Von Trapp Family Villa to Become Hotel

The original von Trapp family villa near Salzburg is to open as a hotel in July.

The villa was the setting for the hugely successful 1965 Sound of Music film, based on the true story of how aspiring nun Maria sang her way into the hearts of Baron von Trapp and his seven children.

The Villa Trapp hotel will give visitors a chance to sleep in the family's former bedrooms or get married in their chapel, Reuters reports.

And the gazebo where Liesl, eldest of the von Trapp daughters in the film, and her boyfriend Rolf meet secretly and perform "Sixteen going on 17" will also be available as a self-assembly construction set.

The von Trapp family lived in the villa outside Salzburg from 1923 to 1938 before fleeing the Nazi takeover of Austria.

Nazi Security Chief Heinrich Himmler used the villa as a home close to the Austrian Alps until 1945.

A missionary order bought the residence after World War Two and has agreed to relinquish it for use as a hotel.

By Elizabeth Clifford-Marsh