).
Concerts: The fortress serves as a venue for evening concerts (the Festungskonzerte),
which are held in the old banquet rooms on the upper floor of the palace museum. A concert
is a good way to see the fortress at its quietest. For details, see “Music in Salzburg” on here .
Eating: The cafés to either side of the upper funicular station are a great place to nibble
on apple strudel while taking in the jaw-dropping view.
Self-Guided Tour: At the top of the funicular, most visitors turn left. Instead, head
right and down the stairs to bask in the view to the south (away from town) toward the Alps,
either from the café or the view terrace a little farther along. (You'll enjoy superb city views
later on this tour.)
• Once you're done snapping photos, walk through the arches into the fortress courtyard.
Yourticketletsyouintotwoexhibits:Thefirstisatourofthefortifications,whilethesecond
is a historical museum inside the “palace” in the fortress courtyard. The courtyards them-
selves offer a few other things to see, as well as great views in several directions. Go left
(uphill). From here, you'll make a clockwise circuit around the courtyard. The first sight
you'll come to, labeled #1, is the...