Now that the incidence of the disease is declining steadily, at least on the Central European mainland, a trip to Salzburg can be planned again.

Austria today (June 22) has a nationwide incidence of 11.7, Salzburg 9.7. In Germany, the incidence is 8.0. After border closures, registrations and a perceived 67 lockdowns, the Austrian federal government has announced sweeping Corona relaxations beginning July 1.

Great sigh of relief

The curfew will be abolished, night catering and clubs can reopen. As of July 22, there will also be no more restrictions on the number of people there. Private parties can take place again. The 1-meter distance in gastronomy will be abolished, as will the registration requirement. Major events such as the Salzburg Festival in August will once again be able to take place without capacity restrictions. Austria is loosening up. On-site catering will no longer be subject to special rules such as mandatory masks. Concerts and events with standing room are possible again. In shops, the FFP2 mask can be replaced by a normal mouth-nose protection. On July 22, there will be further opening steps. The rules still valid from July 1 to 21 can be found here.

All relaxations apply with the 3G regulation: those who are proven to be vaccinated, tested or recovered can move freely. Those who need a quick test go to the test streets, which are available in every district. The handling is simple: You register on the website of the province of Salzburg, book – even as a tourist – a short-term, free appointment and are at the agreed time in the test street. The test takes 5 minutes, and 15 minutes later you get the result on your smartphone. The test is valid for 48 hours. It all works professionally and without any hassle. According to Franz Wieser, press spokesman for the city of Salzburg, the test roads will be available until beyond the summer. This is important to know for all those who have not (yet) been vaccinated or not fully vaccinated.

After it is clear that for example the Picnic in the Park in the Kurgarten with participation of the HOSI Salzburg (15.08.) or the Salzburg Pride with Pride Night (3. to 5.09.) can take place, the question arises, how do I get at present best to Salzburg.

Flying to Salzburg

Salzburg Airport Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is coming back to life just in time for July 1. Last summer, before Corona, there were up to 25 departures a day, but tourist flights had largely come to a standstill over the last 18 months. Now things are slowly but clearly picking up again. Already since 20 June one comes from Duesseldorf on Wednesdays, on Fridays and 2 times on Sundays into the beautiful one at the Salzach. Starting from 28 June then Lufthansa flies daily from Frankfurt. On 1.07. Hamburg follows with two weekly departures on Thursdays and Sundays. From July 3 to September 18, Lübeck will also be added to the flight schedule on Saturdays. And from August, Berlin (Mon, Wed, Fri and Sun) and Cologne (Mon, Thu, Fri, Sun) will also be connected to Salzburg. With the exception of Frankfurt, all routes will be served by Eurowings.

An interesting alternative to the German departure airports of Hamburg and Düsseldorf is Amsterdam. For the first time ever, a connection Amsterdam-Salzburg is added to the flight schedule twice a week on Thursdays and Sundays. The departure times in Amsterdam are user-friendly in the early afternoon so that a trip to Schipol Airport can be made on the same day. For tourists who are from the northwest German region Oldenburg-Emden: Amsterdam is faster to get to from there than Hamburg or Düsseldorf. Parking and check-in in Schipol is very smartly solved.

Salzburg Airport is very conveniently located. With the bus line 2 you can reach the main station in about 25 minutes and thus partly within walking distance to Mirabellgarten and Andräkirche. A cab ride to the Altstadt area costs around 15-20€. Driving services such as Uber or bolt can be booked via app.

This can then actually bring about a return to normality that we have had to wait so long for. See you in Salzburg!