Sound of Music Museum seeks tourism partnerships

More than 1,000 people visited Salzburg’s new Sound of Music Museum on its opening day, and operators are now negotiating partnerships with bus companies, tour operators and cultural institutions, ORF reported.

The museum opened in Hellbrunn on Sunday, September 20, after years of planning and disputes over the film rights. Chief curator Peter Husty said visitor numbers were significantly higher than expected.

The film is particularly popular in the United States and Asia, where it attracts tens of thousands of tourists to its filming locations each year. The museum aims to build on that interest through joint tourism initiatives.

“We want to cooperate with everyone at Salzburg Museum who offers activities related to the film The Sound of Music,” Husty said. Potential partners include theatres such as the Salzburg State Theatre and the Salzburg Marionette Theatre, as well as tourism companies taking visitors to the filming locations.

Planned measures include joint tickets and discounts. Sound of Music tours could, for example, include admission to the museum or the Marionette Theatre. Future marketing efforts are also expected to be coordinated.

According to the organisers, visitors were already waiting outside the museum early on Monday, its first day of paid admission. The museum will close again at the end of October and reopen in spring.