Sound of Music – The film locations

Find out where "The Sound of Music" was filmed in SalzburgerLand

Based on the true story of Maria von Trapp, Robert Wise's 1965 film adaptation of "The Sound of Music" was a worldwide success. The idyllic city of Salzburg was chosen as the location for the film as early as 1963. Shooting for the movie began in the spring of 1964 and whilst it was originally scheduled to last for only six weeks, heavy rain meant that it ran into eleven weeks. Until now SalzburgerLand attracts guests from all over the world who come to visit the original filming locations.

Leopoldskron and Hellbrunn

Villa Leopoldskron was the setting for the family home. It was here that the interior villa scenes were shot, and its neighboring lake was the location for the scene in which the children fall out of the boat. There was a small mishap whilst filming this scene. Kym Karath, the actress who played Gretl, couldn’t swim and jumped into the water from the wrong side of the boat. She had to be rescued by the assistant director’s son. Castle Frohnburg on the Hellbrunner Allee was chosen for the exterior shots of the villa.

The famous gazebo, which today can be found in the gardens of Hellbrunn Castle, was used for both Maria and Georg’s romantic love scene and the duet “Sixteen Going On Seventeen”.

© Tourismus Salzburg GmbH - Sound of Music Gazebo in Hellbrunn

Locations in Salzburg Old Town

The Benedictine monastery, where Maria started out as a novice, is where the nuns sang “Maria”. The song “I Have Confidence” was filmed in the Residenzplatz. The Felsenreitschule forms the location for the singing competition in which the family choir participate, and is also where the escape plans were made. It is here that Christopher Plummer, alias Baron von Trapp, sang “Edelweiß”.

The Sound of Music Locations in Salzburger Land

The wedding scene, which incidentally was one of the first scenes to be shot for the film, was filmed in the parish church of Mondsee.

The town of Werfen provided the backdrop for the song “Do-Re-Mi” and Hohenwerfen Fortress can be seen in the background. The Untersberg mountain can be seen twice throughout the film. It was here that the opening scenes and closing scene, in which the Trapp family escape Nazi-occupied Austria, were filmed. Water Palace Anif can also be seen in the opening scenes.

The City of Music

The world premiere of “The Sound of Music” was on 2nd March 1965 at the Rivoli Theater in New York. The film was sold out for weeks, and during this time the city of Salzburg became famous all over the world.

Further locations

St. Peter’s Cemetery
Studios in Salzburg Parsch.
Café Winkler, known today as the M32 restaurant on the Mönchsberg
St. Margarethen Chapel
Fuschl, St. Gilgen and St. Wolfgang

Fun Facts

Hotel Bristol on the Makartplatz was the hotel where Christopher Plummer stayed. He spent many a night there playing the piano at the hotel bar.
Salzburg was a dream come true for the child actors. Their governess showed them the sights of the city and they had great fun at the Hellbrunn Trick Fountains.
The song “Do-Re-Mi” was filmed in the Mirabell Gardens in Salzburg. Julie Andrews found that she wasn’t able to play the guitar and sing at the same time. After a vehement dispute with the director, Andrews discovered a proven home remedy. After a stiff glass of brandy, she found that shooting the scene was no problem!
Whilst filming, the children grew – some faster than the others. Towards the end of filming, Charmian Carr, who played Liesl, had to stand on an apple crate.
Debbie Turner, alias Marta, lost her milk teeth during filming and dentists had to provide her with false teeth to fill in the gaps.