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In a valley between mountain ranges, Innsbruck is one of the cities in the Alps. Get ready to ride cable cars, view spectacular sceneries from Hafelekarspitze and be prepared to walk a lot as the attractions in this itinerary are all within walking distance!
Book through Flixbus and select the drop off point at Innsbruck Südbahnstraße.
Check weather forecast and avoid rainy days. Ensure that your date does not fall between 08/04/2019 - 12/04/2019 and 04/11/2019 - 15/11/2019 as the Nordkette Cable Car is closed for inspection. If you're going in Winter, the Cable Car's operating hours are dependent on the weather and risk of avalanche. Check the live updates here, under "Schedule".
Start the day by heading to a small pavilion adjacent to Kaiserjägermuseum, which is a short uphill climb towards the south. The pavilion sits at the edge of the hill, slightly overlooking the city of Innsbruck. Standing here, you can get a sense of scale of how massive the Northern Range (range of mountains in the north) is in comparison to the city itself.
If you have an Innsbruck Card, you can visit Das Tirol Panorama Museum that is just beside this Pavilion for free. See ticketing details.
Journey
22 Mins 1.5km walk from Flixbus drop off point to location
Alternative: Sightseer Bus. See details.
Along the way to the first Nordkette Cable Car station, Congress Station, there will be 2 streets that you will be passing by, Maria-Theresien Straße and Herzog-Friedrich Straße. Both streets have attractions to go to but it is advisable to start riding the cable car as early as 1pm as the Hafelekar Bergstation at the peak closes early at 5pm. These streets can be revisited after you are back from the Cable Car trip as it is on the route back to the Flixbus stop.
Also known as the Triumphal Arch, it is a stone arch built in 1765 for a royal wedding. It has 3 arches and stands out at the side of the road.
Journey
20 Mins 1.6km walk from Kaiserjägermuseum
Alternative: Sightseer Bus. See details.
A spacious urban square with undulating concrete flooring that slopes up and sculpts the circulation of the square. Its minimal planting increases the prominence of the freedom monument at its centre.
Journey
2 Mins 180m walk from Triumphpforte
The wide street and elongated square opens up a view towards the Northern Range, creating this stretch of street a picturesque area. When you google Innsbruck, this is the place where most photos are taken from. Have your lunch here.
You can buy some snacks from MPREIS, a gourmet market in the basement of Kaufhaus Tyrol for the Hafelekar Cable Car trip as the food on top will be pricier.
Journey
4 Mins 300m walk from Landhausplatz
Alternative: Sightseer Bus. See details.
A 31 metres tall viewing deck that used to be a watch tower for the guards. Climb up 133 steps on a spiral stairs to get a view of the surroundings.
Opening Hours
Daily
10am - 8pm for June - September
10am - 5pm for October - May
Admission
Adult: 4 Euros
Children: 2 Euros
Free if you have an Innsbruck Card. See ticketing details.
Journey
4 Mins 290m walk from Town Square
Adjacent to the Stadtturm Watchtower, the Golden Roof is famous for the prominent balcony that is made of gold.
Journey
You can arrive here from Town Square via Sightseer Bus. See details.
A bridge that crosses the Inn River. This river is 518km long and spans from Switzerland, past Austria and all the way to Germany. Walk alongside this river and admire the buildings on the opposite while you make your way to the first Nordkette Cable Car station.
Journey
3 Mins 200m walk from Stadtturm City Tower
Opening Hours
Daily, Departs every 15 Mins
7.15am - 7.15pm on Weekdays
8am - 7.15pm on Weekends/Holidays
Round Trip Cable Car Tickets
Congress ↔ Hafelekar Station
Adult: 36.50 Euros
Students, Elderly above 66: 32.90 Euros
Youth aged 17-19: 29.20 Euros
Child aged 16 & below: 21.90 Euros
View Full Price List Here, under "Rates Leisure"
Free if you have an Innsbruck Card. See ticketing details.
The highlight of the trip is Hafelekar, a mountain along the Northern Range. In order to get to Hafelekar, you can ride the Nordkette Cable Car from the first station - Congress Station.
The ascending Cable Car journey consists of the following:
3 tram stops to Hungerburg Station
Change tram to cable car at Hungerburg Station
Change of cable car at Seegrube Bergstation
When changing tram / cable car, you will exit the station completely and will be walking a bit to the other station. The journey is not one continuous ride bottom up so you can take your time changing stations and explore each station. Same goes when descending the cable car, except that you should take note of the station's closing hours.
Alternatively, if you wish to do some hikes, you can spend 2 hours to hike up from Hungerburg Station to Hafelekar through 3 continuous trails called Zweier Abfahrt, Kurzes Tal and Langes Tal. It's going to be very steep as you go up. View hiking trail from Hungerburg Station to Hafelekar here.
Hungerburgbahn Congress Station. All stations are designed by Zaha Hadid.
Tram at Hungerburg Station.
Opening Hours
Daily, Departs every 15 Mins
7.15am - 7.15pm on Weekdays
8am - 7.15pm on Weekends/Holidays
From Hungerburg Station onwards, you can get a panoramic view of the entire city of Innsbruck. There is nothing much at this station apart from the observation deck. Nearing Christmas, there might be a small Christmas market set up here. Head up to the next station as there are more activities to do above.
Opening Hours
Daily, Departs every 15 Mins
8.30am - 5.30pm
Friday Evening Ride
6pm - 11.30pm
Step outside the station and take a sit at the sun terrace facing towards Innsbruck or take a short stroll along the Kurzes Tal and Tobel trail that leads downwards to the previous station.
On the left side of the station is a Magic Carpet Ski Area and Nordkette Skyline Park. Both are mostly operational during Winter. The Magic Carpet Ski Area is a short gentle sloping terrain with a conveyor belt on the right where you can sled down for free. The Nordkette Skyline Park is a ski zone that requires an entrance fee.
Admission Tickets for Nordkette Skyline Park after 12pm
Adult: 29.20 Euros
Students, Elderly above 66: 26.30 Euros
Youth aged 17-19: 23.40 Euros
Child aged 16 & below: 17.50 Euros
View Full Price List Here, under "Rates Sport"
If you're planning to ski at Nordkette Skyline Park or any other ski areas in Innsbruck, check out their operating status here before making a trip.
Opening Hours
Daily, Departs every 15 Mins
9am - 5pm
At an altitude of 2,256 metres, the Hafelekar Bergstation shows you plenty of amazing sights. At the top, you will come closer to the mountains in the North. The wind is strong here (please do not lose your ticket at this point) and you will get to see both sides of the ridge. Towards the South is a higher panoramic view of the city, surrounding mountains and peaks while towards the North all you will see are rows of mountain range. When they are covered in snow in Winter, they are absolutely stunning.
The peak, which is also an observation deck, is called Hafelekarspitze. You will have to hike up a little bit towards the East to get there. If the ground is good, you can even hike to the secondary ridge towards the North but please be careful as the ridge is narrow.
The West side has an observation deck as well. Beyond it is the Karrinne Trail that leads you back to Seegrube Bergstation and Seegrubenspitze which is really steep and would require proper hiking gear to get there.
Try to stay at the top till the sun sets. That way, you'd get to see an overview of the city of Innsbruck both day and night, which is a great closure for the trip.
This card is an all in one card that covers admission fees for various museums, parks and observation decks, 1 round cable car trip for various mountains, discounts for various attractions and free public transportation, including buses, trams and Sightseer Bus.
24 Hours Ticket
Adult: 43 Euros
Children aged 6-15: 21.50 Euros
With this card, the attractions mentioned in this itinerary, Sightseer Bus, Stadtturm City Tower and Nordkette Cable Car are all included. View the complete list of what the card covers here.
You can get them online or at ticketing offices at attractions, cable cars, train station, hotels and airport.
For those who do not want to walk a lot, you can ride the Sightseer Hop on & Hop off Bus that takes you to various landmarks and attractions in Innsbruck. View more information and their bus stops here.
Individual Prices
Adult: 16 Euros
Children aged 6-15: 10 Euros
Family Ticket (2 Adults + 3 Child): 47 Euros
Available for free for tourists who stay at Innsbruck overnight. Read about its benefits here and here.