Mountain ranges converge in picture-perfect Tirol (also spelled Tyrol). The place easily captures quintessential Alpine scenery. In the northeast and southwest are superb ski resorts. In the southeast, separated somewhat from the main state since part of South Tirol was ceded to Italy at the end of WWI, lies the protected natural landscape of the Hohe Tauern National Park, and Grossglockner (3797m), the country’s highest peak.
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Sights
INNSBRUCK
0512 / pop 111,000
Nearly everywhere you move in Innsbruck, majestic snow-capped mountains dominate your view. True, when you’re in the narrow, covered streets of the medieval town they may disappear from sight. However, once you’ve seen the famous Golden Roof and re-emerge, there they are still. It’s hard to resist the urge to get up high – to the reopened winter Olympics stadium and the new Bergisel ski-jump tower, or on an all-day hike.
KITZBÜHEL
05356 / pop 8600
Kitzbühel began life in the 16th century as a silver and copper mining town and today continues to preserve a charming medieval centre despite its other persona – as a fashionable and prosperous winter resort. It’s renowned for the white-knuckled Hahnenkamm downhill ski race in January on its excellent slopes.
LIENZ
04852 / pop 13,000
With the jagged Dolomite mountain ranges crowding its southern skyline, the capital of East Tirol is a scenic staging point for travels through the Hohe Tauern National Park.
HOHE TAUERN NATIONAL PARK
The largest national park in the Alps, Hohe Tauern (1786 sq km) is a hiking paradise where the flora and fauna are protected. The park contains the Grossglockner (3797m), Austria’s highest mountain, which towers over the 10km-long Pasterze Glacier. The best viewing point is Franz Josefs Höhe, reached from Lienz by bus between mid-June and late September (round-trip fare €10.20, plus a €2.70 toll for the park).
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