Many of the city's most popular landmarks are located in and around Mozart Square or Mozartplatz. The original square was created during the reign of Archbishop Wolf Dietrich in 1588, and built over traces of the Roman civilization.

The square which is made up of; "Residenz Square", the "Waagplatz" and the "Kaigasse" contains Ludwig Schwanthaler's statue of the legendary composer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Creation of the bronze and marble memorial was partly financed by the Bavarian king, Ludwig I, and was unveiled in 1842. Mozart's sons were in attendance for the ceremony, but his widow, Constance von Nissen had died earlier that year. She died in the house at Mozartplatz 8. A plaque was placed on the house in her memory.

Nearby, on Getreidegasse, at number 9 is Mozart's birthplace, now a museum containing precious relics from the composer’s life. This was the home of the Mozarts between 1747 and 1773. Getreidegasse is now a high end shopping area that evolved from the city’s merchant settlement on the Waagplatz or “weighing square”. The interconnected buildings of the city centre lend an architectural flair to the city; the rear courtyards and the passageways between the shops are themselves works of art.

Other buildings of interest on the square are; the Antretter House, bought by the well-known Antretter family in 1765 and the "Schaffner House" on the adjacent Waagplatz, which is the birthplace of the poet Georg Trakl. A distinctive part of the Mozartplatz is the Carillon tower with its glockenspiel perched on top of the Residenz Neubau, or New Residence, which was formerly Prince-Archbishop Wolf-Dietrich's government palace.