Free Walking Tour Salzburg

The Free Walking Tour Salzburg is not part of our rickshaw offer, but it belongs to the family.

It was founded by Gerhard, who is also behind Rikschatours today.

Before Gerhard took over Rikschatours, he was already working as a city guide on foot and the path there began in 2012 with a summer job as a rickshaw driver. The Free Walking Tour Salzburg originated from exactly this time: a city tour based on tips, founded in 2018.

So this isn’t about riding rickshaws, it’s about walking.

Unlike a private tour, here you are in an open group with up to 25 people.

And instead of fixed prices, this city tour works on a tip basis (pay-what-you-want): you decide at the end how much you want to give or can give.

We recommend the Free Walking Tour Salzburg to anyone who prefers walking to riding, who is traveling alone and wants to meet people, or for whom a private rickshaw tour simply doesn’t fit into the budget.

If you find yourself in one of these points, this tour is probably the right one and you can register directly here.

What Makes this Salzburg City Tour Special

The Free Walking Tour Salzburg is not a franchise, no tour operator with aggressive upselling and no tour where you are pushed into a souvenir shop at the end.

It was founded by Gerhard and is now operated by a small Salzburg team. We live in this city, know it well and like to share our knowledge.

We are all trained Austria Guides who have consciously chosen this work and are regularly trained. Many of us met on the way in the tour guide course, in the hostel or in previous jobs. Today we are not only colleagues, but also good friends.

The groups are open to everyone, but limited to 25 people.

A maximum of 8 places can be reserved per booking. This helps us to control the group size and atmosphere well. If you are traveling with more people, you can alternatively book a private city tour for groups.

The tour takes place daily in English, on most days also in German, and occasionally in Korean.

It lasts about 1.5 hours and covers the most important places on the left side of the old town with everything you should know about Salzburg if you are new to the city.

And because everything runs on a tip basis, you decide for yourself what you give at the end.

Not according to tariff, but according to feeling.

Who the Free Walking Tour is Suitable For

This tour is a good choice if you:

• prefer to travel on foot than by rickshaw,
• travel alone and want to meet other people,
• pay attention to your budget or do not want to book a private tour,
• are looking for a simple overview of Salzburg

Many of our guests are solo travelers or couples, often in transit or on their first visit to Salzburg.
Some consciously choose the Free Tour because they like to travel in groups. Others end up here because private tours don’t fit into the budget. And many only realize on the way how helpful it is to get a good introduction before exploring the city on their own.

If you find yourself in one of these points, you are probably in good hands with the Free Walking Tour Salzburg.

What You Will Discover on this Guided Tour in Salzburg

The Free Walking Tour shows you the most important places on the left side of Salzburg’s old town, compact, on foot, with a clear common thread.

You not only get sights, but also the context you need to understand the city.

We start at the Spirit of Mozart, a work of art by Marina Abramović directly on the Staatsbrücke.

From there we go over the Makartplatz, past Mozart’s residence, to the Mirabell Gardens.

After a look into the garden and at the Mirabell Palace, we cross the Salzach, walk through the Getreidegasse and past Mozart’s birthplace, until we reach the Universitätsplatz at the Universitätskirche learn more about the baroque splendor of Salzburg.

At the Festspielhaus we talk about the history of the Salzburg Festival. At St. Peter about the oldest monastery in the German-speaking area and about how Salzburg was founded. We continue to the Salzburg Dom, over the Kapitelplatz to the Residenzplatz and to the Mozartplatz, where the tour ends.

On the way you will get an understanding of how Salzburg became what it is today and answers to questions like:

• Who was Wolf Dietrich and why did he change the city so much?
• Why are there so many churches in such a small space here?
• What is the Getreidegasse all about, besides Mozart?
• And why does Salzburg look so baroque, even though it is so old?
• What is true (and what is not) about Mozart’s life in Salzburg?
• Why does Salzburg look like Rome in miniature today?
• How much Salzburg is actually in The Sound of Music?

How this City Tour through Salzburg Works

The Free Walking Tour Salzburg lasts about 1.5 hours and takes place in all weather conditions.

You can choose between English and German tours. The English ones run daily, the German ones on most days. And sometimes there are even tours in Korean.

The meeting point is at the “Spirit of Mozart”, a 15 m high work of art directly at the Staatsbrücke. You won’t find it in every travel guide, but it’s easy to find on Google Maps.

Click here to open the meeting point on Google Maps

To keep the groups pleasant, a maximum of 25 people are allowed per tour.
You can reserve up to 8 places at the same time when booking – we ask larger groups to book a private city tour.

Participation is free.

You decide at the end yourself how much you want to give or can give.

Private City Tours for Groups

The Free Walking Tour is aimed at individual travelers, which is why the group size is limited to 25 people, and a maximum of 8 places can be reserved per booking.

Otherwise, larger groups would quickly block all places or dominate the atmosphere, which would be a pity for solo travelers or couples.

But no problem:
For school classes, universities, companies or travel groups, we offer private city tours, flexible in terms of time, thematically adaptable and exclusive for you.

In terms of content, you get the same, only more personal. And if everyone gives a fair tip, the price is often similar.

More information and booking of private tours on the website

Learn more or Book Directly?

The Free Walking Tour Salzburg is part of Introducing Salzburg, just like Rikschatours.

Both offers belong to the same family: created from real Salzburg experience, led by the same people, only with different formats.

Introducing Salzburg is the common umbrella under which we bundle tours, content and real insights into the city. This also includes our Introducing Salzburg YouTube, on which we regularly show places, topics and tips from the city.

All information about the Free Walking Tour, dates, languages, booking, can be found directly on the official website:

Go to the Free Walking Tour Salzburg website

And if you want to dive deeper in advance:
In the blog of the Free Walking Tour Salzburg you will also find many articles about Salzburg’s history, architecture and lesser-known places, written by Gerhard.