HALLSTATT

Hallstatt is the fairytale alpine town of Austria and is considered the most beautiful village in Austria. It’s also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Imagine stepping off the train to stunning mountain scenery, rows of pretty colorful houses reflecting in an endless expanse of water and blue skies? This is Hallstatt and it blew my expectations away!

You can explore the whole village in one hour literally.

One thing that you have to know is that Hallstatt village is so small and during the summer there’s a lot of day trippers from Salzburg. I visited Hallstatt on October and it had also many tourists around, but no so many as the summer or the winter.

There’s lots of good viewpoints in the village and they were all easy to find. My favourite was obviously the iconic postcard view of the sweeping town and lake just past Lutheran Church with the mountains in the background. Find it on Google maps: Classic Village Viewpoint / Postcard Angle.

I also loved the main square with the colourful houses with decorated windows. Actually I believe that Hallstatt is full of beautiful spots.

How to go to Hallstatt

From Vienna, you can visit Hallstatt by car, it’s a road trip around 3,5-4 hours, or by train.

I chose the second option. In order to go to Hallstatt, I took the train from the Wien Westbahnof station to the Attnang-Puchheim. From there, I took a second train to the Hallstatt train station.

When I arrived to Hallstatt train station, I took a little ferry boat in order to reach the little village because it was in the other side of the lake. The boat ticket cost 3€, 6€-round trip. The boat routes are scheduled according to the train routes. The whole trip from Vienna was around 4-5 hours.

It’s a big trip, so you should stay at least one night to Hallstatt.

From Salzburg it’s much more easier to reach Hallstatt, because it’s around 1,5 hour road trip.

Accommodation

Hallstatt is a little village and it hasn’t many hotels to stay. The accommodation is quite expensive. The cheapest option during the non-tourist season was 110€/ per night with a shared bathroom.

This time, I will not recommend you the hotel I stayed in Hallstatt because I didn’t like it at all. Luckily, it was only for a night.

Activities to do in Hallstatt

Hallstatt Skywalk

One of the most famous thing to do in Hallstatt is ride the cable car to see even more amazing landscape. You will enjoy the alpine surrounds and the little town below.

The viewing platform extends 12 metres from the mountainside and 360 meters above the ground. You will also find a Restaurant and you can take a coffee or enjoy your lunch.

Exploring Lake Hallstatt by boat

If you visit Hallstatt during spring or summer, when the weather is good, you can hire an electric boat and zip around the lake, exploring the furthest houses and spots that are not walkable from the heritage town. It’s a beautiful experience and unfortunately I couldn’t do it because during October the weather wasn’t good enough.

Hiking to the Waterfalls

There are many hiking trails in Hallstatt but one of the best is the path to the Echern Valley Waterfall Trail, which weaves through all the peaceful scenic spots.

Walk around the Main Square

You can easily explore the town by foot or a bike. Explore the paths of the village and take a look at the beautiful gift shops.

What you need to know before plan your trip to Hallstatt

I visited Hallstatt on October and everything, included coffee shops etc., were closed at 18:00. I don’t know if they are closing so early during the summer season or spring, but be prepared and buy your food, because I didn’t know about this and I was very hungry. Luckily I had some snacks with me from Vienna.
I recommend you to stay in Hallstatt up to 1-2 days, because it’s a little village and you don’t have many activities to do.
If you want to visit Hallstatt from Vienna by train, the duration is about 4-5 hours because you have to switch trains.
Hallstatt is the most popular village in Austria and it’s a very crowded village. I suggest you to plan your trip during September-October or March-April.
Hallstatt is a quite expensive place, despite the fact that it’s a little town. Book your hotel as much earlier you can in oder to find an affordable option. The cheapest price at non-tourist season is around 100-120€ / per night.
Unfortunately drones are not allowed.

If you want to see more about Hallstatt, visit my profile on Instagram.