Salzburg is a beautiful and historical town in Austria close to Munich and right next to the German border. The city rose to fame after the 1965 American musical, The Sound of Music, was filmed around the city. Tourists from around the world enjoy visiting the filming locations from the movie and yes, I am one of them. Here is a self-guided tour of The Sound of Music spots in Salzburg. Because some of the spots are outside of Salzburg’s town centre, the tour may take you two days. Enjoy!
Mirabell Palace Gardens
Start your tour in the New Town of Salzburg at the Mirabell Palace Gardens.
The Sound of Music Connection: Maria (Julie Andrews) and the Von Trapp children sing “Do Re Mi” throughout the garden. Definitely one of the most famous musical scenes in the movie!
If you enter the Gardens from the south, you will see two Greek statues. Maria and the children mimic their fencing pose.
Continue into the garden and you will see the Pegasus Fountain where Maria and the children dance around the edge.
Next, you will reach a set of stairs that Maria and the children use as a musical scale. From here you’ll have a great view of Mirabell Gardens with Hohensalzburg Fortress in the background.
Make sure to go up the other set of stairs by the Pegasus Fountain, which leads to the Gnome Garden. Maria and the children take turns tapping the head of the gnome wearing glasses.
As you leave Mirabell Gardens, walk through the vine tunnel that Maria and the children skip through.
Mozart Footbridge
Next on the tour, take the pedestrian-only Mozart Footbridge (Mozartsteg) across the river to the Old Town.
The Sound of Music Connection: Maria and the children cross Mozartsteg during the song “My Favorite Things.”
Residenzplatz
Walk through the beautiful Residenzplatz.
The Sound of Music Connection: During the song “I Have Confidence in Me,” Maria splashes in the Horse Fountain.
Kapitelplatz
Walk through Kapitelplatz. From here you’ll have an amazing view of Hohensalzburg Fortress.
The Sound of Music Connection: Maria walks through this square during the song “I Have Confidence in Me.”
Nonnberg Abbey
Make your way to the historic Nonnberg Abbey.
The Sound of Music Connection: Several scenes in the movie were shot around the Abbey, although filming inside was not permitted. The real life Maria Von Trapp lived as a nun at the convent and also married Captain Georg Von Trapp here!
St. Peter’s Cemetery
Head to St. Peter’s Cemetery (Petersfriedhof), one of my favourite spots in Salzburg and one of the most beautiful and unique cemeteries I’ve ever seen.
The Sound of Music Connection: St Peter’s Cemetery was used as the inspiration to build a set in Hollywood where the Von Trapp family would hide from the Nazis, although the real family never hid in a cemetery. Franz Wasner, the real life Max Detweiler (the Von Trapp’s advisor and choir conductor), is buried here.
Rock Riding School
Next, walk past Salzburg’s Rock Riding School (Felsenreitschule). The only way to see inside the Festival Hall Theatre is by tour or to see a show.
The Sound of Music Connection: The Von Trapp children rehearse for the Salzburg Music Festival in the Rock Riding School’s Festival Hall Theatre. On the night of the festival, Captain Von Trapp sings “Edelweiss” and the whole family sings “So Long, Farewell” here before they make their escape. Although their performance did not play out like this, the real life Von Trapp family performed here in 1935 and won the Salzburg Music Festival in 1936.
Horse Pond
A short walk will bring you to the beautiful Horse Pond (Pferdeschwemme) where parade horses were washed and groomed in the past.
The Sound of Music Connection: Maria and the children dance past the Horse Bath during the song “My Favorite Things.”
Mönchsberg Lift Terrace
Continue along the road and you’ll reach the Mönchsberg Lift (Mönchsberg Aufzug), which is located inside the Modern Art Museum of Salzburg (Museum der Moderne). This is the last filming location in the Salzburg town centre. I suggest ending your first day of the self-guided tour here. Take the lift up to the top floor and you will find a terrace (formerly known as Winkler Terrace) with one of the best views of Salzburg. This view is amazing at sunset!
The Sound of Music Connection: The beautiful city view from the terrace can be seen while Maria and the children sing “Do Re Mi.”
Schloss Leopoldskron
The rest of the filming locations on this tour are outside of the Salzburg town centre so it may take another day to see them, depending on how much time you’ve spent at the previous spots. If you are interested in visiting these sites, you can rent a bike, drive, taxi, or take public transportation.
Schloss Leopoldskron is now a hotel and you can only enter the former palace if you are staying as a guest. However, you can see the back of the palace and its beautiful terrace from across the pond along Konig-Ludwig-Strasse.
The Sound of Music Connection: Several scenes in The Sound of Music were filmed on the terrace. Schloss Leopoldskron was also the original home of The Sound of Music gazebo until it was moved to Schloss Hellbrunn (which you will see later).
Schloss Frohnberg
Continue south to Schloss Frohnberg, which is now part of the Mozarteum Music Academy. Tours of the palace are not available but you can see the front of the palace from the road.
The Sound of Music Connection: Schloss Frohnberg was used as the front of the Von Trapp family home in The Sound of Music.
Schloss Hellbrunn
A bit further south is Schloss Hellbrunn. One of Salzburg’s Prince Archbishop’s built the palace as a place for fun. The palace has no bedrooms, several trick fountains, and vast woodland grounds. I highly recommend paying the entry fee for Schloss Hellbrunn, which includes a tour of the palace and the trick fountains – it’s so much fun! However, you can walk around the palace grounds and see The Sound of Music Gazebo for free.
The Sound of Music Connection: Located on the palace grounds is the famous Gazebo where Liesl and Rolf sing “16 Going on 17,” and Maria and the Captain later sing “Something Good.”
Villa Trapp
On your way back to the Salzburg town centre, cross the Salzach river and stop at Hotel Villa Trapp. In 2008, Villa Trapp was turned into a hotel, which you can tour or stay in.
The True Story of the Von Trapps: In 1926, Maria Kutschera was sent to this family home by the Nonnberg Abbey to tutor Captain Georg Von Trapp’s sick daughter. One year later, Maria and Georg were married when she was 22 and he was 47, and she became stepmom to his 7 children. Maria and Georg had another 2 children of their own (of 3) while living here. To earn some cash during tough times in 1935, the family began to perform as a choir. In 1938, the Nazi’s arrived in Salzburg and the Von Trapp’s made their escape by train to Italy just one day before Hitler closed the Austrian borders. The Villa Trapp was seized and used as a private home for SS Chief Heinrich Himmler during the war before being returned to the Von Trapps, who sold it to a Catholic mission. The Von Trapp family performed in over 2000 shows in 30 countries before settling on an American farm that they turned into a hotel. Georg died in 1947 and Maria lived until 1987 – she even had a small cameo in The Sound of Music!
The Sound of Music Connection: This is where the real Von Trapp family lived from 1926-1938.
BONUS: Meadow in Werfen, Austria
Although this filming location is not in Salzburg, I highly recommend visiting this meadow in Werfen, Austria if you can. The meadow is about a 40-minute drive from Salzburg. When you reach Werfen, drive up Schartenbergstrasse and you will see a meadow with a section that is surrounded by a wood fence. This meadow has the most amazing view of the Austrian Alps and Hohenwerfen Castle down below. You will really feel like you are in The Sound of Music at this spot!
The Sound of Music Connection: In a famous scene, Maria and the Von Trapp children have a picnic in this beautiful meadow and then start singing “Do, Re, Mi.”
I hope you enjoyed this self-guided tour of The Sound of Music filming spots in Salzburg!
To read my blog post, “How to Spend 2 Days in Salzburg,” click here.
To read my blog post, “What and Where to Eat in Salzburg, Austria,” click here.
