1. Plan your trip in the summer or very close to it. I recommend sometime between May and September, because the weather will be much more rewarding in those times. While snowy mountains can look pretty, it’s more enjoyable if you can actually see them instead of them being hidden behind a thick wall of thriving snow. Also, walking through a rainy city is hardly ever fun, especially if you don’t have waterproof shoes. Another reason for planning your trip within those months is that a lot of tours outside of Salzburg are only offered in the summer. You will regret it if you’ll miss them just because they’re off-season.
  2. If possible, that is if you live somewhere within 500km, come to Salzburg by car. You’ll be done touring the city of Salzburg in 2 days, and you’ll want to check out a lot of the things the Salzkammergut (the area around Salzburg) has to offer. The salt mines and the ice caves sound very impressive in the brochures, and are all the more interesting if you’ve seen the corresponding episode of Austrian TV show Stockinger. The village of Hallstadt has another interesting attraction as seen on Stockinger; the bone house (or whatever it’s called), a cave like thing where skulls and bones are kept, on which the names of their previous owners are painted. Sounds macabre, probably is.
  3. If you do the Sound of Music Tour, try to get on a group with lots of Americans. Doing the tour with shy Asians will definitely only be half as much fun. Also, don’t expect too much, as some of the things featured in the film are only pointed out from afar (like the cloister).
  4. If you’re ever so desperately hungry that you’re considering one of the restaurants in the inner city, always check the menu first and then run away in disbelief of them really wanting 18 euros for a lousy Wiener Schnitzel.
  5. DO NOT stay at the Yoho Youth Hostel! Don’t even think about it! While it’s absolutely clean and hygienic, it’s one of the unfriendliest hostels I’ve ever stayed at. The staff doesn’t even look at you when you enter. Also, they make you pay a lot of money for Wi-Fi (e.g. 5 euros for 5 hours with a limited bandwidth of 100mb) and they only have shared washrooms and showers in the hallways.
  6. Of all the attractions, the must see is probably the fortress. It’s such a dominant figure towering high above the city that it would be insulting to go to Salzburg without visiting the fortress.