Tirol, Austria

Following a few days of great wine and food in Italy it was time to wander back through the Alps to the country of Austria for a stay in the Tirol region.  Our drive was not quite as jaw dropping as the journey from Switzerland but it still was packed with plenty of highlights.  We drove through another mountain pass and found ourselves riding along a series of gorgeous alpine lakes before passing through the town of St Moritz, sight of two winter olympics.  Add St Mortiz to the list of places I wouldn’t mind visiting sometime in the future.  Eventually we found our way to the village of Absam, just north of Hall in Tirol and east of the city of Innsbruck (another two time host of the winter olympics).

Innsbruck and Hall in Tirol sit in a valley split by the Inn river and flanked by your typical run of the mill beautiful Alp mountains.  This is a very popular destination during the winter months due to the abundance of skiing and other winter sports but probably runs a bit under the radar the rest of the year.  It was certainly on the quiet side in late October when we visited.  

Our AirBnB sat in the middle of a residential neighborhood on the walk out basement level of a 3 unit house.  The apartment was comfortable and a good value.  We could walk to a grocery store in less than 5 minutes which was extremely convenient.  The towns in this area are all separated by farm land and the forested slopes leading up to the mountains.  Everything is criss-crossed with amazing walking and bike paths.  It was just as easy to take a leisurely walk or do some serious mountain climbing without having to drive anywhere.

Scenes from some of the walking just steps from our AirBnB.

Hall in Tirol

Hall in Tirol is a small historic town located within easy walking distance of where we were staying.  Hall in Tirol was an important town within the Habsburg Empire during the 15th and 16th centuries including being the location of the Mint for Tirol.  It also has the biggest intact old town in the western part of Austria.

On one of our days in this area we walked about a half hour into the old town to explore.  It was a Sunday so the town was pretty quiet and many of the shops were closed but enough was still open to make our visit enjoyable.  It was anything but crowded and that is always a plus when exploring Europe.  The old town is car free like many old towns in Europe and compact.  Perfect for a one day walking excursion.

Some of things we saw in the old town included Pfarrkirche St. Nikolaus (a nice mid sized church), St. Magdalena Kapelle (a chapel with frescos and a war memorial), Langer Graben (nice old street lined with shops), and Burg Hasegg / Münze Hall in Tirol (the old mint which contains a museum and the mint tower).  While taking in the sights we strategically worked in a coffee break and an afternoon beer at the cafes in the main square alongside the locals.  

Hall in Tirol may not be a destination but if you are staying in Innsbruck or passing through the area it is well worth a quick visit.  The old town with the rocky Alp peaks in the background make for a leisurely and picturesque morning or afternoon. 

Some pics taken in the old town of Hall of Tirol

Innsbruck

Just a 20 minute drive (or one train stop) away from our AirBnB was the capital of Tirol, the small city of Innsbruck.  As a two time host of the Olympics it has long been heralded as a winter sports haven.  The city was decidedly chill in the fall with ski season still a good month or more away.  This didn’t make it any less worth visiting.

We decided to drive to Innsbruck because the Austrians seemed to be pretty strict about muzzling dogs on public transport.  After parking just outside of the central part of the city we strolled into the old town to take into the sites with Maverick.  

The first site we encountered was the massive Hofburg palace.  One of several residences built and used by the Hapsburgs when they ruled this entire region. It is “small” when compared to some of the other palaces despite having over 400 rooms.  There are museums inside the palace but we did not partake because they do not allow dogs.

After passing by the palace we spilled out onto Maria-Theresien-Straße and the central town square.  At one of the end of the street is the ornate Habsburg Golden Roof, an icon of Innsbruck.  As the road continues it narrows and then spills out into the open center of the town which is lined with shops, restaurants and cafes.  All along the way the background to the North is the rocky Alp peaks.  It’s easy to imagine how much this area must be buzzing during peak skiing season.

After exploring the sites of central Innsbruck and grabbing a coffee and a treat at a local cafe we ventured off the beaten path for some local Austrian beer.  The first stop was Tiroler Bier Brauerei Baumgartner GmbH, a small family run brewery down near the train tracks on the outskirts of downtown.  The beer here was traditional and quite good.  The staff (all members of the family) were extremely welcoming, especially to Maverick.  If you like beer, definitely stop here.  We also had some local sausages and homemade pretzels for dinner while we sipped our beers.

I think Mavi was jealous of our beverages at Tiroler Bier Brauerei Baumgartner GmbH

Our last stop was Bierfabrik Innsbruck, a little nano brewery in a bunker under the railroad tracks.  The beer here was also pretty good although it is more of a craft brewery and less traditional.  After finishing up our beverages we hopped in the car and made the short drive back to our home base.  Two thumbs up for Innsbruck!

Pictures around Innsbruck

Innsbrucker Nordkettenbahnen

From downtown Innsbruck it is possible to take a series of funiculars and cable cars all the way to the top of the Nordkette mountain range which runs just North of the city.  Although this activity is technically dog friendly, all public transportation in Austria seems to be pretty strict about muzzling dogs unless they fit in a carrier.  Maverick is not muzzle trained and it is certainly something that would take some practice.  Trying to strap a muzzle on out of the blue wouldn’t go well.  For this reason we decided to come back to Innsbruck for a second day to try Nordkettenbahnen.

The funicular (left) and the view of Innsbruck from the first stop in Hungerburg (right)

At 56 euros per adult this activity is not cheap.  This is the case for most cable cars in the Alps.  Of course there is always a free option, walk up the mountain.  We aren’t exactly accomplished mountaineers so once in a while we splurge on something like this to get the views without killing ourselves.  

The journey to the top starts right in downtown Innsbruck with a funicular ride that takes you up to the town of Hungerburg.  Here you take a short walk over to a tram station and take a large cable car up to Seegrube at 6,250 feet.  At this point you need to change to a smaller cable car that will take you to the highest point of Hafelekar (7,400 feet).  

View riding up the first cable car (left) and view from second stop in Seegrube (right)

We were able to time our visit for a day with good weather.  The top station can be in the clouds and it probably doesn’t make sense to visit the top if the weather isn’t cooperating.  They do have webcams that show you the conditions at the top of the mountain if you are worried about spending all that money just to see the inside of a cloud.

It’s also worth noting that the temperature drops quite a bit at this elevation.  It was a comfortable 15 degrees celsius in Innsbruck but a chilly 3 degrees celcius at the summit.  Bring layers!

All of the stops are really nice with places you can get food and drink.  As you can imagine the views get better and better as you get higher up.  At the summit you can see both the Innsbruck valley to the South and the Karwendel mountain range to the North.  There are plenty of places you can walk around including a short trail to the summit of Hafelekarspitze so you can pretend to be a real climber even if you aren’t.  

Pictures from the top of the mountain range

All in all this is a really fun way to spend a half day in Innsbruck.  If you like to climb at all it is possible to climb up and take the cable car back down which your knees will thank you for.  If you like to mountain bike you can take your bike up on the cable cars and then bike down.  The mountain is your oyster!

This wraps up our activities during our first stint in Austria.  Next stop on the Mavi Eurotrip is Slovakia!

It was a hell of a climb, but I made it to the summit of Hafelekarspitze 😉