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Gosau Village and Hallstatt in the same day or no?

Hi everyone! after my first day in Vienna, I will be going to Salzburg and plan to stay there for 3 nights. In the 3rd day, I'm thinking about going to Gosau village first then probably in the afternoon, I'm going to Hallstatt by just commuting. Do you think I can explore those two places in one day or should go in those place on two different days?

Posted by
6783 posts

Unless I missed something, Gosau isn't much of a village, more like a spread-out collection of chalets and hotels set against a beautiful mountain backdrop. No real point stopping there. The main draw there is Lake Gosau and the Gosaukamm cable car, up a side valley from Gosau.

It is very close to Hallstatt and you can definitely combine the two. Go to Hallstatt first with the train+boat combo, then take the bus from Hallstatt to Gosausee (a change of bus is required just north of Hallstatt). Once you're done, you can take the bus back to Bad Ischl, for the train to Salzburg.

Check fahrplan.oebb.at/ for schedules.

Posted by
179 posts

Is it possible? Yes, the bus from Gosau to Hallstatt takes about 30 minutes.
Does it make sense? That depends on you and your expectations and plans.

About Hallstatt:
If you just stroll around the village, take a few photos and drink a coffee you are fine with 1 or 2 hours.
But if you want to visit the salt mine you need to add 3 hours for that excursion.
https://www.salzwelten.at/en/hallstatt/prices-opening-hours
And if you are interested in history the World Heritage Museum Hallstatt is showcasing the history of Hallstatt culture starting with late Bronze Age. Near Hallstatt a large prehistoric cemetery has been found and excavated.

https://www.hallstatt.net/about-hallstatt/sehenswertes-en-US/world-heritage-museum/

About Gosau:
While there is a village called Gosau the attraction is the Gosau valley. People come here for nature and mountain views and outdoor activities like waking, cycling, mountain climbing … check the weather forecast before you go.
https://www.gosautal.net/gosau-en-US/

To plan your trip with public transport use following web-site
https://fahrplan.salzburg-verkehr.at/
Via the menu-button in the upper left corner you can switch the language to English and download the mobile phone app.

Are you planning for future or are you traveling right now?
Please be aware that winter is coming back for the next couple of days. Thus, Gosau would be rather good for skiing (skiing season ends April 3rd) than for any other activities.

Posted by
1741 posts

If you go to the Gosau Valley, you want to go all the way to the end, to the lake called Gosausee. It's several miles farter than "Gosau Village," a scattered area with some retail and services mixed in with chalets and farms. The Gosausee lake is at a bend in the valley where you finally get a clear, amazing view of the Dachstein, the most Switzerland-y looking big mountain near the Salzkammergut. Otherwise a pretty but un-remarkable sub-alpine valley with good hiking and some nice huts off the Gosau lift.

Crow flies distance from Gasausee to Hallstatt is relatively short, but no road or transit except a "little" bump from the Hallstatt cable car. We walked it in 5 hours up over a big mountain, many thousands of vertical feet, a hut or two for breaks. Not doable there and back in a day if you aren't a conditioned athlete. Doable there and then public transit back if you are reasonably fit and get an early start, and easiest starting Hallstatt because you can ride the cable car for part of the climbing.

A fun alternative, if you want to be outdoorsy, is to take public transit from Hallstatt to Gosau Village, then rent a bike, then ride out to Gosausee for a look around and ride even farther up the valley. The biking/hiking past Gosausee is really pretty and fun too. That way you aren't captive to the relatively less frequent public transit service to Gosausee. They rent ebikes and regular bike, and the valley riding is not too hilly (and calm/safe), or you can tack up the mountainside and ride some more alpine dirt fire roads.

I don't know if you can rent an ebike in Hallstatt (or across the lake in Obertraun), but if you could riding the valley floors around to Gosausee and back would be a jolly fine adventure.

Posted by
63 posts

Thank you all for the replies. I wish I could ride a bike. I don't know how to ride a bike because I don't know to balance my body. I like greenery scenery.

Posted by
5362 posts

What do you want to do in Gosau and Hallstatt?

If you just want to show up and take photos, then you have time to do both. If you want to hike around the Gosausee (the lake at Gosau) or ascend to the mountain, then you'll need more than half a day. If you want to visit the Salt Mine in Hallstatt and/or rent a boat on the lake and/or visit viewpoints, then you'll need more than half a day.

Posted by
1741 posts

Good point Emily. Lunch at the lone hotel patio on the shores of Gosausee is a lovely experience, but doing anything much else takes time. If day tripping from Salzburg might be a better idea to do one or the other.

Posted by
63 posts

I love nature. So, I will going to hike or even just sightseeing is enough for me. Nature makes me relax. Then I need to to add one more day to visit Hallstatt right? because like you said, I need more than half a day to see Gosausee. Also, I might not visit the Salt mine in hallstatt, I'm just going to explore the other tourist attractions like Hallstätter See, Hallstatt's Old Town and Market Square, St wolfgang, Bad Aussee, etc. Thank you for the suggestion!

Posted by
6783 posts

How about you start with Gosausee, and if you see you are "done" and have enough time left, head to Hallstatt? If you just want to see the village, you do no need much time; just just need to know when the last boats/buses/trains are.

Posted by
1741 posts

Enryu if you like to walk and like nature, then you'd probably like the walk from Gosausee to the Hinterer Gosausee, a smaller lake than Gosausee farther up the same valley closer to the big Dachstein mountain. It's a fairly civilized walk with lots of pretty scenery and places along the way to stop and eat or drink. No cars.

There is a good little map etc in this guide

https://dachstein.salzkammergut.at/oesterreich-tour/detail/430001495/weg-zum-hinteren-gosausee.html