In this guide
💡 The Short Version: For a first visit, stay in the old town or on the right bank between Linzer Gasse and Mirabell, a short walk over the Staatsbrücke: the Domplatz, Getreidegasse and Mozart’s Birthplace are on foot from both. The Hauptbahnhof area suits an early train and is about 1.7 km from the Domplatz in a straight line. Overnight guests ride public transport free on the Guest Mobility Ticket, so a room outside the centre costs minutes, not fares. The tourist tax is €3.50 a person a night. Rooms fill for the Christkindlmarkt (19 November 2026 to 1 January 2027), Mozart Week (21 to 31 January 2027) and the Salzburg Festival (16 July to 29 August 2027). Prices change with the dates, so check yours on Hotels.com. Or book a tour: the Original Sound of Music Tourad is from €75 and the Hallstatt half-day tourad from €85 (GetYourGuide).
The areas, compared
The last two columns count how many of 18 English-language and 5 German-language where-to-stay guides give the area a section or more.
| Area | What it suits | English guides | German guides |
|---|---|---|---|
| The old town (Altstadt) | A first visit, a Festival or Christmas-market stay, no car | 18 | 5 |
| The right bank: Linzer Gasse and Mirabell | Concerts, the old town over the bridge | 17 | 5 |
| The Hauptbahnhof and Elisabeth-Vorstadt | Day trips by train, a late or early arrival | 15 | 5 |
| Nonntal | Quiet nights, on foot from the old town | 13 | 2 |
| Leopoldskron | The lake palace, a car | 8 | 1 |
| Maxglan | A car, the airport side | 6 | 3 |
| The airport | An early flight | 5 | 4 |
| Parsch | A longer, slower stay, walks | 2 | 0 |
How the city works
The Altstadt is a small core between the Salzach and the Mönchsberg, with the right bank a bridge away. The Hauptbahnhof is about 0.9 km from Schloss Mirabell and 1.7 km from the Domplatz in a straight line: a “near the station” hotel is not in the old town. Distances on this page are straight lines, which run shorter than the walk; a hotel’s own walking time appears only where its page prints one. Salzburg public transport has the buses and the tickets, and Salzburg airport to the city compares the ways in.
The tourist tax is €3.50 per person per night, collected by the hotel with the bill. It includes the mobility fee that pays for the Guest Mobility Ticket, which the hotel issues at check-in as a PDF or wallet pass. It covers city buses and trolleybuses, regional buses and trains in the province of Salzburg. It does not cover the fortress funicular, the Mönchsberg lift, the Schafbergbahn or the Wolfgangsee ships. So staying outside the centre adds minutes, not fares.
Dates that affect a stay:
- The Christkindlmarkt, 19 November 2026 to 1 January 2027, on the Domplatz and Residenzplatz. Public transport in the core zone is free on the four Advent Saturdays, 28 November and 5, 12 and 19 December. Salzburg Christmas markets 2026 has the days.
- Mozart Week, 21 to 31 January 2027, and the Easter Festival, 20 to 29 March 2027. The Whitsun festival runs 14 to 17 May 2027.
- The Salzburg Festival, 16 July to 29 August 2027. The Festival page has the ticket system.
Driving. The Neutor tunnel has been closed to cars, motorbikes and buses since 14 September 2026 and is expected to reopen in spring 2027. Trolleybuses 1, 8, 10 and 22 are diverted, and the Mönchsberg garages are reached only from Riedenburg or Maxglan. A driver bound for an old-town hotel should ask the hotel where to park before booking.
What the official sources say about safety
The UK Foreign Office says crime levels in Austria are generally low, with higher levels of petty crime, particularly pickpocketing, in the big city centres and city parks after dark, and asks for care on public transport and in crowded centres, including main stations. Australia’s Smartraveller advises normal safety precautions and says bag snatching and pickpocketing can occur. The Government of Canada asks for normal security precautions and says petty crime occurs in tourist areas, on trains and in stations, and in hotel lobbies and restaurants. See the UK Foreign Office, US State Department, Government of Canada and Smartraveller pages for Austria.
None of them names a Salzburg district. Replies on r/Salzburg to a visitor asking about the station area at night call Elisabeth-Vorstadt less pleasant than the rest of the city and fine to walk through, with people who are drunk or homeless gathering on the station forecourt by day. Keep bags and phones close at the Hauptbahnhof and in the Christkindlmarkt crowd.
The hotels
The links go to the hotel on Hotels.com. Star grades are from the Austrian hotel classification, published by the Hotelstars Union: a hotel that is not in it, and the hostel, carry no grade here. Michelin lists eight hotels in the city: Schloss Mönchstein with two Keys, the Goldener Hirsch, Hotel Goldgasse and the Sacher with one each, and Hotel Stein, Hotel & Villa Auersperg, Design Hotel zum Hirschen and Arthotel Blaue Gans without a Key. For the station in detail, see hotels near Salzburg Hauptbahnhof.
The old town (Altstadt)
The old town on the left bank holds the Domplatz and Residenzplatz, where the Christkindlmarkt stands, Getreidegasse and Mozartplatz, and the Festival Halls. The DomQuartier and the Cathedral and Mozart’s Birthplace are in it, and the fortress is above it: the Domplatz is about 0.4 km from Hohensalzburg in a straight line, and Getreidegasse 9 about 0.3 km from the Domplatz. The Kai quarter runs along the river. The streets are quiet at night except on market and Festival evenings, and the funicular and the Mönchsberg lift are not covered by the Guest Mobility Ticket. The old town walk goes round it.
Hotel Goldener Hirsch
Getreidegasse · 70 rooms · 5 stars Superior · one Michelin Key · Hotels.comad
Michelin’s entry says an inn on this spot is first recorded in the city’s archives in 1407 and that the present hotel dates from 1948. It stands on Getreidegasse.
Hotel Schloss Mönchstein
Mönchsberg 26 · 24 rooms · 5 stars Superior · two Michelin Keys · Hotels.comad
A castle first recorded in 1350, in its own park on the Mönchsberg above the old town.
Arthotel Blaue Gans
Getreidegasse 41-43 · 38 rooms · 4 stars · Michelin guide, no Key · Hotels.comad
On Getreidegasse opposite the Festival Hall, in a house the hotel dates to 1350. Its 34 different floor plans mean no two rooms are alike.
Hotel Goldgasse
Goldgasse 10 · 16 rooms · 4 stars · one Michelin Key · Hotels.comad
Sixteen rooms, one of them a rooftop terrace suite, in a historic alley a few steps from the Cathedral and Mozart’s Birthplace, according to the hotel’s page.
Hotel Elefant
Sigmund-Haffner-Gasse 4 · 4 stars · hotel website
Run by the same family for five generations. The hotel’s page puts it 55 m from Mozart’s Birthplace, and a second house at Getreidegasse 1, with 26 rooms, opened in 2019.
Altstadthotel Wolf
Kaigasse 7 · 16 rooms · 4 stars · Hotels.comad
In a house first recorded in the early 15th century, in the Kai quarter. The family has run it for four generations.
Altstadthotel Kasererbräu
Kaigasse 33 · 45 rooms · 4 stars · Hotels.comad
Forty-five rooms and suites on Kaigasse, with its own car park and the Mozartkino, a cinema, in the building. The hotel lists the Cathedral, the Residenz and Nonnberg as 5 minutes away, and Getreidegasse and the fortress as 10.
Altstadthotel Weisse Taube
Kaigasse 9 · 31 rooms · 4 stars · breakfast only · Hotels.comad
On Kaigasse, in the old town, and the hotel markets itself to families.
Hotel am Dom
Goldgasse 17 · 4 stars · breakfast only · Hotels.comad
A boutique hotel a few steps from Mozart’s Birthplace, Getreidegasse and the Festival Hall, according to the hotel’s page. Breakfast is served in a medieval vault.
The right bank: Linzer Gasse, Mirabell and the Andräviertel
The area across the Salzach holds Linzer Gasse, which Lonely Planet’s 2022 neighbourhood guide calls a lively street for people-watching, with small bars and outdoor tables. Schloss Mirabell and its gardens are here: see Mirabell Palace and Gardens and the Mozart concerts in the Marble Hall. Mirabellplatz has its own Christmas market from 19 November to 31 December 2026. Linzer Gasse is about 0.6 km from the Domplatz in a straight line, and the Staatsbrücke is the walk to the old town. Trolleybuses 3, 5 and 6 from the Hauptbahnhof stop at Rathaus, a few steps from the Alter Markt. The right bank walk goes from Mirabell up the Linzer Gasse and over the Kapuzinerberg.
The Platzl, on the right bank at the foot of the Staatsbrücke. Photo: Jorge Franganillo, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.
Hotel Sacher Salzburg
Schwarzstraße 5-7 · 110 rooms · 5 stars Superior · one Michelin Key · Hotels.comad
On the bank of the Salzach facing the old town. It opened in 1866 as the Österreichischer Hof and took the name Hotel Sacher Salzburg in 2000. Café Sacher serves the Original Sacher-Torte: see Salzburg’s coffee houses.
Hotel Bristol
Makartplatz · 5 stars · Hotels.comad
Beside the Mirabell Gardens, opposite Mozart’s Residence and next to the Landestheater, according to the hotel’s page.
Hotel & Villa Auersperg
Auerspergstraße 61 · 55 rooms · 4 stars · Michelin guide, no Key · Hotels.comad
A boutique hotel with a garden, a spa and a second house, the turn-of-the-century villa next door. Its page makes organic and sustainable running its theme.
IMLAUER Hotel Pitter
Rainerstraße 6-8 · 4 stars Superior · Hotels.comad
A family-run house a few steps from Mirabell Palace and Gardens, with the Congress House opposite, according to the hotel’s page. It has a sky bar and restaurant.
Hotel Stein
Giselakai 3-5 · 56 rooms · Michelin guide, no Key · Hotels.comad
On the river beside the Staatsbrücke, across the bridge from the old town. The Steinterrasse is a rooftop terrace with views over the city, and the interior keeps its 1950s fittings, including Murano glass.
Hotel Amadeus
Linzer Gasse 43-45 · Hotels.comad
Family rooms on a quiet stretch of Linzer Gasse. The hotel’s page lists the Mirabell Gardens, Mozart’s two houses and the fortress as a few minutes’ walk.
Altstadthotel Wolf-Dietrich
Wolf-Dietrich-Straße 5-7 · 4 stars · breakfast only · Hotels.comad
A family-run hotel with a pool and a sauna.
Hotel Markus Sittikus
Markus-Sittikus-Straße 20 · 4 stars · Hotels.comad
A family-run hotel that serves a regional breakfast.
Hotel Villa Carlton
Markus-Sittikus-Straße 3 · 4 stars · breakfast only · adults only · Hotels.comad
Adults only, and pets are welcome. Croissants, coffee and tea are set out each day in the lounge at no extra charge.
Stadtkrug Boutique Hotel
Linzer Gasse 20 · 4 stars · Hotels.comad
At the foot of the Kapuzinerberg, in a house trading since 1353, with a restaurant, a wine cellar and a bar.
NH Collection Salzburg City
Franz-Josef-Straße 26 · 140 rooms · 4 stars · Hotels.comad
In the Andräviertel, near the Mirabell Palace and Gardens and Linzer Gasse.
Hotel Krone 1512
Linzer Gasse 48 · 3 stars · Hotels.comad
The building housed craftsmen until a hotel opened in it in 1920, and the Egger family bought it in 1962.
Linzer Gasse on the right bank. Photo: Leonhard Lenz, Wikimedia Commons, CC0.
Cityhotel Trumer Stube
Bergstraße 6 · 3 stars · breakfast only · Hotels.comad
A few steps from Linzer Gasse. Breakfast is a buffet of regional products, with a small terrace in good weather.
Motel One Salzburg-Mirabell
Elisabethkai 58-60 · Hotels.comad
On the Salzach, a stone’s throw from the Kapuzinerberg, according to the hotel’s page.
YoHo International Youth Hostel
Paracelsusstraße 9 · hostel · hostel website
A hostel whose page advertises a free walking tour.
Near the Hauptbahnhof
The main station sits in Elisabeth-Vorstadt, the practical base for day trips by rail to Munich, Vienna and the lakes. The hotels here are a walk from the station and a longer one from the old town; hotels near Salzburg Hauptbahnhof sorts them by the distance each hotel’s page claims. Elisabeth-Vorstadt is named by 17 of the 23 where-to-stay guides as the cheaper, practical base by the trains.
Hotel Salzburg-Hauptbahnhof
Südtiroler Platz 13 · Hotels.comad
Right next to the main station, according to the hotel’s page.
Design Hotel zum Hirschen
Saint-Julien-Straße 21-23 · 106 rooms · 4 stars · Michelin guide, no Key · Hotels.comad
A family-owned design hotel with a garden and a wellness area. It has held the Austrian Ecolabel since 2024.
arte Hotel Salzburg
Rainerstraße 28 · 4 stars · breakfast only · Hotels.comad
A modern design hotel beside the main station, with mountain views.
COCOON Salzburg Hauptbahnhof
Rainerstraße 29 · 4 stars · Hotels.comad
Compact rooms of 17 m² for the Mountain Cocoon and the twin and 21 m² for the family room, with a taco bar at breakfast.
Austria Trend Hotel Europa Salzburg
Rainerstraße 31 · Hotels.comad
The hotel’s page puts it 100 m from the Hauptbahnhof and seven minutes from the Mirabell Gardens. The Panorama Restaurant is on the 15th floor.
Hotel Scherer
Plainstraße 37 · 4 stars · Hotels.comad
Trading since 1850, with its own parking and the Salzach riverside walks close by.
Hotel Hohenstauffen
Elisabethstraße 19 · 3 stars · Hotels.comad
The hotel’s page puts it 300 m from the station and 700 m from the Mirabell Gardens, with free parking at Stauffenstraße 16.
Nonntal and the south
Nonntal is the quiet side of the old town, south of it under the fortress. Nonntaler Hauptstraße 55 is about 1.4 km from the Domplatz in a straight line. Hellbrunn is 4.1 km from the Domplatz and reached on bus 25: see Hellbrunn and the trick fountains.
The Erhardkirche above the houses of Nonntal, with the Alps beyond. Photo: GFreihalter, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
Hotel Via Roma
Nonntaler Hauptstraße 47 · 30 rooms · 4 stars · Hotels.comad
In a house first recorded in 1421 as a tavern. The hotel’s page puts the old town 10 to 15 minutes away on foot and offers free parking at the back.
ARCOTEL Castellani Salzburg
Alpenstraße 6 · 4 stars · Hotels.comad
Gardens and a chapel on Alpenstraße, with the Salieri Restaurant & Bar.
JUFA Hotel Salzburg City
Josef-Preis-Allee 18 · 4 stars · Hotels.comad
A family hotel with a two-storey indoor play area, Wolferl’s Kids Club, and rooms with views of the fortress. See Salzburg with kids.
Motel One Salzburg-Süd
Alpenstraße 92-94 · 3 stars · Hotels.comad
Towards Hellbrunn Palace and the zoo. The hotel’s page names the Polizeidirektion bus stop.
Leopoldskron, Riedenburg and Maxglan
The western and south-western districts are residential. Schloss Leopoldskron, the lake palace of the Sound of Music, is 1.2 km from the Domplatz in a straight line and the airport 3.3 km. While the Neutor tunnel is shut, the Mönchsberg garages are reached through Riedenburg. Buses and trolleybuses run to the old town: see Salzburg public transport.
Hotel Schloss Leopoldskron
Leopoldskronstraße 56-58 · 67 rooms · Hotels.comad
Twelve suites in the Rococo palace beside its lake, each looking over the gardens, the pond or the fortress, plus 55 renovated rooms in the adjoining Meierhof. Breakfast is served in the Marble Hall.
Hotel Das Edlinger
Maxglaner Hauptstraße 68 · 4 stars · breakfast only · Hotels.comad
A design hotel with an art gallery. Bus line 1 stops outside and takes about 10 minutes to the old town, according to the hotel.
Das Grüne Hotel zur Post
Maxglaner Hauptstraße 45 · 3 stars · Hotels.comad
Reception for this hotel and the nearby Villa Ceconi is here. The family runs both on a sustainability programme, with free parking and charging points.
Hotel Astoria
Maxglaner Hauptstraße 7 · 3 stars · Hotels.comad
A family-run hotel. Parking has to be reserved in advance.
Villa Verde
Leopoldskronstraße 15 · 3 stars · breakfast only · Hotels.comad
A bed and breakfast run by the owners, with a free parking space for each room.
Parsch, Aigen and the Gaisberg
The east and south-east are green, hilly and slower. The Parsch parish church is 1.7 km from the Domplatz in a straight line. Buses run to the centre, and the Gersberg Alm sits on the Gaisberg slopes.
Hotel Heffterhof
Maria-Cebotari-Straße 5-7 · 4 stars · breakfast only · Hotels.comad
A quiet, green setting with a large car park, a few minutes from the old town on the hotel’s own account. It also hosts seminars.
Hotel Haus Arenberg
Blumensteinstraße 8 · 13 rooms · 4 stars · breakfast only · Hotels.comad
Thirteen rooms and a breakfast served with a view of the mountains.
Hotel Rosenvilla
Höfelgasse 4 · 4 stars · breakfast only · Hotels.comad
A family-run hotel in the green district of Aigen, with free parking and a terrace.
Romantik Hotel Die Gersberg Alm
Gersberg 37 · 4 stars · Hotels.comad
On the Gaisberg slopes, “only 15 minutes from the old town” by the hotel’s account, with a panorama pool in summer and a sauna in winter.
The airport side
The airport is 3.3 km from the Domplatz in a straight line; Salzburg airport to the city has the buses.
Airporthotel Salzburg
Dr.-Matthias-Laireiter-Straße 9 · 4 stars · breakfast only · Hotels.comad
A family-run hotel near the airport building, with an indoor pool, a garden terrace and its own car park and garage.
Hotel Lilienhof
Siezenheimer Straße 62 · 3 stars · Hotels.comad
A small family-run hotel at the edge of the city, beside the motorway and the airport, with bus stops for the centre.
Plan the rest
Once you have your dates, 3 days in Salzburg fits the sights round the closed days. The best time to visit Salzburg has the weather by month, and where to eat in Salzburg covers the meals. Salzburg with kids sorts the sights by age. What to book before you go to Salzburg has the hours for every sight.
Common questions
Where should I stay in Salzburg for a first visit?
In the old town on the left bank of the Salzach, or on the right bank between Linzer Gasse and Mirabell, a short walk over the Staatsbrücke. Both put the Domplatz, Getreidegasse, Mozart's Birthplace and the concerts on foot. The Hauptbahnhof area suits an early train and is about 1.7 km from the Domplatz in a straight line.
Is there a tourist tax in Salzburg?
Yes: €3.50 per person per night, collected by the hotel or rental with the bill. It includes the mobility fee that pays for the Guest Mobility Ticket.
Do I need a car or a transport ticket if I stay outside the centre?
No ticket to buy: a guest who stays the night in the province gets the Guest Mobility Ticket from the hotel at check-in, covering city and regional buses and trains. It does not cover the fortress funicular or the Mönchsberg lift.
Which dates make a Salzburg stay busier?
The Christkindlmarkt from 19 November 2026 to 1 January 2027, Mozart Week from 21 to 31 January 2027, the Easter Festival from 20 to 29 March 2027, the Whitsun festival from 14 to 17 May 2027 and the Salzburg Festival from 16 July to 29 August 2027.
Which Salzburg hotels hold Michelin Keys?
Schloss Mönchstein holds two Keys, and the Goldener Hirsch, Hotel Goldgasse and Hotel Sacher one each. Hotel Stein, Hotel & Villa Auersperg, Design Hotel zum Hirschen and Arthotel Blaue Gans are in the guide without a Key.
Are the star grades on this page the hotels' own?
No. They come from the Austrian hotel classification, published by the Hotelstars Union. A hotel that is not in it, and the hostel, carry no grade here.
