Oh my gosh!! This was the BEST thing we did our whole trip! We had eight family members ranging from 82 years old down to ten years old! This was the PERFECT way to see Salzburg!! Elvis, our AMAZING tour guide went ABOVE & beyond showing us all of Salzburg with tons of knowledge, insider info and great stories!! He drove us all over in his comfortable van playing Sound of Music in the car and taking our family pictures in every stop!! He became family to us that day and we LOVED every minute of the tour!! Thank you Elvis!! It EXCEEDED our expectations!!! Sooo thankful!!!! read more

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"You are 16 going on 17, you need someone older and wiser telling you what to do..." Several tour companies do "The Sound of Music" tour, but this was the only that did it in a van instead big bus(coach). €48pp. Our tour guide wasn't too thrilling, but he was friendly and very knowledgeable about the movie, filming locations, and Salzburg in general. It was a rainy day, so unfortunately we couldn't visit a luge, but he took us too all the filming location, and more spots. I never felt rushed at each location. We even had a full hour at Mondsee to see the wedding church, shop, and have relax in a cafe. NOT Bob's fault: the only thing my wife and I did not like was our fellow tourists...they were friendly, but they did NOT sing at all. Whenever our tour guide put on the music, it was just a duet with my wife and I. Awkward! I'm guessing there are more singers on the big bus tours. read more

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Meh - disappointing. Sound of Music is my favorite movie of all times. Booked this early and we impressed by the responsiveness of the email exchanges taken place between BSTours and myself. Starting off on a odd note - we asked to use the restroom prior to departure. "Well we usually don't do that, but you can this time." hmmmm - heading out for 4 hours and you don't have a toilet to use? The bus was fairly comfortable but immediately one of the group states "I get carsick". Bingo - she wanted the front seat with her friend and stayed there for the duration. The other 2 groups of 3 divided switched off between the middle and back rows, which in the middle seat on the back row - forget it. You can't see a thing. Given a cursory tour around the tour office in the van, our guide pointed to this and that, again, couldn't really see anything. Then we stopped at the gazebo which was nice and she took pictures of us outside - again, nice. The drive was pretty for the sights, but not really so much specifically for the sound of music. We did enjoy seeing the lakes, which were out of town and unfortunately had not scheduled more time to see. The church where Maria was married was quaint and small and took no time at all to go through. Then there was an hour?!!? break for a coffee and strudel? After 45 min our entire group was ready, so asked the guide if we could leave, since we were all ready. I don't know what I expected. Maybe more singing in the van or more sights? But, even though you are in Salzburg, I don't think I would waste my money. read more

Wonderful and fun private tour seeing locations of The Sound of Music. Not a normal big bus tour, we were 4 plus guide. HIGHLY RECOMMEND

Fun kitchy tour. Our guide and driver was very nice and very knowledgeable of sound of music movie and local site's featured in the movies. We had about 4 brief stops to look at outside of buildings. We also stopped for 20 minutes in one of the towns to see the inside of one of the churches featured. Best part of this trip is the small size, you are in 9 passenger van. SOM fans will enjoy it. read more

We booked a Sound of Music tour two months in advance to our visit to Salzburg but they ultimately did not honor our reservation. They were supposed to pick us up at our hotel. When they did not arrive, we called and were assured they were on our way, but then they called back and said they lost our reservation. Incredibly disappointing for our family and what was supposed to be the highlight of our foreign travel. read more

A Sound of Music Tour for people who don't care for the Sound of Music, Bob's Special Tours provides a more intimate touring experience that avoids that big-tour-bus nonsense. I'll be honest - we only did a Sound of Music tour because we felt we must in Salzburg, and this was the tour Rick Steves recommended. Warning - if you're looking for the big bus, sing-along, Sound of Music-only tour extravaganza, book somewhere else as there are hundreds of those tours you can go on. We booked this tour mainly because we really wanted to go to the countryside and just put up with the Sound of Music stuff. Cash is preferred but you can pay with credit. The vans seat only about 10-12 people. Our tour guide was not excitable, very Austrian-austere but also extremely knowledgeable and pleasant. If you're used to an upbeat gregarious guide you will want to look elsewhere - if you want someone who is authentically Austrian, this is the place (neat act - Austrians don't get why The Sound of Music is so Popular and many dislike the movie). We did stop at some notable Sound of Music locations, including the Palace of Leopoldskron (exterior shots of Von Trapp mansion), Hellbrun Palace to visit the gazebo from the music (which is locked up so American tourists stop slipping and falling off the seats - I'm not kidding), and a visit to the parish church of Mondsee (the wedding church). Yeah, we didn't care - we mostly wanted to see the Austrian countryside and visit the Salzkammergut/Lake District and the quaint and extremely touristy town of Hallstatt. This is where this tour shines - dropping you off on this beautiful picturesque town made for instagram. This was worth the price of the tour itself. Overall, if you're only remotely interested in the Sound of Music but really crave the Austrian countryside, then this is definitely the tour for you. The only negative was we weren't able to do the "optional" run down a toboggan chute, and it wasn't made clear to us what affects the "optional" part of that. Other than that, this tour will appeal to you if (1) you hate people singing along with music, (2) you want to get over the movie touristy stuff as quick as possible, and (3) you really want to see the countryside where the true Austrian experience awaits. read more

This "tour" is a drive-by / fly-by. (CHECK THIS LIST AND THANK ME LATER!) The SOM FILMING SIGHTS Did Bob's Tour Take Us to the SOM Sights from the Movie?? a. Mirabell Gardens - Dropped off there after tour. No guide. b. Residenzplatz - NOPE c. Nonnberg Abbey - NOPE d. St Peter's Cemetery - NOPE e. Festival House - NOPE f. Horse Pond - NOPE g. Fronburg Castle - SORRY, NOPE. Drove by and didn't even get a glimpse. h. The Gazebo - Yes! Finally something. i. Leopoldskron Castle - Yes (you can take a city bus to see this or pay Bob's!) j. Mount Untersburg - NOPE. k. Mondsee Cathedral - Yes. 2.5 hours into this torture, and then only after the luge stop. And after the bad strudel stop. Then Mondsee. If you REALLY need to see this - rent a car and SAVE BIG! Or hire a limo!! l. St. Gilgen - NOPE. m. Anif Castle - NO, but in all fairness, nobody gets near it. Not even Bob. ;-(( 7 NOPE! 3 YES! 1 DRAW! First, you need to read between the lines of all the reviews. (Even Rick Steve's winks at you about this utter waste of money and time.) Second, the tour itself is poorly described, poorly run and probably sagging due to age and the crush of tourists eager to "make it easy(ier)". Third, when demand outstrips supply - you get mediocrity. The "Bob's Tour" was a study in that Econ 101 lesson. The tour-guides bad jokes about the catholic prince and his Jewish mistress left only the "Sound of Crickets" chirping....when the guide asked if we wanted to listen to the SOM sound track OR - a chorus singing a capella, naturally we all voted for SOM - but the guide had different ideas....."Bob's Tours - where democracy goes to die" Fourth - I recommend this tour to anyone who likes to keep their distance from the sights. "See the red onion dome across the river and behind that really big building? That was in the SOM movie...now back to the bus!!" Fifth - Attention luge lovers - this tour will take you to a bunny slope where you can take a luge down that wouldn't scare a bunny rabbit. And strudel fans should note - the restaurant we stopped at had the strudel from 1960 for sale that they try to pan off onto Julie Andrews all those years ago. Annoyed doesn't fully describe the feeling of disappointment here. My young children were appalled and that sez it all. Give your money to a busker or beggar if you really must do something with the money. Last, the guide should be banned from the industry. The driver should also get a check-up. As he adjusted the air-conditioning, he swerved into oncoming traffic. But I digress.... read more

The scenery was amazing and we are confident. BUT!! Our guide was unbelievably crazy. She was racist. She is American (German-American) and doesn't like Asian. She thinks every Japanese can't speak and understand English. She was soooooo impolite. She is kind of mass of malice. For example, she asked us if we have euro (do you imagine? We are in Austria. How we can stay here wo/euro?!), she asked me,"how is your English?". It's my first experience to be asked like this. (Actually I've lived in U.S. lol) She asked us, "YOU UNDERSTAND, JAPANESE?". Actually my friend is weak at English but I can translate. She knows that. Then she dare to ask a question to her. She knows my friend cannot answer!!!!! MALICE!! Also she is anti-muslim. I do not want to listen to her story. If you are European or American, you can participate in their tour. But if you are not, don't join them! read more

I am surprised at any of the poor reviews. We did an all day 8 hour tour and it was the highlight of our trip to Salzburg. Our son and his family and one other couple in addition to my husband and myself. Sylvia was great. Loved her. She did a wonderful job and was a terrific driver. Will have lasting memories of this trip forever read more

We paid for the Bavarian Mountain tour. We were told we would go to the Salt Mines and then to Berchtesgaden. I was especially looking forward to Berchtesgaden, since I was a big fan of the Band of Brothers miniseries. We arrived at the Salt Mine where we were told that the tour was full and we couldn't go on. We were taken to another salt mine about 40 minutes away instead. Although we were able to get on that tour, we had to completely skip Berchtesgaden to make up for the wasted time. Don't use this company. You'd be better off with literally anyone else. There was no apology and no offer to discount the price. What an awful was to run a business. read more

We thoroughly our "The Sound of Music" tour! Alwin is a wonderful guide. He is knowledgeable about Austrian history and the movie's creation and locations, friendly, a safe driver, and a great photographer. Thank you, Bob's Special Tours for an incredible tour! read more

We came to Salzburg just for the sound of music tour and we're very disappointed with the result. They sent no information as to the size of the van beforehand. It's a small 9 person van, that gets very hot. You can't see out of the middle seats while driving. Our tour guide was terse and was not open to questions. We were allowed minimal time at the locations we went to. Once we got to the coffee break, she instructed us as to where to go. Over all, would not recommend this tour company at all. read more

This tour was a poor choice. Unlike some others, we were greeted by a welcoming and polite receptionist who helped us process our payment. That was the end of any pleasantries. The tour proved to be light on any meaningful information aside from a few brief and repetitive anecdotes about the history of the locations in the film. Beyond that, the van (note: not a bus like some other companies provide) was hot, crowded, uncomfortable, and bereft of any visibility from the middle seat positions. The tour itself was fine, stopping at a few locations which were pertinent to the film, and some which were for enjoyment of the area. However, we maintained a consistently accelerated pace throughout the tour, and at times it seemed as though we were in heated competition with other tours to reach our destinations before they did. At one point, we had stopped to take pictures of an absolutely marvelous lake in the alps, but just as soon as I could pull out my camera to take any photos, we were suddenly ordered back on to the van with extreme haste for some reason which remains unknown to me. At our next stop, though, we were given 50 minutes to lounge and enjoy coffee at the singular restaurant indicated to us by our guide. We then waited for another 5-10 minutes after the time we were told to be back at the van for our guide to return. This brings me to by far the most disheartening and disappointing element of this tour: our tour guide. Her name eludes my memory, but it was she who made this tour as unpleasant as she was. She treated the members of our tour with thinly-veiled hostility and almost aggression as she marched us along the tour. She clearly resented any questions being asked and would not make any effort to answer them in any helpful capacity, often just restating her exact words with the assumption that a more annoyed tone would somehow make it easier to understand. She was inexorably impatient at every stop we made. At one point she began playing music from the film, but she stopped the music shortly thereafter because we were not singing along to it (her specific reasoning) and she was ostensibly offended that we didn't enjoy the music to her standard. We came to Salzburg almost exclusively for this tour at the recommendations of friends. It is clear to me now that almost anyone who has recommended the Sound of Music tour to you has taken it with another company. It's perhaps not the worst imaginable way to spend 4 hours of your day, but I cannot fathom a reason that you would choose to subject yourself to this particular tour. If you want to see the sights of the film and enjoy the natural beauty of the Austrian Alps, there are surely many better options for getting those experiences. This tour is not worth your time nor your money, and I cannot see any way to advise you to take part in it. read more

My family and I took the 4 hour Sound of Music tour with Bob's Special Tours. We had a great time and our guide, Al, was very knowledgable and friendly. Al also shared history of Salzburg and fun facts about different places we passed along our tour. read more

Ugh ugh ugh. I really wanted to like Bob's Tours in Salzburg but it's just not working for me. I did take the Sound of Music tour in an extremely crowded 9-person van that was SO HOT and the driver kept on turning off the air conditioning. I liked the small group size of the tour but the van is just not cut out for an enjoyable experience -- crowded, very hot, and you can't see a thing unless you're on the window seat. In addition, the driver drove like a crazy man, with heavy-footed braking and swerving. It just wasn't comfortable. The following day, I was supposed to take the Bavarian Mountain/Eagle's Nest tour but when the driver showed at my hotel, he told me that the tour had been cancelled. He told me that I could do one of two things: (1) switch to a different tour or (2) ask Bob's Tours for a refund. I opted to cancel. He told me to email the office and ask for a refund. As of today, two weeks later, I have yet to receive my 96 Euro refund. I chose Bob's tours because of the Rick Steve's recommendation. It's the first time I've been disappointed. We'll see if my refund comes through or not. read more

Low Point of Our Salzburg Stay. We booked the "Sound of Music Tour" online with Bob's Special Tours before we left the United States for Austria, and received a Booking Confirmation email that included the following information: Pick up: office - Please be there by 8.45am the latest! Tour starts at 9:00pm. Payment: Payment is received by cash (preferred) or by credit card in our office. Please note that in order to process your credit card payment you have to visit our office at least 30 minutes before tour start. So it says to be at the office at least by 8:45a, but to pay we needed to be there by 8:30a. We were at the office on Rudofskai at 8:30a as instructed. We were surprised to see that the office had a sign on the door saying it was closed on Saturdays and Sundays (it was Saturday). The door was locked and no one was there. We figured someone would be there in few minutes to meet us and process our payment, given we were instructed to be there by 8:30a. No one showed up. There weren't any other tour customers, either. We started to get anxious. We had skipped breakfast to be there by the appointed time. No one was there by 8:45 either, and there was a phone number on the office door sign that said something like "if you need to reach us outside of office hours, please call this number." It was a local number, but I used my "not local" cell phone to call the number, and a recorded voice said the owner of the phone was "not taking calls at that time." I can't tell you how frustrated we were. At this point we've been waiting 20 minutes on the hot sidewalk - no one is there, and there isn't any type of notification on the door for "those waiting for the 9a tour..." At about 7 minutes before 9 another woman came for the tour. At about 5 minutes before 9am "Bob's" mini van pulled up with other customers already inside. The tour guide had no idea that we had been told to be at the office by 8:30am, and had no way to process our payment in the office. So the tour commenced. I would say it was OK, but definitely not worth the $150+ we paid for the 3 of us (2 adults + 1 child). The tour guide was nice, and gave some interesting information, but the information shared was "light" and there was at least 2 of the 4 hours of the tour with no information being given. I would definitely recommend you stay away from this tour operator. It is way overpriced for what they are offering, and they don't have their act together in terms of running the business. This was definitely the low point of our 10 day trip to Austria. read more

Total rip-off. We over spent for basically a rushed tour on a small hot bus. We could barely understand our tour guide and we didn't get to see a lot of the sites as they are closed to visitors (the fine print didn't say that). Ended up outside of town on a luge ride and eating tasteless pastry for an hour. Our children who love the movie as much as I do were dissapointed. For the money we spent on what Rick Steve's said was the best tour, we were really let down. Our advice is to do your own tour or book through a different tour company. read more

I booked the original sound of music and Hallstatt tour and was really expecting to have a great time. After waiting for two hours in the hotel room without being picked up, I called the office and left a voice message but no one answered back. Then I called the hotel front desk and the staff told me the driver came by but was looking for me in wrong room number and wrong last name and then left. I got really upset because apparently the tour operator took down the wrong information (aka. one number of the room number and the first character of my last name). So I asked the front desk to call the driver to see if he can still take me to this tour. After waiting for another half hour, the driver came back and took me to his car. There were 3 other travelers in his car and the first thing he did was taking me to the office to make the payment. I told him that I don't think i should pay the full price because I didn't get a chance to see the first attraction stop and all the time I've been wasting due to the operator's fault. The driver called the operator and then passed the phone to me. The operator said "you either pay the full price for the tour or you stay at home" , without any apologies for his stupid mistake. I cannot imagine a tour service company can talk to a customer in such an extremely rude way. Overall, I wasted the best time of the day to wait and deal with this unqualified tour service and by the end they ruined my mood for traveling. Hope you can take my experience as an alert when trying to book a daily tour in Salzburg. read more