The 8 Best Cocktail Bars in Salzburg

220 Grad runs as a serious coffee bar by day and one of the Altstadt's best cocktail rooms by night, with bartenders who clearly care about the craft. The room is modern and relaxed, a contrast to the city's baroque tourism, and the menu balances classics with a few originals. Falstaff and local guides rate it among Salzburg's best, and the regulars are mostly locals rather than visitors. We rate it as the city's most reliable cocktail night. Arrive after the dinner hour, when the coffee crowd has gone and the bar hits its stride.

Order: An old fashioned built with care

Republic occupies a converted bank building and works as a cafe, cocktail bar and event space that stays lively when much of the Old Town has gone quiet. The cocktail list is broad and the room hosts music and club nights, so it is the pick when you want the evening to keep going. Maps reviewers like the range and the energy. We rate it for a later night and a younger crowd. Check the events listing, since a DJ or a live set often shapes how the room feels.

Order: A whisky sour before the music starts

Einser sits in the heart of the Old Town and pours a changing selection of after work drinks, with serious sommelier advice on the wine side and both classic and creative cocktails on the other. The room is sleek and grown up, a good landing spot for an early evening drink before dinner. Local listings and Falstaff flag it as a reliable Altstadt choice. We rate it for wine drinkers who still want a proper cocktail option. Come at the end of the working day, when the after work crowd gives it a gentle buzz.

Order: A glass of Gruner Veltliner or a negroni

Monkeys sits right on the Salzach with a clear view of the Old Town and the Hohensalzburg fortress, which makes it one of the best placed bars in the city for a drink at golden hour. It works as a relaxed coffee stop by day and a livelier cocktail spot as the evening goes on. Reviewers single out the riverside terrace and the view. We rate it for a sunset drink before crossing the river for dinner. Claim a terrace table early on a warm evening, since the riverside seats are the first taken.

Order: An aperol spritz by the river

Steinterrasse crowns the Hotel Stein with the most famous rooftop view in Salzburg, looking straight across to the fortress and the cathedral domes. The cocktails are competent and the setting does the rest, which is exactly what you want from a rooftop. Maps reviewers agree the view is the reason to come, and the prices reflect it. We rate it for a first drink that sets the tone for the night. Time it for sunset, book if you can, and accept that you are paying for one of the best seats in the city.

Order: A gin tonic as the fortress lights up

The bar at the Goldener Hirsch, the Getreidegasse hotel that has hosted guests since 1407, is the city's most polished spot for a classic cocktail done properly. The room pairs historic charm with modern luxury, and the bartenders pour the kind of precise, unhurried martini that the setting demands. It is the upmarket choice on this list, and worth it for a special evening. We rate it for anyone who wants old world ceremony with their drink. Dress up a little, settle into the quiet, and order something classic.

Order: A dry martini, stirred and cold

Stieglkeller is carved into the Festungsberg rock below the fortress, a historic beer hall whose terrace offers one of the finest panoramas over the Old Town rooftops. The drink here is a Stiegl beer or a spritz rather than a shaken cocktail, but the view and the history put it on any honest list of where to drink in Salzburg. Reviewers come for the terrace above all. We include it for a daylight or early evening drink with a view. Take the climb up, grab a terrace bench, and let the panorama do the work.

Order: A cold Stiegl on the terrace

Augustiner Brau is a monastery brewery dating to 1621, where beer is poured from wooden barrels into stone steins you rinse yourself, and the chestnut shaded garden seats more than a thousand. It is not a cocktail bar in any sense, but it is the most authentic drinking experience in Salzburg and the one locals send every visitor to. We include it because no guide to the city's bars is honest without it. Bring an appetite for the food stalls, fill a stein from the barrel, and find a bench under the trees.

Order: A half litre stein from the barrel