Private Tours in Salzburg

What a private tour in Salzburg looks like with us

A private tour means one guide, one Mercedes and one group: yours. We collect you at your hotel in Salzburg, you decide the pace, and nobody waits for a coach to fill. Most of our guests book one of the days below: the Sound of Music locations, Hallstatt and the lakes, the Eagle's Nest above Berchtesgaden, or a morning on foot through the Old Town with a licensed Austria Guide.

Every price on this page is for the whole group, up to 6 guests, VAT included. Day tours run in a private Mercedes V-Class with a driver-guide; walking tours meet you at your hotel or at Mirabell Palace. Cancellation is free up to 72 hours before the start. Entrance tickets are paid on the day, so you only pay for what you actually see.

Not sure which day fits? Send us your dates and we answer the same day, or have a multi-day trip designed around Salzburg.

How the day runs

Before you travel. You tell us the date, where you are staying and what you want to see. We confirm the guide by email the same day and reserve any timed tickets you ask for.

Pickup. Your driver-guide waits at your hotel at the agreed time, usually between 08:30 and 09:30 for day tours. There is no meeting point to find and no bus to wait for.

On the road. You stop for the photograph, the coffee or the extra village whenever you want. Guides give the history straight, without a script, and know where the crowds are not.

Back in Salzburg. We drop you at your hotel, a restaurant your guide recommends, or the railway station if you are moving on.

Prices at a glance

Entrance tickets are paid on the day. Groups of 7 or more travel in a Mercedes Sprinter; ask us for the price.

Who guides you

Be Special Tours is a family company from Elsbethen, just outside Salzburg. Bernhard Praher-Schneck started it and still drives many of the tours himself; the other guides are licensed Austria Guides and driver-guides who have worked with him for years. Tours run in English, and in German on request. Between them our guests have left 115 reviews with an average of 5.0 out of 5.

Questions guests ask before booking

How much does a private tour in Salzburg cost?

A private day tour with your own driver-guide and vehicle starts at €850 for up to 6 guests, so a family of four pays about €213 per person. Private walking tours of the Old Town start at €210. Every price on this page is the price for the whole group, VAT included.

What is included in the price?

Your licensed guide, a private Mercedes vehicle with driver, pickup and drop-off at your hotel in Salzburg, fuel, tolls and parking. Entrance tickets (for example the Eagle's Nest bus and lift or the salt mine) are paid on the day so you only pay for what you actually visit.

Is the tour really private?

Yes. Nobody else joins your group, and there is no minimum number of guests. One person, a couple or a family of six pay the same group price and travel in their own vehicle.

Where do you pick us up?

At your hotel, apartment, the railway station or Salzburg airport. Tours starting outside Salzburg (Munich, Passau, Linz, a river cruise ship) are possible; tell us where you are and we quote the pickup.

Can we change the itinerary on the day?

That is the point of a private tour. Stay longer where you are enjoying yourselves, skip what does not interest you, add a lunch stop your guide recommends. The only fixed points are the timed tickets you asked us to reserve.

What is the cancellation policy?

Day tours and walking tours can be cancelled free of charge up to 72 hours before the start. Within 72 hours we charge 50 percent, within 24 hours the full price, because the guide and vehicle are held for you.

Who are the guides?

Licensed Austria Guides and experienced driver-guides who live in and around Salzburg. Bernhard Praher-Schneck, the owner, still drives many of the tours himself. Tours run in English; German, and on request other languages, are available.

Is a private Sound of Music tour worth it compared with the coach tour?

The coach tour costs about €60 per person and runs to a fixed timetable with 40 to 50 people. Our private Sound of Music tour is €850 for the whole group of up to 6, so from about €140 per person for a full car. You leave when you want, stop where you want, and the guide talks to you, not to a bus. For two people the coach is cheaper; for a family or a group of four or more the private tour costs about the same per person and gives you the day.

How do I get from Salzburg to Hallstatt?

By car it is about 75 minutes each way. The train takes about 2.5 hours with a change and a ferry across the lake; the bus about 2.5 hours with two changes. Our private Hallstatt tour drives the lake road via St. Gilgen and Bad Ischl, stops where the view is, and includes the salt mine or skywalk if you want them, at €850 for up to 6 with hotel pickup.

How far in advance should we book?

In summer and during Advent, two to three weeks ahead is safe for the popular dates. Short-notice requests are welcome; we answer the same day and confirm as soon as a guide is free.

Ready to book? Choose a tour above, or write to us with your dates. Arriving by air? Our private airport transfers use the same drivers.