While there are many interesting things to do in the small lakeside village of Hallstatt, I think we found the best one… and I think you’ll agree.

In case you’ve never heard of Hallstatt, it is a stunning little Alpine town perched on the edge of Lake Hallstatt (Hallstätter See) in Upper Austria. It is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. If you’re not familiar with sites on the World Heritage List, they are sites that “belong to all the peoples of the world, irrespective of the territory on which they are located.” Which means they are really special places worthy of a visit.  I’m trying to see as many of these as I can in my lifetime. So far I’m at 17, but I can’t wait to see more!

Because of its rich heritage and stunning location Hallstatt has rightfully become a popular tourist destination. I mean it’s just so freaking gorgeous! Am I right?

Despite its tiny size, there’s actually quite a few interesting things to see in Hallstatt. For instance, Hallstatt is known historically for its production of salt. You can take the funicular up to the Hallstatt Salt Mine (Salzwelten). Or just ride it up to the viewing platform to admire the World Heritage View from the skywalk!

There’s also the Dachstein Ice Cave, the Bone House (Beinhaus) & Cemetery, or even (if you are so inclined) Dirndl To Go – a place where you can rent a traditional Austrian getup for a day (or by the hour) to take photos in. Yes, this is actually a thing.

The hubs and I found Hallstatt to be breathtakingly beautiful!  But somehow it was slightly cheapened by the sheer hordes of tourists clamoring to take the perfect selfie with the picturesque backdrop.

It’s clear that tourism, while no doubt stimulating the local economy of this tiny village, is beginning to cause its own set of problems. There were even signs warning tourists against looking at your technology and walking into traffic. Which we thought was funny, but also a little creepy…like technology zombies.

Now I know, I know. We were ALSO tourists. And we were ALSO clogging up this quiet picturesque town taking photos. But we were going to have good time anyway (and look both ways crossing the street).

Towards the end of our second day, we began to feel a bit claustrophobic. But what were we to do? Earlier we had spotted these little wooden boats down by the docks that you could just rent and go. So… we decided that were going to get outta the village and ON that lake. It was the best freaking idea ever! On our way to the docks we hit up a local supermarket (we found Nah und Frisch Renner across the street from the ferry landing) and loaded up on necessary provisions like wine, cheese, sausage and a crusty baguette.

For approx. 15€ an hour (you pay when you bring the boat back) you can have an adorable wooden boat with an electric motor, a popup canopy -and most importantly a part of the lake all to yourself! The boats don’t go very fast but we were able to noodle around the lake for as long as we wanted. The lake is pretty big. So there’s plenty of room to stretch out and explore the little nooks and crannies without running into a bunch of other boats. And don’t worry, driving the boat didn’t require any sort of special skills, it was super easy! There were only two speeds: slow and really slow.

As soon as we started puttering away from the docks we knew we had made a jackpot decision. Views from the water were the absolute best! We were practically giddy and gasping “wow!” “omg” and “look at that!” every 30 seconds in total awe of the gorgeous Alpine scene surrounding us. We could see the entire village of Hallstatt cascading down the mountain to the lakefront. The mountains seemed to dramatically tower straight up in every direction.

We even found that there was a castle on the opposite shore, which we later learned was Schloss Grub, built in 1522.

We puttered around for about 1hr 45 min just snapping pictures, sipping wine and soaking in the beauty around us. Soon the late afternoon sun began sinking behind the towering mountains and casting long shadows across the lake. We reluctantly decided our fairy-tale trip was at an end. And besides – we were out of wine! We moseyed our little boat back to the dock, mesmerized by the sheer beauty of our surroundings.

This was by and large our favorite experience in Austria.

After sunset, we enjoyed a romantic lakeside dinner at Seehotel Grüner Baun, in the historic Marktplatz. Being next to the lake was a little chilly after dark in September. But the pumpkin based seasonal dishes and swan-watching were worth it! After dinner we glided off to bed at Hotel Seewirt Zauner, still feeling the high from our lake adventure.

Soooo if you find yourself in Hallstatt, Austria do yourself a favor that you will never forget – rent a little boat and get ON that lake!

Peeps Pointers

How we got to Hallstatt

• Enterprise Car Rental – Yeah, they are overseas too! On this particular trip we were independently exploring Slovenia and Austria, so we rented a car at the airport in Slovenia and and it was fairly easy to drive north to Austria.
• Austria Vignette Stickers – Remember if you aren’t starting out in Austria that you will need to purchase a vignette sticker (available at most petrol stations) before crossing into Austria to avoid fines. If you rent a car in Austria, they should already include this, but be sure to check! You can risk hefty fines if you don’t have one.
• International Driver’s Permit – It is highly recommended that you have an IDP with you when driving in Austria, Slovenia (and elsewhere in Europe). It is easy to get from AAA and basically just translates your identification into 10 different languages. It is inexpensive ($20), easy to obtain, and saves you fines should you be stopped. Just get one to be safe.
• Parking in Hallstatt – Hallstatt is super tiny, so parking is very limited. You have to pay to park in the designated car parks – there are separate ones for day visitors and overnight guests. There are shuttles that will take you into town.

Where we stayed

• Hotel Seewirt Zauner – Super cozy hotel located right in the central Marktplatz. The balcony views were ahhhhhhmazing.

Where we ate

• Bräugasthof am Hallstattersee – The lakeside garden under the trees was gorgeous with so many pretty lanterns. It felt like we were at the Mad Hatter’s tea party in Wonderland!
• Seehotel Grüner Baun – In the Marktplatz with an expansive lakeside terrace, great views and swans! And the food was amazing too!