- Very prestigious history: Former guests include Catherine the Great and Alexander von Humboldt.
- Hilltop setting: Fairytale castle hotel atop Salzburg’s Mönchsberg with sweeping views of the city and the Alps.
- 5-star luxury: Elegant ambience, top-tier service, and consistently ranked among Austria’s best hotels.
- Wellness haven: Infinity pool, outdoor hot tub, full spa, and beauty treatments.
- Gourmet dining: Two acclaimed restaurants plus the chic Apollo Bar with classic cocktails and Viennese dishes.
- Check dates & prices here
A very special hotel in a very special location; Schloss Mönchstein sits, fairytale-like, atop the Hill of Mönchsberg in old Salzburg.
It is surrounded by its own wooded parkland and has stunning views of Mozart’s city below, and the glorious Alps all around.
It has excellent spa facilities, massage, beauty, and wellness treatments, an infinity swimming pool, and an outdoor hot tub.
It also has two of the very best restaurants in Salzburg, and a chic, stylish bar.
All in all Schloss Hotel Mönchstein is a top-of-the-range luxury 5-star hotel with an elegant ambience and exceptional levels of service; one which consistently appears at the top of any list of Austria’s best castle hotels.
What are the rooms like?
- Spacious choice: Range of doubles and suites, all roomy and well-appointed.
- Marble bathrooms: Many feature jacuzzis, some with views.
- Family-friendly: Suites and Executive Rooms can host up to four guests.
- Modern interiors: Contemporary design with touches of period furniture and art.
- See al the rooms in detail here
They have a range of double rooms and suites, all of which are spacious and well appointed, and with some nice marble bathrooms (with jacuzzis, and some jacuzzis with a view).
All the suites, and the largest of the rooms; the Executive Rooms, have space for another two single beds, or one double, if required, and so can sleep up to four people in total.
The interiors of the rooms and suites, and indeed of the hotel generally, are relatively modern in style, though with some period furniture pieces and artworks here and there to remind you that this is indeed a historic building.
What are prices like?
Check out all the details – here on the booking page.
And what about food, facilities….things to do?
- Elegant atmosphere: The castle maintains old-world charm and top-class service.
- Dining options: Two gourmet restaurants — the striking Glass Garden and the classic Schloss Mönchstein.
- Stylish bar: Apollo Bar serves cocktails, wines, beers, and both light and full meals.
- Spa & wellness: Steam bath, Finnish sauna, gym, treatments, plus an outdoor infinity pool and whirlpool overlooking Salzburg.
The building has seen so many renovations and modernizations over the years that layer by layer much of the historical fabric of the castle has been lost, which is certainly a pity.
That being said though, the place does ooze an elegance and class that belongs to a different era.
The service here is impeccable; it is respectful and polite but not cloyingly so, and the staff really cannot do enough for you.
You have two suitably gourmet restaurants at this 5-star hotel. The Glass Garden Restaurant is inside an impressive glass and steel dome structure that allows you fabulous views over Salzburg.
There is also Restaurant Schloss Mönchstein, the older of the two, where you can enjoy a lavish breakfast every morning and some equally good evening meals, again a mixture of Austrian & international.
It too has floor-to-ceiling exterior glass walls, though the effect is not quite as impressive as in the Glass Garden, and an adjoining outdoor terrace area.
The main bar is the Apollo Bar, another stylish steel and glass structure with comfortable seating and a great range of cocktails, beers, wines, and spirits.
It too offers food, mainly small dishes, and snacks but also some larger meals, including a very fine, classic Wiener Schnitzel.
Another veritable highlight of Schloss Mönchstein is its excellent spa facilities. This wellness oasis has a steam bath, a Finnish sauna, a gym, relaxation zones, massage & beauty treatments, an outdoor infinity pool & whirlpool hot tub with views over Salzburg.
How is the location? And how do I get there?
- Hilltop setting: Schloss Hotel Mönchstein crowns Mönchsberg hill, visible from across Salzburg’s Old Town.
- Convenient access: Only a 7-minute walk from the Altstadt, reachable by foot, car, or via a lift (free for guests).
- Salzburg charm: The city offers historic streets, refined architecture, Mozart heritage, and a lively arts scene.
- Concierge service: Staff can arrange tours, cultural tickets, and excursions around Salzburg.
- Transport links: Salzburg Airport and Central Train Station connect directly with Vienna, Munich, Innsbruck, and more.
Every native, or even visitor to Salzburg, will be well aware of the hill of Mönchsberg that watches proudly over the town.
They will also be aware of its spectacular hilltop castle; your hotel, Schloss Hotel Mönchstein, which can be seen from almost every corner of the Old Town.
The hotel is just a 7-minute walk from the Old Town or Aldstadt and can be reached on foot, by car, or via a lift built into the hill. (hotel guests receive a free lift pass).
Salzburg is a famously beautiful and refined city, with the Altstadt being particularly fairytale-like, having not changed much since its most famous son, Mozart, lived here, 250 years ago.
It is a city with a busy arts scene, excellent food and shopping, green parks, ornate concert halls, and atmospheric little streets where you will hear the sound of old music floating in the air, plenty of Mozart of course but also, yes, The Sound of Music!
Schloss Hotel Mönchstein has an excellent concierge service and you can arrange all sorts of trips, tours, and tickets to cultural events in Salzburg.
Salzburg Airport W. A. Mozart is Austria’s second largest and has numerous international and national flights.
Transfers can be arranged to and from the hotel, likewise from Salzburg Central Train Station which has direct trains from Vienna (3 hours), Innsbruck (3 hours), Munich, Germany (2.5 hours), and many other cities.
Any interesting history I should know about?
- Medieval origins: First built in the 13th century by the Tetelheim family, originally known as Tetelheimer Turm.
- Changing owners: Passed through noble families, St. Peter’s Monastery, and the University of Salzburg, where it earned the nickname “Professors Castle.”
- Notable guests: Catherine the Great and Alexander von Humboldt, who described it as a “slice of paradise.”
- 19th-century rebuild: Banker Karl Leitner commissioned Jakob Ceconi in 1887 to redesign it into a neo-classical palace.
- 20th-century transformation: Later owner Bela Veith introduced modernist changes; from the 1950s the castle became a luxury hotel for high society.
- Modern reputation: Continued renovations and ownership by the Mierka family helped secure its status as one of Austria’s finest award-winning hotels.
The peach-coloured building we see today was mainly built in the 19th century in the neo-classical style that was popular at the time.
The origins of Schloss Mönchstein though go back much further and it was once very much a medieval castle.
The first building on this site was built in the 13th century by the Tetelheims, an influential family of judges and politicians from the Waginger See area in Bavaria, Germany.
It was first recorded as having the name Tetelheimer Turm, in honour of the Tetelheims, then in later centuries, Mönchsteinturm, after the hill on which it lies (Turm means tower in German).
The Fröschelheimer family were recorded as having ownership of the tower along with the, originally great amount, of land associated with it from 1419 to 1565, when they sold it to a local nobleman by the name of Wolf Windisch.
The local Augustinian monastery, St. Peter’s, became one of several owners from then on until it was sold to the University of Salzburg in 1654.
The castle was quite small in those days and as the university used it as a residence for professors, it took on the nickname the Professors Castle.
With the secularisation of Salzburg by the Duchy of Salzburg in 1803, the university would lose its status as a full university and, little by little, much of its property, including, in 1813, Schloss Mönchstein, was also lost.
The castle then passed hands through a few influential private owners and saw a number of high-profile guests including Catherine the Great of Russia and Alexander von Humboldt, who described it as a “slice of paradise”.
In 1887 it was in the hands of a local banker named Karl Leitner who set about a major reconstruction.
Leitner hired Jakob Ceconi, one of Austria’s most famous architects of the time, and the building was transformed into a, very fashionable at the time, neo-classical palace.
It was somewhat faux-medieval in style but bore little resemblance to the original structure.
After Leitner’s death, in 1917 his widow sold this new castle to Bela Veith, a high-ranking Romanian civil servant.
Almost immediately, the new owner set about another reconstruction, an even less historically aware one at that, which resulted in the more modernist structure we see today.
Veith’s sons, along with a team of investors were the first to operate the castle as a hotel, and from the 1950s on particularly, with the Mierka family as major shareholders, it became a very popular place for high society figures to stay in.
More updates were done at various points over the decades and Schloss Hotel Mönchstein would develop even more its reputation as one of Austria’s finest hotels, winning numerous national and international awards along the way.
And what about the reviews? What did other guests like about it?
“An Absolutely Magical Stay in Salzburg: Hotel Schloss Mönchstein is an extremely special place. The service, rooms, restaurant, and spa are all of the absolute highest standard. My jaw dropped when I saw my room – stunning furnishings and a roomy balcony (with table and chairs) looking out to the Alps! The bed was incredibly comfortable and the bathroom was luxurious: marble everywhere with a rain shower head. I had two memorable dinners in the restaurant overlooking the mountains with fantastic servers and even more fantastic food (breakfast in the restaurant was also amazing). The infinity pool and hot tub were a wonderful way to relax in the evening after a day of exploring Salzburg. I can’t recommend this hotel highly enough; it was a magical stay that I will never forget, and I can’t wait to come back!…”
“From the moment you arrive to the ‘sad’ moment you reluctantly leave, the whole place oozes with charm, elegance and professionalism. We certainly were very sad to leave….”
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