We will be spending 4 nights in Salzburg this September. In addition to touring Salzburg, we would like to see Hallstatt and Berchtesgaden (more interested in scenery than WWII tours). As we are traveling with 2 children, we are keeping Salzburg as our home base and doing day trips. I was considering Bob's Tours for Salzburg/Hallstatt since my kids also enjoy Sound of Music. Will this tour give us a chance to walk around Hallstatt or is it mainly for SOM sites? Also, I am concerned by the many negative posts about Bob's Tours? Do we need a tour to do Berchtesgaden for a day or can we do this on our own by bus (and still see the sites in one day)? Lastly, we have in mind a particular show at the Salzburg Marionette Theatre that is playing one night only. Should I be purchasing these tickets before I arrive or wait until we get to Salzburg? Thanks for your input.
Posted by
OP
Martinez
2 posts
Thanks to the replies I received on this. I received great suggestions for the Berchtesgaden daytrip. Now, I'm still wondering if anyone has done a combined SOM/Hallstatt tour. Bob's or Panorama? If so, do they allow enough time to enjoy the countryside (my main interest in that tour)? I'm concerned they will zip through too quickly. Are we better off on our own with a Salzkammergut/Hallstatt daytrip from Salzburg? I know that is a long day by bus, but nevertheless, am curious how it compares. Thanks.
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19274 posts
I avoid most "3rd party" tours. I think they are just a ploy to get more money from tourists. I usually find that, with a little research, I can do the trip on my own for a whole lot less. I would not take an SOM tour in Salzburg. An awful lot of the SOM was shot in sound stages in Hollywood. Almost everything else from the SOM can be readily seen on your own in town. From in front of the Salzburg Hbf, a bus (the Watzmann Express, RVO 840) leaves for Berchtesgaden every hour, and an RVO Tagesticket, for 9,50€/adult (22€ for a family with children under 15) will get you to and from Berchtesgaden Hbf and allow you to use any buses (to the base of the Eagles Nest or Königssee) in the park. Alternatively, you can purchase a Bayern-Ticket and use the train RT from Salzburg Hbf to Berchtesgaden and still use all the buses in Berchtesgaden with it. The train returns to Salzburg later than the bus. Whether you can see Berchtesgaden in a day by yourself depends on how completely you want to see things (I spent an entire day just at the Eagles Nest and in the Dokumentation Center at the base). If it's just a check list tour, you can do it. (I think the organized tours from Salzburg go to the shore of Königsee but don't take the boat on it.) Hallstatt is about 2 hours from Salzburg by regional trains, and a 32€ Einfach-Raus-Ticket will cover all of your travel (except maybe the boat from Hallstatt Bhf to town) for 2-5 people.