Inn Valley
What makes the Tyrolean valley that hosts the course of the Inn river interesting are villages and towns full of atmosphere and curiosities, starting with Landeck, the westernmost, which dominates the valley with its medieval castle. Imst is famous for its Carnival masks, while the nearby Cistercian Abbey of Stams boasts an imposing baroque church. Just after Innsbruck, Hall appears, a characterful village that prospered for centuries thanks to the salt trade and the Mint that coined money for all Europe.
The nearby Wattens hosts the dazzling headquarters of Swarovski and the beautiful houses of Schwarzson are witnesses to the former wealth due to silver mines. Schloss Tratzberg is the evocative late Gothic castle from which Emperor Maximilian set out for hunting trips and Kufstein, an ancient stronghold on the border with Germany, boasts a welcoming historic center and a fortress that houses a famous organ with 4,307 pipes.
Stubaital Valley
Stubaital is one of the first valleys you encounter when entering Austria from the Brenner Pass and is dominated by the spectacular ski area of the Stubai Glacier, the largest glacier ski resort in all of Austria, located about halfway between Brenner and Innsbruck.
Here, white circus enthusiasts can start warming up their muscles as early as autumn: the 24 modern lifts and 110 km of slopes guarantee excitement and fun all year round.
Five villages enliven the tourist area: Schonberg, Mieders, Telfes, Fulpmes, and Neustift, united in a single consortium serving visitors: the Stubai Tirol.
Gastein Valley
Gastein Valley is the long valley at the foot of the Tauern Mountains, offering majestic mountain views and a well-equipped ski area, that of Sportgastein. The undisputed jewel is Bad Gastein, a traditional spa town, whose waters, known since Roman times, are excellent for treating asthma and rheumatism. The early 1900s hotels are fascinating, telling an important chapter of the region’s tourism history.
Salzkammergut
Salzkammergut is a picturesque region east of Salzburg, famous especially for the numerous lakes set in a pre-Alpine landscape. Among these, one of the best known is the Wolfgangsee, which was the setting for the famous operetta “White Horse Inn”: the eponymous hotel and the sanctuary are the main attractions. The surroundings of the large Attersee were much loved by Klimt and Mahler, who composed some works here, while the Mondsee (the moon lake) shows off its characteristic crescent shape and boasts settlements of very ancient origin. The small Fuschlsee and the Traunsee with the town of Gmunden, famous for its ceramics, are also delightful.
Bad Ischl
Bad Ischl is the spa town where the young Sissi met her future husband Franz Joseph. An air of elegance and sophistication still surrounds the Kaiservilla, the imperial couple’s retreat, the villas (including that of the composer Franz Lehar) and the cafés of this location framed by suggestive forested peaks. Bad Ischl is also a convenient base for excursions to the lakes of Bad Aussee, such as the fairy-tale Toplitzsee, or to the enchanting Abbey of Admont, which boasts a magnificent baroque library.
