Countless steeples tower the roofs of Salzburg and their appendant cemeteries have provided material for almost just as many scary stories for generations. It is hardly possible to overlook that the city and the church share a common history.

We put together a list of our favourite churches and cemeteries in Salzburg that should not miss on your bucket list:

Salzburg Cathedral

The Baroque cathedral with its two towers and the mighty dome is located in the heart of Salzburg and is its most impressive church. Since 1619, all deceased archbishops of Salzburg have been buried in the Cathedral Crypt, which is also open for visitors. The cathedral is often the location for classical concerts and during the Salzburg Festival stage for the famous play “Jedermann”. In winter, Salzburg’s largest Christmas market can be found on the squares surrounding the church.

St. Peter

Founded in the 7^thcentury, St. Peter is home to the oldest monastic order in the Germanic region. Destroyed several through the centuries, the church nowadays combines architectural elements from the Romantic, the Renaissance and the Rococo. Its contorted cemetery has amongst other famous personalities become the last resting place for Mozart’s sister Nannerl. The mystic highlight, however, are the catacombs.

St. Sebastian

On the other side of the river, impressive churches can be found as well. Late Baroque St. Sebastian’s Church was built between 1505 and 1512. The gravestones of the cemetery are full of skulls and crying angles and a huge statue of the Grim Reaper make it one of the scariest places in Salzburg. In the middle of the cemetery, Prince-Archbishop Wolf Dietrich’s mausoleum can be marvelled at.

Collegiate Church

Collegiate Church, also called University Church, was built by the Baroque architect Fischer von Erlach. Within the church, there are four chapels, one for each of the four academic faculties. Through the centuries, the church’s purpose has changed multiple times. During the occupation in 1800 by Napoleon, it served, for instance, as a hay depot. Later, during the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, it was a grammar school and a church for the military.