Not far from the town of Hallein, near Salzburg, are salt mines. The Dürnberg Mines, as they are called, are always full of curious tourists from all over the world. Salt has been mined here for a long time — the "white gold" that makes all food so delicious.
Getting to one of Hallein's most interesting sights is easy: buses run here every half hour, stopping at Mozartplatz in Salzburg. From there it is about 20 kilometres to Hallein, and then only 5 kilometres by local bus from the main street of Hallein to the Salzburg mountain itself. You can walk or take the cable car. It is worth noting that the path is quite picturesque, but sometimes it is closed.
The tour is very interesting. Before entering, you are offered miners' overalls for maximum immersion. Then it's time to get on the trolleys and head down into the bowels of the earth. Are you ready for ecstatic horror or terrifying delight? The descent into the heart of the salt mines will give you a wide range of impressions, from the terrifying to the unbelievably fun — the trolleys run fast and the low ceilings have an effect on the psyche of people who are not used to the dungeon. Finally, the train stops and your group finds itself in an underground gallery.
Here, even the walls catch the visitor's eye: nature has carved them out of pink rock and decorated them with unusual salt veins. The Hallein mine is full of surprises. Here and there, almost underfoot, are ancient tools that miners once used to extract salt by overworking. As you walk through the mine, you will notice that large halls alternate with narrow galleries. In one of them lie the remains of a salt worker who worked here several centuries ago. There are also some very natural looking dummies.
Walking through the salt mines, you are sure to come across a kind of border post, marking the underground border between Germany and Austria.
In the halls of the Dürnberg mines, documentaries are shown on large modern screens. They tell the story of salt mining since ancient times, as well as the life of the local prince archbishop Wolf Dietrich von Reitenau, who brought salt production in the region to an industrial level. These films make a serious impression on visitors, reinforced by the fact that they are underground.
At each level of the mine, you can go down the wooden chute like a big slide. I particularly like this traditional way of transporting tourists on a toboggan run. At the end of the tour, everyone can take a ride on a wooden ferry across the underground lake.
ATTENTION!
Children under the age of 4 are not allowed to visit the mine. The temperature in the mine does not exceed 7-10 degrees Celsius, so do not forget to bring warm clothes.
