Photo spot in St. Wolfgang & the Wolfgangsee
St. Gilgen across the water
Fifteen minutes by boat, on the far shore and already in Salzburg: a smaller square, a lakeside promenade and the Zwölferhorn cable car climbing straight out of the village.
About St. Gilgen across the water
Get directionsSt. Gilgen sits at the western end of the Wolfgangsee, and the boat crossing from St. Wolfgang takes about fifteen minutes in season. The two villages face each other across the water but belong to different provinces: St. Wolfgang is Upper Austria, St. Gilgen is Salzburg, and the Land border runs down the middle of the lake.
The village is smaller and quieter, built around a square with a fountain and a house that belonged to Mozart's mother, who was born here. The lakeside promenade is wide and mostly shaded, and the boat station gives the view back east along the water to St. Wolfgang and the Schafberg behind it — the reverse of the classic frame, and one hardly anyone shoots.
Above the village the Zwölferhorn cable car climbs to 1,522 metres. It runs in summer and in winter with a closed period between, so check the season before counting on it; the summit is a grassy ridge rather than rock, easy to walk on and gentler than the Schafberg.
The crossing itself is worth photographing. The boats run roughly May to October, decks are open, and the light on the water in the last hour of the afternoon is the best of the day.
Best time to shoot
Late afternoon on the promenade and on the boat; the crossing runs roughly May to October
Tips
The boat timetable is seasonal and the last sailing back to St. Wolfgang is earlier than most people expect — check it before you cross. Ask for the Zwölferhorn cable car's current operating season separately; it closes between summer and winter.
Other spots in St. Wolfgang & the Wolfgangsee
The lakefront and the pilgrimage church
The white tower of the Gothic pilgrimage church over the painted hotel fronts, with the Falkenstein slope behind and the Wolfgangsee in front — the frame that put this village on postcards.
The Schafberg summit and the rack railway
A cog railway from 1893 climbs to 1,732 metres above the village, and the summit ridge holds the Wolfgangsee, the Mondsee and the Attersee in a single turn.
The Weißes Rössl pier
The hotel that gave the operetta its name sits with its feet in the lake, and its pier is the one place where you stand on the water and still have the church in frame.
Ready to book?
Our concierge team will hand-pick 2-3 photographers who know St. Gilgen across the water — free of charge.