Grossglockner High Alpine Road

At 2,504 m, the Hochtor pass marks the high point of the Grossglockner High Alpine Road, a 48 km ribbon with 36 bends first opened in 1935 between Bruck and Heiligenblut. Reaching it from Salzburg takes about 1 h 30 via the Salzach valley and the Fuschertal before climbing to Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe, directly opposite the Pasterze glacier—Austria’s longest, yet shortened by roughly 2 km since 1856. You move fast through alpine zones: forest, high pasture, lingering snowfields, and signed lookouts where ibex, marmots, and the 3,798 m Grossglockner fill the frame.

From there, your driver handles the flow: hotel pick-up in Salzburg, a Mercedes at your disposal all day, tolls covered, stops tuned to weather and traffic. Explore the visitor centers at Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe, try wild-garlic soup at Fuschertörl (2,428 m), then strudel-and-coffee in Heiligenblut while the car is parked and waiting. In the Salzburg Alps, with a seasoned private chauffeur, you get complete flexibility—detour to Zell am See 25 km away, photo stop at Edelweißspitze, or loop back via the Guttal pass road if clouds build.