Sailing Vacation in Salzburg

Note: There are primarily two sailing areas in and near Salzburg, which were both covered in seperate articles in greater detail: The Salzkammergut and the Salzburger Seenland (Salzburg Lakes).

Thinking of Salzburg, one might consider to go there for sightseeing, the festival and musical heritage or the Baroque culture. This is all right and attracts the crowds every year for a good reason, but once you have seen the city, you might start to think beyond the city limits and add a theme to your vacation.

There are not only great destinations for excursions and daytrips within reach of Salzburg, but also plenty of sports one can do in and around the place. Skiing is with no doubt the most popular; golf finds more and more fans. Special delights are the lakes of the Salzburger Seenland (Salzburg Lakes) and the Salzkammergut Lake District.

These lakes are the remains of mighty glaciers that once spread out from the Alps towards the flat lands to the North of Salzburg and well into Bavaria and Upper Austria. Today, the are part of one of Austria′s most charming landscapes and a great place for spending some days with sailing.

A sailing vacation in the mountains

There are several sailing schools and boat rental services near Salzburg. Most of them offer courses and beginner′s trainings that can be finished with an exam for freshwater sailing after as little time as one week. The closest lakes with sailing schools near Salzburg are Wallersee, the Trumer Lakes, and Mattsee.

In the town of Mattsee, there is a yacht port; Seekirchen by Lake Wallersee is only about 20 minutes by train from Salzburg′s main station and has a sailing school. If you need gear, equipment or sailing clothing, you will find specialist stores in Salzburg and in several communities in the Lake District.

The lakes of Upper Austria might be even more charming. Mondsee is the name of both a lake shaped like a crescent ("Mond" meaning moon in German) and a community; in this pretty city you will also find the church that was used for the wedding scene in "The Sound of Music". North of Mondsee is Irrsee, nearby are Attersee and Wolfgangsee.

Most of the bigger lake communities have sailing clubs and associations as well as private companies that operate schools and rentals; it is not difficult finding out where they are and whether they can meet your requirements. If you want to rent a dinghy, you will generally require at least the most basic licence. To investigate the prerequisites for renting a boat, call the rental service in advance.

Links

Lakes in Austria

http://www.sailingahead.com/
Information on sailing, gear, boats and vacations

http://www.salzburger-seenland.at/
More on the Salzburger Seenland Lake District

http://www.tourmycountry.com/austria/salzkammergut.htm
Information on the Salzkammergut

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