Altstadt

Salzburg's Altstadt is one of Europe's most beautiful and best-preserved historic centres, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1996 set in the narrow valley between the swift Salzach River and the Mönchsberg cliff. Crowning that cliff is the Hohensalzburg Fortress, one of the largest fully preserved medieval castles in Europe, while below it some thousand Baroque, Renaissance and medieval buildings cluster around domed churches and arcaded courtyards. The famous Getreidegasse, hung with wrought-iron guild signs, leads to the yellow townhouse where Mozart was born in 1756. This is a neighbourhood that lives as much for culture as for commerce. Each summer the Salzburg Festival, founded in 1920, draws more than a quarter of a million visitors to the Festspielhaus and surrounding venues, and the Mozarteum University keeps music at the city's core year-round. Daily life unfolds among storied institutions: St. Peter Stiftskulinarium, claimed to be Europe's oldest restaurant, has served diners since 803 AD, and Café Tomaselli has poured coffee since 1703. The Mirabell Gardens, Mönchsberg trails and Salzach promenades provide green relief steps from the lanes. For buyers, the Altstadt is less an ordinary housing market than a chance to own a piece of a living monument, scarce, prestigious and enduringly in demand.

Altstadt in Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria