Square
Residenzplatz is Salzburg’s grandest baroque square, cleared in the early seventeenth century by Archbishop Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau on the site of a demolished medieval neighbourhood. Standing here, with the Residenz on one side, the Neue Residenz on another, and the Salzburg Cathedral closing the south end, it is easy to understand how deliberately this city was shaped.
Wolf Dietrich’s ambition was to remake Salzburg as a northern Rome, and Residenzplatz was where that ambition became most visible. He cleared the houses and the old cathedral precinct to open this space, and it was his successors who completed the framing: the Cathedral was finished in 1628, the Residenz rebuilt and expanded across the following decades. By the middle of the seventeenth century, the square had the proportions and the buildings it still has today.
The Residenzbrunnen at the centre was completed around 1661 and is attributed to Tommaso di Garona. At around fifteen metres across, it is among the largest baroque fountains in the German-speaking world. Three conchs ring the lower basin; horses and tritons support the upper tiers. It rewards careful looking.
The Neue Residenz across the square contributes the Glockenspiel, a carillon of 35 bells that plays at 7 am, 11 am, and 6 pm daily. Leopold Mozart is said to have complained about it being out of tune. It is worth being in the square at one of those times: the sound carries well across the open space, and most visitors standing there have no idea it is about to start.
In December, the Salzburg Christmas Market takes over the square entirely. The stalls, the smell of Glühwein, and the floodlit Cathedral facade produce the version of Salzburg that appears on postcards worldwide. Outside the Christmas period, the square is quieter and better appreciated: the baroque proportions come through more clearly without the crowd.
Residenzplatz is always open and free. It is in the centre of the Altstadt, a two-minute walk from the main pedestrian zones. Arch passages on the south side connect to Domplatz; a covered passage to the east leads to Mozartplatz. Combine naturally with the Residenz state rooms, the Salzburg Cathedral, and the DomQuartier museum circuit. The Christmas Market runs through December and is the busiest time of year; early mornings are quieter regardless of season.
Do it here
These experiences include this place in their authored route.
One of Austria's most atmospheric Christmas markets. Late November to 24 December. Main market on Domplatz, additional on Residenzplatz and Mirabellplatz. Baroque facades, fortress on the hill, Glühwein. One of the most visited Christmas Market destinations in the German-speaking world.
Horse-drawn carriage rides through the Altstadt from Residenzplatz. Traditional tourist experience. Genuinely atmospheric. Animal welfare controversy noted honestly: visitors should make their own judgement.
1.5 - 2 hours
Daily guided walking tour of Salzburg's Altstadt. Tip-based, no fixed price: join free, pay what you think it was worth. Meets at the Spirit of Mozart and covers the essential old town from Mirabell to Mozartplatz in about ninety minutes. Run by Free Walking Tour Salzburg, Gerhard Reus's own brand.
Annual October jazz festival. Vast majority of performances free. Baroque squares become jazz stages. Four days. More local and intimate than the classical Festival. One of the most accessible events in the Salzburg calendar.
2 h
A private guided walking tour of Salzburg's Altstadt. All the essential sights in about two hours, with the pace, emphasis, and questions shaped to your group. Meets at the entrance to Schloss Mirabell. Run by Free Walking Tour Salzburg, Gerhard Reus's own brand.
Salzburg's oldest folk festival. Late September around St. Rupert's feast day (24 September). Residenzplatz and Altstadt fill with fairground stalls, traditional food, local beer. Belongs primarily to residents, not tourists.
Free outdoor screen at Kapitelplatz during the Salzburg Festival. Live and recorded Festival performances broadcast for free. Picnics and drinks under the open sky. The essential alternative for visitors without Festival tickets.
People
guide
Salzburg-based guide, entrepreneur, and the creator of Introducing Salzburg. Founding figure behind Rikscha Tours Salzburg, Introducing Salzburg, Free Walking Tour Salzburg, and Roam Austria.
sculptorb. 1955
Catalan sculptor whose Awilda (2010), a five-metre white bust of a young woman with closed eyes, stands in the courtyard of the University of Salzburg's law faculty on Kapitelgasse. Named after a legendary Scandinavian pirate queen.
painter1812 - 1905
The great Austrian watercolourist whose detailed, luminous views of Salzburg constitute one of the most important visual records of the city in the 19th century. In 1897, at the age of 84, he became the first honorary president of the Vienna Secession.
sculptor1620 - 1667
The sculptor behind the Residenzbrunnen, the magnificent baroque fountain at the centre of Residenzplatz, completed around 1661. One of the largest and finest baroque fountains in Central Europe, seen by every visitor arriving at the Cathedral square.
Read more
The longer pieces where this comes up.
Salzburg was not part of Austria for most of its history. That single fact explains nearly everything about the way the city looks, why it feels different from Vienna, and why there is a fortress on the hill.
