Salzburg, Austria

Salzburg is an extremely beautiful and highly under-rated in Europe in terms of must see cities.  It was also the perfect place for a day off after a weekend at Oktoberfest.

The city of Salzburg is an incredible European city with a number of
streets and buildings that provide the medieval European feel such
as the building above. 

Salzburg at night. 

Stay: We are doing the backpack/budget travel experience over the next five days therefore we stayed in a hostel.  Yoho City Youth Hostel is where we spent our night and it was actually really nice for hostel standards.  If you are on a budget I would highly recommend it, otherwise Hotel Stein was a four star hotel that was located right on the river and looked pretty nice.

The view from our balcony...no just kidding, this is the view from the
castle which was a 30 minute walk door to door from our hostel. 

Eat:  Not many people can say they have dined in a restaurant that is more than twice as old as the United States but if you stop in Salzburg you will have the opportunity.  St. Peter Stiftskeller located right next to the St. Peter's Church is the oldest restaurant in Europe and has been around since 803.  Not only is the idea awesome, the food was phenomenal as well.  Try something that is traditional to Austria such as the Le Cordon Bleu. 

The entrance to St. Peters. To think of all the people who passed
through this entrance from Mozart to Emperor Charlemagne.

See: Salzburg has so much to see in the sense that every corner feels like picture perfect Europe.  Windy cobblestone narrow-ways, dominating cathedrals, and Mozart's residencies would sum up Salzburg's old town which is actually a Unesco World Heritage site.  However,  perched on top of the hill is the 11th century cliff top fortress, Festung Hohensalzburg, which provides stunning views of the city.

Mozart's house. 

The fortress perched on the hill overlooking Salzburg.

Snack: While wandering in Old Town, be sure to stop at one of the many cafe's for a Einspanner (Coffee with whipped cream) and a strudel.  My recommendation would be Cafe Tomaseli, it has a terrace overlooking a tiny square, fantastic apple strudel and also used to be a favorite of Mozart.

Probably the best pastry I had on the entire trip.

Drink:  The drink of choice in Salzburg is Stiegel, which has been brewed in Salzburg since 1492.  You can find the local brew almost anywhere.  We did not have time to hike it to Salzburg's famous beer gardens so instead, we decided to enjoy one 8 floors up in Stein which is located right on the river and provides mesmerizing views of the city at night.

At Stein's with the a Stiegel and a castle in the background. 

The view from Stein.