There is only one ice cave in Hallstatt and your ticket for the cable care lift includes your tour. We have a guide on visiting it here which we will be updating in May but the information is still pretty good. www.bigboytravel.com/europe/austria/hallstatt/icecaves/ We will have a video coming soon also about the Hallstatt ice cave but it may publish after your visit. Another one we love to visit from Salzburg is the Ice Cave in Werfen which is the world's largest, however since you are already going to Hallstatt then do the cave and 5 fingers. If you choose yo also go to werfen then I'd recommend the castle with the bird show

Very cool! Glad you got to visit there recently

Thank you very much!

Happy to hear that!

Glad it was helpful!

Thank you Cathy & Gary!!! Hope this helps in planning your upcoming trip to Hallstatt! Thanks for watching

Great to hear and thank you for your continued support to the channel!

It is an amazing place for sure, thanks for watching

Glad it was helpful!

Wow, thanks!

Hope you have a great time in Austria and find time to fit in Hallstatt, thanks for watching!

Happy to hear you found it helpful

You are so welcome!

Thanks Jessica 😊

@finding salas thanks for the kind words and for watching! I swear no wizardry was used on the crowds! Rain has helped a few times but after a few visits feel that I've found ways to minimize my exposure to the day tripping tour groups. Sharing some tips beyond staying overnight (most important) will be a good video share at some point 😀 One of the keys is to visit in the golden turn of late-October into November for peak colors and zero crowds, but even in peak summer it can be navigated.

@@Bigboytravel ooh patiently awaiting that video. And shoulder season is a good tip in general! 😎

thank you for the kind words, how was your visit to Hallstatt?

Many many thanks

You are welcome!

Thanks a lot

Vielen Dank!!

Thanks for watching, glad the guides have been helpful! We have a lot of travel through August but are planning on doing a lot more videos on those places for sure along with more on Werfen, Berchtesgaden, and Rothenburg. Another Hallstatt video will hopefully be done this month covering the Ice Cave and 5 Fingers

@@Bigboytravel Thanks. Your videos are really helpful plus your website. How much time do I need to explore the 5 Fingers, Skywalk Lookout +Rudolp's Tower and Hallstatt town if I allocate the whole day in Hallstatt from Salzburg via bus. How long does it take to hike down from Skywalk to Hallstatt old town?

You definitely want to take the first bus out of Salzburg for they day and avoid Sundays when it starts later. You can ride right through town at thr end and all the way up to thr Ice Cave visitors center. From there you take the cable car up for your ice cave tour followed by a ride up to level 2 for the 5 fingers. This plus riding back down will take 3.5-4 hours and you'll get back to town around 1-130pm or so to town by bus to the Lahn bus stop and very close to the funicular lift to go up to the skywalk and tower. You can buy a lift only one-way ticket without the salt mine tour in person at the salt mine visitors center as online is only the round-trip combo ticket. Assuming you are stopping to eat it'll probably be around 3pm when you finish and the hike down the panorama trail is around 30-40 minutes. You'll then have around 2 hours to explore town before the last bus leave from the Lahn bus stop. It may even make more sense the return by train and take the last ferry over the lake to the train station since it leaves around the same time as thr last bus but is both closer to the heart of town and also allows you to see the village from the water since you won't have time to do a boat rental. Double check the schedules for your dates at thr Oebb website and see out guide on how to get to hallstatt.

@@Bigboytravel Thanks BigBoy. This itinerary do make sense. Will follow it and most probably be doing it on a Tuesday or Wednesday. Thank you very much and looking forward to your upcoming videos. Your channel and website is helping me a lot in planning my visit to Salzburg, Hallstatt, Salzkammergut and Berchtesgaden. Thank you.

You are so welcome!

Vielen dank! We're happy to hear the kind words

Thank you!! Glad you found it enjoyable and helpful, we will be doing many more 👍

Thank you for the feedback, glad you liked the video

Good idea to start planning early! I'll have a few more Hallstatt and Salzburg area videos out this year for sure. The crowds will be lower but the weather is usually quite pleasant One thing to keep in mind if you are in the region then is that Munich has its Spring Festivals on the weeks at the turn of April/May which is basically their mini Oktoberfest and very fun.

@@Bigboytravel Thanks for that. We might be starting in Milan go through Austria to Krakow. 🤷‍♂️ don’t know yet.

Yes it takes around 2 hours 15 minutes by bus or 2 hours 30 minutes by train + ferry. The ferry is a stunning way to see the village for the first time, but the bus is more practical because you get dropped of by the salt mine visitor center and can also ride straight through to the ice cave/5fingers to start your day. We love to stay overnight but on a day trip love to bus in and ferry/train out to still get the water view

I'm working on a guide with my recs on where to stay and tips. The #1 would be SeeHotel Gruner Baum. The #1 tip would be to book very early. More to come with my full guide

Glad you enjoyed it!

grazie mille!!

We usually rent from the Bootsverleih stand about halfway between the the Main Sqaure and Hallstatt Lahn. It is roughly at Seestraße 130 but you can't miss in on the Southside of the huge view terrace. It's just under 30 euros for an hour. There is also the Bootsverleih Hemetsberger closer to the Hallstatt Museum however we haven't used them yet due to their poor online rating

@@Bigboytravel Thank you so much, this will do.

I'd say that Hallstatt overall is kid friendly. If your kids and 6-7 year old or older they can do everything. Technically you can do the sale mine tour at 4 years old but 6 or 7 would be better. The 5 figures would be a challenge with a stroller unless if would hand a gravel trail (hard packed) but kids love to hike to the shark and other features up there even if they are too young for the ice cave. the lift and skywalk near the salt mine are good with a stroller. The Bathing island is fun with kids and has a small playground nearby. The boat rentals are fun also. We used a backpack carrier for our toddler last summer in addition to a stroller and switched between them

@@Bigboytravel thank you for taking your time to reply. I appreciate it 🙏🏾

Hey Michell, thanks for watching. The valley is the Echerntal with the formal trail called the Echerntalweg. It is a valley the back from lake near the Lahn Bus Stop. The base of the lift up to the salt mine is at start of the valley. If you look at the interactive maps on the guides on our website for both the Salt Mine and the Free Walking Tour, the valley and rough trail are marked.

@@Bigboytravel thank you SO much! Love your videos! Thank you for all the hard work making it!

Same question. We are planning a trip in late October this year.

appologies that I missed your comment. The Salt Mine in Hallstatt is open all year (basically every day) except for a one month period from mid-Jan until mid-Feb each month. How did your visit to Hallstatt go?

Here is my guide on our suggested itineraries for Hallstatt which we will be updating more soon. Basically you can do all if you take the 1st bus from slazburg and go right through to the ice cave (avoid Sundays as the bus starts later) which will get you there by 915am. After the ice cave go up to the 5 fingers and bus back down to the village after and you'll arrive at the bus stop near the salt mine visitor center around 1pm or so. You can pre-book the 2pm tour as long as you assend by 130pm otherwise pre-book slightly later. That mine tour and skywalk will take 3 hours round trip. That then only gives you 1-2 hours to walk around town before the last bus and train (via ferry) both leave for Salzburg again around 6pm. So it is doable and we've done it but i quite rushed so an overnight is ideal to do it all and have time to eat, fully explore, or rent boat. There is also an ice cave in werfen and other sale mines in the region www.bigboytravel.com/europe/austria/hallstatt/suggested-itineraries/

sorry for the delay, I was traveling for most of the last month. Yes January is a really great time to visit Hallstatt! The crowds are low, but it is so beautiful. The ice cave is closed but Krippenstein is a very popular place to skiers. In the village the rental boats are closed but the ferry still runs. The Salt Mine is closed the 2nd half of January however the lift up to the Sky Walk is open every day. Stay overnight if you can, it is very peacful

Hey Cecilia, if you are only visiting the heart of town the parking lot is P2 and in the Lahn neighborhood just south of the bus stop and salt mine visitors center. If you are also doing the ice cave or 5 fingers there is a parking lot right at the Dachstein Visitors center as well but you won't want to walk between the two

End of october is probably a few weeks too early for snow.

October will definitely be way too early to see snow in the village at lake level. It is about 50/50 that you'll have snow up on the second level of Dachstein Cable car by the 5 Fingers (Krippenstein) in late October. Have had it be snowy for us in September some years but others there is nothing until December so it's really hard to say. They have a web cam you can checkout the day before you get but either way riding up to each at the Krippenstein Lodge and see the 5 Fingers will be great. Ice cave will be closed for the season

We have done both in one day, but it is extremely difficult. You have to get to the lift for the ice cave when it opens at 9am, meaning you have to leave Salzburg early. If you are very fit you can also get to the 5 Fingers and back down to the Salt Mine to tour it in the early after with a little time to briefly walk the town before returning to Salzburg. This will be a little rushed and you will likely have to book your Salt Mine tour ahead of time in the busy season which creates pressure to stay on schedule. Ideally you stay overnight and do both but for most single day visits we suggest the Salt Mine with Sky Walk plus plenty of time to explore old town or rent a boat. Keep in mind that if you choose the Ice Cave and 5 fingers instead, you can easily still visit the Sky Walk and can do the Salt Mine tour in Hallein in a half day from Salzburg another day. Alternatively, if you do the salt mine in hallstatt but skip the ice cave, you can visit the world's largest ice cave in Werfen on a different half day trip from Salzburg which pairs well with the Werfen Castle or Sound of Music Meadow. May not be the best answer, but just find a way to work in at least one ice cave and one salt mine even if only one happens while in Hallstatt and the other is in a nearby village a different day fyi, the Ice Cave in Hallstatt is currently closed for the season until late spring and the salt mine is closed until Feb 11th.

Thankyou so much for the detailed reply. i am visiting in End of September. will choose Salt mine 😁@@Bigboytravel

In early November the weather is usually perfect (a little cool) and the fall colors are great. At the end of November it will likely be colder but still more of a chance of cold rain than snow. So yes the funicular and village are still wonderful but bring layers and an umbrella. The salt mine is the same temp all year (and dry) so it makes for a great activity especially if you are already going up the funicular. November really popular for hiking and the village/valley should be snow free.

How much is the funicular ?

It is in our guide and on their website 😀 the price when you book online includes the salt mine tour. If you want the lift without the tour it is 50% less round trip but it must be booked in person when you get there. One way tickets are also available as many people ride up and hike down

Thanks ! Really appreciate the info 😊

For the most part, yes. When in a lift or cable car your dog will have to be muzzeled and leased. Can't bring them on the salt mine tour but I believe the still have some kennel space available for free for guest during the tour. Can't do the ice cave tour either but if you go to level two of the cable car, the hiking and 5 fingers are dog friendly. One of the best dog hikes is the Löckenmoos Circular Trail in nearby Gosau. The Echern Valley by the salt mine lift is also great and you can go up the lift to the skywalk or hike down with a dog.

Thank you for your response and all the information so kind

The cost for the Salt Mine tour including the round trip funicular lift is 40€ for adults or 20€ for kids. It is currently on Winter break and closed until Feb 11th, but already fully booked for the the reopening week we have a guide on the website here which will be updating soon www.bigboytravel.com/europe/austria/hallstatt/saltmine/

We're have the prices for most of the things in this video on our campaign guide www.bigboytravel.com/europe/austria/hallstatt/top-ten-things-to-do/

Thanks for the feedback and for watching. In my videos I use F for temperaure and for measurement use feet/miles, but in both my Hallstatt salt mine and ice cave videos I have pop up gaphics showing it in C and meters as well. My online guides always have both listed.

@@Bigboytravel thanks for taking the time to make such detailed videos including info such as scales in both systems so people from all corners of the Earth can enjoy. ❤️

@@FindingSalas no problem 😊

Thank you for watching!

In Fahrenheit it is cold enough 😀

while the amount of forgien tours buses was definately out of control years ago, it has been much better since the pandemic. We highly encourage visitors to be be actual visitors by staying overnight instead of just tourists. This is better for everyone to spread out crowding while also supporting the local economy since a very high percentage of the homes are open as guest houses that rely on overnight guests

Why is that?

Thanks for sharing!!

What did you find expensive about Hallstatt exactly? You can get there from Salzburg for 15 euros and can walk around to see most things for free including hiking up to the Skywalk. I've found the food costs to be similar to the region but could understand if someone doesn't like the cost of the cable car for the ice cave or the cost of the salt mi e tour.

It’s less expensive than a regular Sheraton hotel stay I had in Rhode Island the same year…