Hallstatt Salt Worlds

The World's Oldest Salt Mine

7,000 years of salt mining in Hallstatt. The "Man in Salt" accompanies the visitors on their journey through time at the Salzwelten Hallstatt.Since 2002, the "Man in Salt" is the central theme of the re-designed Salzwelten mines. In 1734, a corpse preserved in salt was discovered right in a salt deposit, a contemporary chronicle describing it as "pressed flat and tightly grown into the rock. Clothing and tools were quite strange but well preserved."

The Dachstein-Hallstättersee region has been appointed UNESCO World Cultural and Natural Heritage. This honour is certainly closely connected to the salt mining history of Hallstatt that goes back 7,000 years. In the olden days, the miners lived on the elevated plain that you will reach comfortably with the cable-car in a few minutes. The story of the "Man in Salt" is true and we are certain that there still is the chance to find another "Man in Salt" any day. A two-way ride on the funicular is available from EUR 8.50 per adult! Children under 4 years of age accompanied by a parent are free on the funicular.

Mega-slide

Some 64 metres of sliding fun on Europe's longest wooden slide are a major attraction at the Salzwelten Hallstatt. We do not only take a photograph of our visitors during the ride, we also measure their speed by Radar. At the end of the guided tour, you may acquire your personal souvenir photo. And for those who don't want to ride down the shoot there's a comfortable staircase nearby. There are two slides at the Salzwelten Hallstatt just like the ones the miners used for moving from one level of galleries to the one beneath.

Salt Crystal Chamber

We are right within the salt deposit in a disused leaching chamber called "Edlersberg". In the background you hear the rustle of the sea to remind you that all the salt in the world comes from the sea. Some 50 millions of millions of tons of salt are dissolved in the seas. Salt has many uses, and the world population consumes about 150 million tons per year.

The Subterranean Salt Lake

Until the early Middle Ages, salt was mined exclusively as rock salt. Then, solution mining took over. Its principle is simple: fresh water is introduced into the saliferous mountain, the water will dissolve the salt while the non-soluble parts will sink to the ground of the leaching chamber. The saturated brine, i.e., the water containing about 26% of salt, is then conveyed out of the mountain.

Originally, the brine was scooped from the leaching chamber with buckets by the aid of a winch. Later, an outlet box was used to control the flow of the brine to the gallery level underneath. Nowadays, the brine is pumped upwards. Until 1964, further processing took place in Hallstatt's own brine coppers, since then the brine has been worked in the modern salt plant at Ebensee.

Hörnerwerk

The "Hörnerwerk" cavern contains the large subterranean salt lake. Here, a unique vision accompanied by archaic music shows the discovery of salt in pre-Christian times. You will be introduced to the fate of the prehistoric miner who became world-famous as the "Man preserved in the salt"

Sepp, the miner

We do some eavesdropping on Sepp the miner, who tells us the story of how the "Man preserved in the salt" was found in 1734. In the archaeological part of our tour, a walk of a mere 100 metres takes you back thousands of years into the Bronze and Iron Age and shows you traces of the past, such as the so-called "Heathens' Rock" and an original find from the 80th century B.C.

Exclusive Guided Tours

Duration of tour in the mines appx. 70 minutes; total duration of stay about three hours. In exclusive tour for your group only through the Salzwelten mines. At the beginning of the tour we welcome our visitors according to tradition with bread, salt, and schnaps (brandy) as a token of hospitality. Exclusive tours are available for groups from 45 persons up (group fee applies) plus EUR 2.50 per person for the Miner's Welcome.

Prehistoric Expedition

Special guided tour for small groups off the areas open to visitors, duration appx. 3.5 hours. This special tour in groups of 6-12 persons starts at the lower station of the funicular with an introduction about the necropolis and continues with a two-hour tour off the areas open for visitors into the realm of the "Man Preserved in Salt". The tour's highlight are the original Hallstatt Hearts (prehistoric mining shapes) near the place where the "Man Preserved in Salt" was found in 1734.

Tariffs 2007 / Opening hours funicular / Opening hours salt mine - PDF-Download here...