While in Salzburg, you can view the Festung Hohensalzburg towering over you from more or less everywhere in the city.

the fortress from below

The weather had been cold and clear when we took our morning sunrise photos, but during breakfast it started snowing. We weren’t optimistic about the views from the fortress but we decided to give it a try anyway. The views of the Alps to the south were almost nonexistent, but we could still see the old town quite nicely.

exterior walls of the fortress

old town Salzburg from the fortress

Once inside the fortress, we found another Christkindlmarkt just opening up for the day. Also inside the walls were churches, schools, shops and museums.

After exploring the grounds for an hour or so, we took the funicular back down and wandered around St. Peter’s Cemetery, situated at the base of the fortress. Dating back to 1627, all of the grave sites were covered in colorful flowers and lit candles. It’s easy to see that many wealthy Salzburg families are buried here due to the amazing, sometimes over-the-top sculptures and artwork incorporated into some of the crypts.