I had a pretty packed morning scheduled. I had booked a train to Vienna at 3:07 pm so I needed to be make sure to get on the ferry before then. I made a quick breakfast with the materials from yesterday’s shopping spree. It was really nice to have a kitchen!
I left the apartment at 9am and headed to the Luggage Depot. There were several places to storage luggage in Hallstatt and this was one of them. They opened at 9am and was close enough to the ferry pier. It was €5 for luggage and €3 for handcarry/backpack. I stored both my luggage and backpack here and luckily, they took card!
With nothing to hold on to, I ventured around town. There were several cute locations that seemed like photo zone. One was behind one of the restaurant and it was a small pier at the lakeside. You could see across the lake and see the other city, Obertraun. The air was cool and the peaceful atmosphere just made me want to sit here (and I did!)
Another one was up from the square. I was really aimlessly wandering and I found this spot was accident. There were signs pointing towards a set of stairs but I could not read them. The view of the city from up here was very beautiful. Again, since it was early morning, it was really quiet and I really loved that.
TIP: If you want a city view, I think this place and the postcard photo point are the best. If you want the lake view, the alley behind the restaurant would be the best.
Around 10:30am, I headed to the funicular. I bought by tickets for €38 euro and headed to the top. Do not throw the ticket away until you get back down if you bought a roundtrip ticket. I headed to the World Heritage View point first since it wasn’t very crowded. It was amazing up here! I highly recommend it! The view of the lake and the mountains were just breathtaking.
At the view point, I asked another tourist to take pictures and since the line was starting to form, I didn’t stay long. But right above the view point, there is a balcony that provides a similar view so I took lots of pictures here.
After all the photos, I headed to the salt mine. If you are on a schedule, you might want to do the tour first. They have time slots and limited spot for each tour. I was able to get in the 11:20am tour and it was about an hour and a half long. The tour was interesting. They gave us suits to wear on top of our clothes and had lockers in the lobby area.
The tour is so much fun! You learn about the history of the salt miners and how salt was formed and how it gets harvested. The tour was in German and in English. There were some jokes thrown and the guide made it fun for everyone. And the highlight. The miner slide! It was awesome! I wish I could have done it more than once. My top speed was 22.3 km/h and I thought it was pretty fast. However, our guide’s record was 42.6! Amazing.
At the end of the tour, you are given a small souvenir (salt) and a chance to purchase your slide photo. After the tour, it was already 1pm so I headed back to the funicular and made my way back to the city. I had some time to do some shopping so I looked around several souvenir shops and made some purchases. They have several handmade shops that were worth a look.
Afterward, I picked up my luggage and headed to the pier. The line for the ferry formed rather quickly so I suggest getting here early if you need to make the train. Since it was during the off peak season, the ferry did not get packed but I could see the ferry turning people away during peak season. I took a last look of this peaceful town and I hoped I could come back again.
Since it was only one platform, make sure you listen to the announcement before boarding the train. My train had a connection at Linz so I stayed awake till then. Once I got off the platform, I checked the info display to find where the next was going to be. I made memorized my next train’s number so it was easier to find the platform.
When I got on the next train, I was surprised! When I made the booking online, I couldn’t figure out how to book tickets with seat reservation. I had a choice between coach and regular and I assumed coach was the cheaper option. When I got to the coach 2nd class, it was a 6 seater compartment! And on the door, there was a sign that indicated that a seat was booked. The conductor came around to check people in and it was really cool! I have never been in a closed compartment train before. Since I had the whole compartment to myself, it was able to get to Vienna in peace.
Vienna was already dark when I arrived and I took an Uber to my hotel. I checked in as fast as I could and headed back out. My brother and sister-in-law surprised me with a visit in Vienna! This was a total surprise for me but I do love a good surprise 🙂
So we met up at Ulrich for dinner. My sister-in-law found the place and it was a good pick. When I got there, it was pretty late but the place was still packed. It was a cafe/bar type of restaurant and they had a lot of healthy options, including their drink section. I ended up getting their schnitzel and here, they made it with boar! Plus, they used pumpkin seeds in their breading to make it more “healthy.”
After a good meal, we went for a stroll. Most of the places were closed but we were still able to enjoy the Holiday decors and architecture. One that stood out was Domkirche St. Stephan (St. Stephan’s Cathedral). It was huge and very hard to miss. The tower and roof was what made this unique. It was too dark to see all the features of the Cathedral but even with a short glimpse, I was in awe. The design and colors of the tiles on the roof was really pretty and I wished it was light out so I could see all the details.
After seeing the Cathedral, we visited Zanoni & Zanoni for some dessert. Luckily, this shop was opened until 12am so we had some time to eat. We ordered ice cream shakes and cake and they were all really sweet. I mean, REALLY SWEET. And the portions were pretty big for a dessert. So if you are not that into sweet things, be prepared to share.
Since it was a surprise, we had to go our separate ways to our accommodation. But we promised to meet up in the morning for brunch. What a day!
Moons on the Move 