Golf vacations in Salzburg: got balls?

There are literally dozens of golf courses near Salzburg.

The primary reasons to come to Salzburg as a tourist are "The Sound of Music", Mozart and the over-all popularity of the historic Altstadt and the dreaming spires of Salzburg. However, the primary source of money pouring into the city through tourism are not the crowds - it′s the rich and beautiful, who come no so much for commemorating Julie Andrews, but mostly for the Salzburg Festival in combination with a summer vacation.

Every summer, many wealthy people from all over the World, but mostly Germany, Italy, Japan and the US - and increasingly from Arabic countries and Russia - come to Salzburg for sometimes several weeks and seek entertainment beyond Mozart. They are a key reason for the growing number of golf courses and clubs that popped up around Salzburg over the last decades like mushrooms in autumn.

Golf has a longstanding tradition in Salzburg: it was in fact festival guests who brought golf to the city in the 1930ies. Since then, several golf clubs offer instruction through affiliated golf schools and various courses compete for the favour of international guests.

Golf courses with the scenery of the mighty Alps

A local golf scene, mostly composed of retired dentists and their bored trophy wives (who is calling us mean here? Well…), developed in more recent years. The majority of golf players in Salzburg are still external visitors. New is also that an increasing number of tourists come for the main purpose of having a golf vacation in the scenic setting on the edge of the Alps.

The most central golf course in Salzburg is the one by the Schloss Klessheim Castle. The respective club also hosts the annual Salzburg Festival Golf Tournament, a rather decadent event in the Baroque and Rococo setting of the Klessheim Castle parks. However, this is by far not the only place where you can enjoy golf in Salzburg.

There is more than a dozen of golf courses now to choose from only in Salzburg, not to mention more in the nearby Salzkammergut or Bavaria. The nicer ones are Eugendorf, Bad Gastein, Henndorf, Zell am See, Saalfelden, St. Michael, Hallein and Mittersill. Most of these golf courses take advantage of the dramatic ice age landscape of Salzburg and are increasingly popular.

Most golf clubs have individual fares and regulations that might be subject to change - it is probably best to ask a local tourism office for further advice or call the golf club directly. Golf instructions are given at most courses, but might be hard to book on a short notice during or right before the summer season.

Links

http://www.golfclub-salzburg.at/
Golfclub Salzburg - opens in new window

http://www.worldgolf.com/courses/austria1.html
List of golf courses in Austria - opens in new window

http://www.golf.at/
Austrian golf association - opens in new window

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