Day Trip from Salzburg

Halstatt is difficult to get to and takes a bit of time. The fastest way is with a rail-bus connection in a little more than 3 hours. Get an early start if you want a full day there. That's like 6 am departure and return leaving at 5 pm and getting back to Salzburg just before 8 pm.

"I have heard there is not much left from WWII in Berchesgaten and that would really be the main reason we would go."

Most people go to Berchtesgaden for the same reason as Hallstatt (at least in the summer). For the beautiful scenery, particularly a large lake surrounded by the majestic Alps. That's probably the reason Hitler built his Berghof compound in the area.

Whether the Salzburg-Hallstatt connection takes 1 connection or 2 seems to depend on your travel date. It looks better in the second half of May, when they must plan to have some track work completed.

You may be able to more easily get to Hallstatt if you went as part of a tour, like a Sound of Music tour. My parents were in Austria a couple of years ago and did a Sound of Music tour from Salzburg which took them to Hallstatt and several other towns in the Salzkammergut region and they loved it. I believe this is the one they did: http://www.bobstours.com/hst.php But I'm sure there are other options that others may know about. And then you don't have to deal with connections.

We did the Panorama Sounds of Music Tour 1A that included a ride into the countryside. You can get to many of the same locations on your own using public scheduled transit. The OBB route planner shows what's possible:
http://www.oebb.at/en/#
Trick is to spell locations correctly but the planner helps with clues.

We're planning a day trip from Salzburg in July -- to Hallstatt! You can get there by train (www.oebb.at). If you want to tour the salt-mine, you can purchase a combination train and salt-mine tour ticket through the mine website ( www.salzwelten.at/en/hallstatt) It's an amazing journey by train, boat, and funicular into the heart of the Alps, around scenic Lake Hallstatt. There's even a viewpoint above the town and lake similar to the one jutting out over the Grand Canyon in AZ. I can't wait!! Beware! The Viator tour listed as Hallstatt in NOT actually Hallstatt! It goes to the Berchtesgaden area. You'll see the difference (better price, too) using the mine website I've provided. No, I'm not on Hallstatt's payroll, but I'm really excited about my "find," and can't wait to go there!

Check out this website to see Berchtesgaden during WW2 vs today.

http://www.thirdreichruins.com/bgaden.htm

If you are interested in WWII, not only is there the Eagles Nest (Kehlsteinhaus), but at the base of the Kehlstein is the Dokumentation Center, with exhibits about the Nazi takeover of Germany, plus from the Center you can get into a little bit of what's left of the bunkers that used to be under Obersalzberg connecting the SS barracks and the vacation homes of the top Nazis.

I loved Hallstatt, but I wouldn't go there unless I could spend at least one night there.

I would be very surprised if a SOM tour went to Hallstatt, because it has nothing at all to do with the SOM (but then, neither do most of the sights they show you). They probably took you to Mondsee and the wedding church and/or to Wolfgangsee, which has a cameo appearance in the opening scenes of the movie and where they started up the mountain on a cog railroad (only to end up 40 miles away on a hillside facing Hohenwerfen castle, lol).