No matter where visitors go in Innsbruck, Austria — Maximilian I’s famous “Golden Roof” or the 15th-century Imperial Palace — they can’t miss the mountains. Imposing snow-covered peaks rear up behind historic multistory, multicolor buildings, the very postcard image of a town nestled in the Alps.
Innsbruck sits in a valley between the North Chain of the Karwendel Alps and the peaks of Patscherkofel and Serles to the south. Its very location makes it a winter sports hub; the city hosted the 1964 and 1976 Winter Olympics, as well as the 1984 and 1988 Winter Paralympics and the inaugural 2012 Winter Youth Olympics. Some of the Olympic facilities are still in use today, including the iconic Bergiselschanze, a ski jump tower that was built for the ’64 Olympics and reconstructed in 2003.
One of the best ways to take in views of the ragged rocks and dramatic slopes of the surrounding alps is with a hybrid gondola-funicular ride. The first stretch of the Hungerburg funicular takes passengers up a 46 percent incline to the top of the Hungerburg Mountain. From there, riders can hop on the Nordkette cableway gondola to continue up the slopes of the Seegrube Mountain, soaking in panoramic vies of the Central Inn Valley and the surrounding alps all the way to the Italian border. Groups can eat dinner at the Alpenlounge Seegrube restaurant before boarding the gondola to continue climbing up to the 7,400-foot of Hafelekarspitze Mountain.
For more information go to www.innsbruck.info/en.
