New “Salzbergbahn” Takes Guests to Hallstatt Salt Mine

(eap) The municipality of Hallstatt in Austria’s Salzkammergut region is renowned for thousands of years of salt mining, and at the Salzwelten visitor centre in Hallstatt’s high valley, guests can delve deeper into this history. The Salzwelten had been closed for one year to undergo extensive modernisation works aimed at refreshing the visitor experience. The measures also included the dismantling of the previous funicular and the installation of the new “Salzbergbahn”, which recently entered operation.

Two passenger cabins, each accommodating up to 60 people, now transport guests from the valley station up to the mountain station. As part of its reconstruction, the valley station was also equipped with a spacious shop. At the mountain station, the new “Weitblick 7000” bistro and a viewing terrace invite visitors to linger before continuing on to the Salzwelten.

© Foto: Salzwelten Hallstatt The new funicular was realised in cooperation with the Doppelmayr Group. Its two cabins, manufactured by Doppelmayr company Carvatech and designed to resemble salt crystals in keeping with the attraction’s theme, are fully accessible. The journey from the valley station up the Salzberg takes 2.6 minutes and covers a distance of just under 600 metres and a vertical rise of 325 metres. Large glazed fronts provide passengers with spectacular panoramic views of the surrounding mountains and Lake Hallstatt.

The ropeway technology was supplied by Swiss specialist Garaventa, the Doppelmayr Group’s competence centre for special ropeways. The valley station is located at an elevation of 515 metres above sea level, while the mountain station stands at 840 metres. The funicular route reaches a maximum gradient of 87.72 percent, while an automatic levelling system keeps the passenger compartments in a horizontal position throughout the journey.

Der Skywalk der Salzwelten Hallstatt bietet Panorama-Aussichten auf den Ort, den Hallstätter See und die umgebende Berglandschaft. © Foto: Salzwelten Hallstatt Kurt Thomanek, Executive Board Member for Mining and Tourism at Salinen Austria AG, is proud of the now completed project: “Excluding the several years of preparation, we have 362 days of intensive work under exceptionally demanding conditions behind us. It was important to us not only to build a new funicular, but to further develop the entire visitor experience on the Salzberg. With the new Salzbergbahn and the modernised Salzwelten, we are creating the conditions to ensure that Hallstatt’s more than 7,000-year history of salt mining remains tangible for generations to come.”

Damian Zenklusen, Sales Project Manager at Garaventa, commented: “The implementation of the new Salzbergbahn was a highly demanding project due to the topographical and geological conditions. Working within extremely confined spaces required intensive planning and a high degree of flexibility from everyone involved. We are therefore all the more delighted that, together with Salzwelten Hallstatt and all project partners, we were able to realise a future-proof solution that meets today’s accessibility requirements while offering guests a special experience even on their way to the mine.”

According to Salzwelten, a total of around EUR 34 million was invested in the modernisation and new-build project. ■