Our tour guide on the ride up never introduced himself just started a very uninteresting history of Salzburg that we could hardly hear. No personality at all. It would’ve been more fun to sing carols or something on the way. First stop at the school house where Silent Night was written had a section highlighting someone other composer/filmmaker (?) with no English information. I never really learned anything about Gruber. Silent Night Chapel is beautiful but SO many people. No way we were going to wait to go in. Got some gluhwein and listened to the service from afar. Music was lovely, but we couldn’t see anything. No one even sang along to Silent Night. Even I know that in German.

It was fun to celebrate Christmas where Silent Night was made. Highly recommended. Thanks for the nice experience.

The tour had 2 stops. The first stop at the school not very interesting. A brief talk outside the school while people were milling around and then a line to walk thru the school. After Silent Night was performed we were caught in a surge of people going out a narrow passage and nearly missed the bus. The tour guide should have prepared us and told us where to stand at the end for a quick exit.

The whole experience was wonderful especially the beautiful singing of the carol at the end. Also enjoyed going into the chapel to light a candle. Well organised trip

Thomas was a great tour guide. He was informative and funny. The video that was showed at the end was good. The part that we did not like, but should have been expected, it was so crowded you could not see anything or get to the booths. So I want to make it clear it was not Thomas or the tour company itself. The crowds were just too much.

Panaroma did a good job of herding about 7 coaches full of tourist to the Silent Night Chapel, however, it was not for me despite the fact they were well organised. The evening was cold and wet (it is winter after all), but this made the ground slippery. It was a long time from arrival until the memorial service (half was done in German and half in English). I think this would be better done in the week leading up to Christmas Eve to avoid the huge crowds.

The setting was really pretty. The choir sang beautifully. You go to the school that is still operating where Joseph Morris worked. The tour was a lot more touristy than I had expected. There were a few thousand people there at the chapel. You stand on a hillside which was extremely crowded and muddy. I was nearly impossible to see the speakers. It is not the original chapel because the original was destroyed by fire and floods. So it was moved and then rebuilt. Silent Night was sung at the end of the evening and it was amazingly beautiful.

It was a nice way to spend Christmas Eve, the Silent Night Ceremony went a tad to long. Remember yo rug up too as it's all outside in the elements.

A unique gem of a tour. The village was so pretty and the church was like being in a fairy tale but be warned that there is a lot of standing in this tour. The church is too small to fit everyone and no chairs are provided outside. However it is so worth it!!

Silent Night Chapel, musicians and town are gorgeous a must see for anyone visiting the area on Christmas Eve. Going to the Silent Night Chapel was the entire reason for our trip to Europe. We went to honor a family member who passed away this past year. However, we weren't sure we were going to make it to the site. From the moment we left the bus meeting point in Salzburg, it seemed the bus driver was on his maiden voyage as a driver. The tour guide continually had to give directions. Then it sounded like he was hitting cars or cement curbing. When we arrived at the small town for a tour of the school the driver hung out talking with the fireman at which point I had my husband check the bus for damage. He didn't see any however as we were pulling out we noticed the driver having difficulty steering the bus. We got close to the area where the Silent Night Chapel is located he had to pull over as he could no longer steer the bus. Nervous that we would miss the events, I was ready to walk as were the other passengers. Finally, he drove a few blocks more and let us out. We were told they would call the bus company and get a new bus and to come back to this area after the mass. Everyone hurried to the chapel. It was beautiful and an amazing way to honor a loved one on Christmas eve. Headed back to the bus I saw our driver in a new bus. Upon entering it he said, he had a video to show us of the event but he couldn't figure out how to use the equipment. Once the tour guide was back on the bus he too planned to play some Christmas music but couldn't get it work. The trip back was uneventful as we all made it back to Salzburg safely. I recommend this trip but you may want to inquire about the capabilities of your bus driver before boarding the bus.

This was a very well organised trip in a luxury coach, very scenic and well worth going to see the Silent Night Chapel, beautiful area

This was a magnificent and magical expereience. If in Salzburg over Christmas Eve I would recommend especially because there is limited things to do on Christmas Eve. Most restaurants and businesses are closed.

Unhelpful tour leader who wouldn't organise a down stairs seat for a disabled man. Our family group of eight was split between two buses with children separated from their parents. Bus driver got lost and school house/museum component didn't happen. Food stall owners only served the locals and ignored the tourists - waited 35 mins in the front row for 4 sausages! So much emphasis was put on getting back to the bus quickly 8 year old was panicked into wanting to leave before Silent Night was sung. I suggest leaving it to the locals.

A fantastic memory! Our bus took us 25 minutes or so outside of Salzburg. The scenery en-route was beautiful and our tour guide provided useful information along the way. The first stop was the church and school where Franz Gruber song lyrics writer worked. The structure and grounds were quaint and authentic. The crowds were well managed and beverages were available for purchase. The second stop was the Silent Night Chapel itself in another small town. There was a lot of traffic, so being on a bus made traveling/parking stress-free. There was a Christmas Market there and even though it was was VERY crowded, we enjoyed the experience immensely. In keeping with Austrian tradition, approximately 15 marksmen shot black powder rifles into the air on a nearby hilltop, which added to the authenticity of being there. The mass was in German and English with a wonderful message, and all of the music was lovely! Hearing Silent Night in the place where it was first performed and performed annually for 199 years was indeed moving. Don't miss it!

While there is no doubt this event is worth attending it is hardly a mountain tour. First stop was the Gruber School Silent Night Museum a glass of mulled wine and a look around then on to Oberndorf a pretty town with wonderful scenery. There are markets and food stalls there so you can buy food etc. You have enough time to look around and should be able to get into the chapel if the queue moves as it did on the night 24/12/2017. By the time the service starts the crowd is quite large so don't expect to be able to move around much! First some wonderful music, then a welcome from a town official in two languages. This was perhaps a little too long as most of the people there would have been well aware of the history of the song. Then some more wonderful choral singing followed by the pastoral message which while it had a wonderful message could have been shorter as it too was said in two languages making it oh so much longer. Then came the highlight of the night an absolutely amazing rendition of Stille Nacht which was so powerful it needed no translation! However I felt it was a little overpriced and certainly oversubscribed! I only hope some of the price we paid feeds into the local community.

Don't waste your Christmas Eve! False advertisement, the ad photo is not what you'll see.

This experience was wonderful! I thought this was way up on a mountain, out in nowhere, but it's in a small town, not too far from Salzburg. It was not so silent before the mass - a tradition of shooting guns off the top of a nearby hilltop, alternating with live music on the same hilltop. Weird and unexpected, but stopped once the mass started. The mass was in German and English and was a great message. Yes, you are outside and it's cold and crowded, but the crowd keeps you warm! You need to be able to do some walking. Be sure to pick up the words to Silent Night in German, from the museum that is the first stop on this tour, so you can sing along. The singing of Silent Night made it all worth it for me!

We had a great tour to the Silent Night chapel. The 4 buses that left were all pretty crowded. Thankfully, we had the best tour guide, Naomi Mogil , and she spoke in both English and German. She gave us all the interesting facts as we headed to Oberndorf. There were a lot of people at the service but not as many as I had thought. The market shops were nice but there were only a few of them. The view from the river was spectacular and we had a wonderful sunset. The service was done mostly in German and Silent Night was only sung in German (we heard the last verse was supposed to be in English). We felt the visit was worth it and I'd recommend it.

We never got a chance to go into the chapel (our mistake) and wish we had been advised to wait in a better place for the singing, etc. The crowds were pretty big.

A once in a lifetime experience, happy we did it. Just be prepared for the cold ;) After two hours of standing around, I'm not sure I could feel my feet 8/