Hey, what’s up?

Congratulations, you made it to part two of my Austria trip! If you’re new here, I highly recommend checking out part one first for some context—otherwise, you might feel like you’ve walked into a movie halfway through and have no idea who the main character is (spoiler: it’s me).

In this blog, I’ll be sharing my day trip to Hallstatt from Salzburg—a ridiculously picturesque town nestled between towering mountains and a crystal-clear lake. It’s so magical that if a Disney princess showed up singing to the swans, I wouldn’t even be surprised.

The train ride from Innsbruck to Salzburg took almost two hours. Fortunately, Austrian trains are incredibly comfortable and spacious, so there was plenty of legroom for my not-so-long legs. Once we arrived in Salzburg, we wasted no time checking into our hotel (hotel review pending—I’ll spill the tea once I’ve left!) and crashing straight into bed. We had an early night because we needed plenty of rest for our ridiculously early wake-up call the next morning.

There are a few ways to get to Hallstatt, but I’ll only be sharing the one I used—because, let’s be honest, I’m not about to pretend I tried them all. I got there using a mix of Uber and bus and returned to Salzburg by boat and train. That’s four different modes of transportation in one day! (Okay, fine, the Uber was just me trying to exaggerate my sense of adventure—it was just a short ride to the bus station.)

We took an Uber from our hotel to the bus station, which is conveniently located just opposite the train station. Fun fact: the bus is actually the quickest way to get to Hallstatt! We hopped on bus 150, then made an interchange at Bad Ischl (which, by the way, I have no idea how to pronounce—seriously, how does a word survive with just one vowel?). From there, we took bus 541 straight to Hallstatt Lahn. Some websites and YouTube videos recommended bus 543 or 542, but 541 did the job just fine. The entire journey took around two hours.

For the trip back, we took a boat and got to admire Hallstatt from a whole new perspective. The boat ride cost around 4 euros per person and lasted a whopping two to three minutes—blink, and you might miss it! After that, we hopped on a train back to Salzburg with one interchange, making the total return journey almost three hours. You could take the bus back, but honestly, you’d just be seeing the same scenery again—so why not switch things up a little?

Alright, I think that’s enough about transport (boring stuff, I know). Let’s get to the fun part—Hallstatt itself! There’s honestly not much to do in Hallstatt besides take photos, but that’s because every single corner looks like it was hand-painted by a very detail-oriented artist. It’s ridiculously beautiful and unbelievably peaceful.

Since we arrived quite early, we had the luxury of snapping pictures without having to battle crowds of other tourists wielding selfie sticks like medieval swords.

First stop: the Hallstatt Lahn viewpoint. Unfortunately, the dock was closed, meaning we couldn’t take photos there, but no worries—thanks to my elite photography skills (or so I like to believe), we still got some amazing shots!

Next, we strolled along a public footpath by the lake. The morning rain was both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, it made the wooden houses and stone paths look straight out of a painting. On the other hand, it made my camera lens wet and ruined my shots (which, of course, is the excuse I’m using for any blurry or badly framed photos).

After that, we wandered into the market square, which had gorgeous buildings giving off strong countryside fairytale vibes. Sadly, there wasn’t much of an actual market, but let’s be honest—we were only there for the view anyway.

Feeling adventurous, we climbed up a fairly high staircase to get a panoramic view of Hallstatt from above. Totally worth the mini leg workout! We also got to see a waterfall, which was an unexpected bonus.

And finally, if you walk a little further to the left of the lake, you’ll reach the postcard-perfect viewpoint of Hallstatt—the one you’ve probably seen on Instagram a million times. The route is a bit hilly, but hey, anything for the perfect shot, right?

Next, we took the panorama funicular up to the Skywalk, which cost around 24 euros per person. This thing goes wayup, giving us an even higher, breathtaking view of Hallstatt. There’s also a salt mine up there, but I decided to skip it—because, honestly, I wasn’t that interested. I mean, no offense to salt, but I see it every day in my food. So, we went straight to the Skywalk, took some photos, and then headed back down.

The rest of the day? More photos. Lots and lots of photos. By evening, I was absolutely exhausted, and that’s when I started feeling chills and body aches creeping in—uh oh. So, it’s time to go back to Salzburg.

Then, in what felt like a miracle, we accidentally stumbled upon an Asian restaurant in Salzburg that served halal beef dishes! It’s called ASIA IMBISS, and it was right next to the train station. We ordered ramen, which was exactly what I needed—warm, comforting, and soothing for my sore throat. Absolute lifesaver.

After that, we took an Uber back to the hotel and crashed into bed. When I woke up the next morning, I felt so groggy, which meant… no “running in a random city” for me this time. (Another excuse to add to my ever-growing list—haih.)

For a day trip, I’d rate Hallstatt a 9/10! Maybe next time, I’ll check out the Ice Cave and Five Fingers viewpoint.

Hope you guys enjoyed reading about my Hallstatt adventure and that you’re just as mesmerized by this place as I was! Next up: Salzburg in part three of my Austria trip—stay tuned!