Innsbruck - A Provincial Town with Heart

Innsbruck has a lovely location surrounded by the Alps in the Inn Valley at the crossing of some of the historically most important trade routes in Europe. It is at the northern end of the Brenner Pass, which presently allows Innsbruckers to zip to Italy in around half an hour if traffic allows but for centuries was a challenging but possible route through the mighty Alps. Trade made Innsbruck rich and the town still oozes prosperity.

Innsbruck has a small but interesting old town. From its main drag – Maria-Theresien-Straße – the Alps provide a constant backdrop and I was wondering if the locals ever tire of looking up at the mountains. The buildings in the old town are interesting too with facades from various eras. Numerous restaurants and cafés line the streets in the pedestrian zone inviting you to linger.

The symbol of Innsbruck is the Goldenes Dachl (Small Golden Roof), a small spectator balcony with a golden roof. It was built by Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I around 1500. Maximilian I loved Tirol and Innsbruck and visited on numerous occasions. The Maximilianeum explained the life and influence of this colorful ruler who is often described as the last knight. He laid the foundations of the Habsburg Empire on which the sun never set.

Maximilian I was also responsible for the creation of one of the most important Renaissance artworks in the German-speaking world – his mausoleum. As Maximilian and his entourage left huge debts in Innsbruck, the town refused the dying emperor entry and the Emperor’s Tomb is therefore empty. Construction of the mausoleum continued for around half a century before money ran out and although uncompleted, it is still a very impressive sight.

The Glockenmuseum (Bells Museum) is an interesting museum on the history and manufacturing of bells. It has several hands-on displays too.

To the south of Innsbruck is the Bergisel with a famous ski jump. Nearby is the lovely Schloss Ambrass with interesting museums and art in addition to the impressive building and parks.

Quick Tips:

Innsbruck has a famously lovely location but approaching it by car from whatever direction forces you to travel through even more beautiful landscapes. Thus, after driving several hours from Salzburger Land along mountains and in the Inn Valley, the first views of Innsbruck were rather disappointing. This town of 130,000 is one of only three inside the Alps mountain range that exceeds 100,000 and its outskirts are not particularly impressive or beautiful. In the outskirts are numerous industries, the autobahns that go down the Inn Valley as well as through the Brenner Pass Italy are amongst the busiest in Europe, and with the exception of the wonderful ski jump at Bergisel even the fantastic winter sport arenas are not particularly beautiful from the outside. However, once inside the old town, things dramatically improve. Having spent the previous week in Vienna, Innsbruck clearly seemed provincial in comparison and the museums and palaces could not enthralled at the same level but the town is still beautiful and interesting. I particularly enjoyed being able to constantly see the lovely Alps from virtually any spot in town.

The Innsbruck Card sold by the tourist office offers great value for money. It allows unlimited use of the public transportation system as well as admission to all the major sights in town. Nothing makes the card pay for itself faster than ascending the mountains but even with low cloud cover preventing us from going up higher than Hungerburg, we still made a handsome saving on normal admission prices. The card currently sells for €24 for 24 hours, €29 for 48 hours, and €34 for 72 hours.

Best Way To Get Around:

Innsbruck’s old town spreads around the long Maria-Theresien-Straße, which makes a T-junction with Herzog-Friedrich-Straße at the Goldenes Dachl. These two pedestrian-only streets neatly keep traffic out of the center making parking at a parking lot at the outskirts of the old town advisable – few foreigners ever master the complicated Austrian street-side parking regulations.

Innsbruck has an excellent public transportation system with the trams, which runs through Maria-Theresien-Straße, particularly useful. Buses take visitors to sights further afield such as Schloss Ambrass. Numerous cable cars are available to the peaks in the region with the ride up to Hungerburg and from here to the top of Hefelkar (2,334 m/7657 ft) particularly popular. Low clouds prevented us from making this two-hour trip but the views from the top must be wonderful as it not only looks down at Innsbruck but also south to the Brenner Pass and Italy.

Once I’ve spotted the Innsbruck branch of the famous Viennese coffee shop Café Sacher, there were no doubts or debate on where we were going to have our mid-afternoon caffeine fix never mind that we have spent the previous week in Vienna itself. Located inside the Hofburg (Imperial Palace), Café Sacher has a superb location in the old town with easy access from all the sights in the former imperial district.

We were fortunate to claim the last table up a flight of stairs in a back room deep inside the café. Some sections here were already closed for a private reception and I could put the server’s mind to rest that we too would be out of there within less than an hour and way before they really needed the space. The decor was much as expected – Viennese-style café furniture with dark-red upholstery and the Baroque “S” for Sacher all over the place. The walls were overloaded with photos of famous people who had previously visited the establishment.

It was to be our final coffee in Austria before heading back to Frankfurt and we were going to make it elaborated. My wife and I thus ordered a Wiener Melange each (€2.80) – no cappuccino here despite Innsbruck being closer to Venice than to Vienna – and a Sacherturm for two (€15). The Sacherturm, literally Sacher Tower, comes in a stand with four levels of plates with Viennese treats. You can’t pick the individual confections but Sachertorte is always included. Ours furthermore had a wonderful Apfelstrudel, some tennis ball-like cakes that I have never seen previously or since, and some dainty, small delicacies on the top layer. It was simply divine. The one-year old did a repeat of his visit to Sacher Eck in Vienna and promptly fell asleep while the four-year old was fobbed off with a €1.20 vanilla ice cream. All in all, 45 minutes of bliss for just less than €22.

Café Sacher Innsbruck
Kaiserliche Hofburg zu Innsbruck
6020 Innsbruck
Tel: 0512-565626

A stroll through the old town revealed much of the beauty of Innsbruck as well as no lack of eateries. The sun was shining but rain was threatening so we wanted somewhere out doors but with suitably sturdy umbrellas. Our guidebook recommended two places close to each other at the end of the pedestrian zone. As both had similar chairs and umbrellas – if differently colored table cloths – we decided to give our custom to Goldener Adler purely based on it superior offerings on the Tagesmenu – the daily recommended items listed on the black boards facing the street.

We found a pleasant table in the thick of things from where we could evaluate the presentation of several dished even before Frau Prader – in contrast to many American restaurants servers (here called waiters / waitresses) do not introduce themselves to the guests but her name was printed on the bill – could present us with the menu.

My wife ordered a Wiener schnitzel (€9.80), which was thin and cooked to perfection and for once not accompanied by potatoes in whatever guise but rather white rise with peas. I had the Tiroler Rostbrate (€14.50) – a choice based upon what I saw on a nearby table. It had slivers of beef with bacon, various vegetables and mushrooms, with a thick, very tasty gravy, and topped with roasted onions. It was accompanied by baked potatoes and a small, fresh salad. After ten days in Austria, the four-year old had seen one schnitzel too many and demanded pasta. Her Spaghetti Bolognaise (€6.70) was not from a children’s menu and thus wonderfully tasty and not the horribly sweet tomato sauce, which too many restaurants inexplicably think children would like.

While waiting for our food, a dash indoors confirmed that Goldener Adler is one of the posh, old-town hotels in Innsbruck. The names of famous former guests, including Heine and Camus, and especially a long list of European nobility mostly of yesteryear, are carved in marble near the front entrance. Maximilian I and Mozart stayed here too but for some reason their names are on two separate slabs of lighter-colored marble, which left me to first doubt the authenticity but later wondered if they were still too unknown at their time of lodging to have been included in the original list.

There was a tense and uncomfortable moment after the meal. Having spent the previous ten days either in Vienna or in its zone of influence so to speak, my wife forgot where she was and unabashedly ordered Wiener Melange. With Italy half-an-hour’s dash down the Brenner Pass, I wanted to dive under the table in embarrassment. Frau Prader snorted down her nose that this establishment did not serve Wiener Melange but we might have cappuccinos (€2.60) instead. As that was all that we wanted, we ordered it, and were left to speculate what, if anything, Vienna has done to Frau Prader.

Goldener Adler
Herzog-Friedrich-Straße 6
A-6020 Innsbruck
Tel: 0043-512-571111

"Bella gerant alii, tu, felix Austria nube
Nam quae Mars aliis, dat tibi regna Venus"

"Let others war, thou, happy Austria, wed;
What some owe Mars, from Venus take instead."

One of the best-known sights in Innsbruck is the Goldenes Dachl (Little Golden Roof) at the t-junction of Maria-Theresien-Straße and Herzog-Friedrich-Straße in the heart of the old town. It is, as the name clearly hints, a small golden roof on top of a spectator’s gallery.

According to legend, Tyrolean Duke Friedrich the Penniless had this roof covered with golden coins to put paid to rumors that he was bankrupt. Friedrich was indeed poor but the golden roof was only erected six decades after his death by Emperor Maximilian I, who ironically was once refused entry into Innsbruck because of his entourage’s debts.

In the building is a small museum, the Maximilianeum, which focuses on the life of Kaiser Maximilian I, who ruled from 1493 to 1519. He was one of the most interesting figures in the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation’s history and is often referred to as the Last Knight in Europe. Due to conservation concerns, visitors cannot actually enter the famous balcony itself but you can peak through the open door onto the balcony where a mirror reflects the painting of Maximilian and his two wives.

The famous quote above, often wrongly thought to refer to Maria Theresa’s 16 children who married nobility throughout Europe, actually refers to Maximilian I and his children. They all married well. Maximilian’s first wife, Maria of Burgundy, brought most of the Netherlands (including modern-day Belgium) and Burgundy under Habsburg control. His second wife, Maria Bianca Sforza of Milan, brought large parts of Italy under Habsburg rule. Marrying off his children and grandchildren, as well as the odd war or two, vastly expand Habsburg power. His grandson and successor, Charles V (1519-1556), ruled the Holy Roman Empire, Burgundy, the Netherlands, Hungary, Bohemia, Naples, Sicily, Sardinia, Spain, and much of America and other colonies. As Charles V put it himself, "in my realm the sun never sets."

The museum has further interesting facts on the life of Maximilian including his coronation. Several rulers, including the French king and Venetian doge, were against Maximilian’s election as German king and clearly hoped for a break from Habsburg rule. At his coronation, Maximilian wanted to make it clear he would defend his throne militarily if necessary. A few choice words might have been called for, but why risk the message getting lost in translation or misinterpret by diplomats. Leaving the orb in storage and carrying a cannon ball instead got the message through loud and clear: the Venetian doge extended his sincerest felicitations within days (but still refused Maximilian permission to travel through his territory for a formal coronation by the Pope; a 500-year tradition thus fell away conveniently with the last coronation prior to the Lutheran Reformation).

Kaiser Maximilian I loved Innsbruck and selected it for his mausoleum. However, Innsbruck fell out of love with him – as he and especially his entourage left huge, unpaid debts – and when the time came, the town bluntly refused him entry. He thus died in Wels and his earthly remains were buried in Wiener Neustadt near Vienna. His grandiose mausoleum in the Hofkirche remains empty.

The original plans called for 40 larger than life statues, 100 smaller ones of saints, and 34 busts of Roman emperors. By the late 16th century, when work was finally halted, only a fraction of these were completed but impressive enough to be considered one of the most important Renaissance artworks in the German-speaking world.

Guarding the grave are 28 larger-than-life statues of Maximilian’s royal predecessors as well as purely mythical and emotional figures such as King Arthur. The dress of these figures shows incredible detail and the artistic quality is partly explained by the contribution of no lesser artists than Albrecht Dürer, who designed King Arthur, Vischer, who made amongst others Arthur, and Veit Stoß. I failed to find an explanation for why Count Rudolf von Habsburg, the first Habsburger on the imperial throne, has such a shiny knob but then his one shoe was pretty shiny too and maybe it should be rubbed for luck or to ensure fertility, which of course is not necessarily the same thing. (Even though the church was basically empty I was not going to run the risk of getting it wrong.)

Most of the mausoleum itself, including the statue of a kneeling Maximilian on top, the wrought iron grills, and reliefs are the work of Flemish artist Alexandre Colin. Most of the 24 reliefs show battles but there are also two of Maximilian’s successful weddings – see Goldenes Dachl entry for more detail on his extraordinarily successful marriage diplomacy.

Of the Roman busts, 21 survived to the present but they are all in Schloss Ambrass, just outside Innsbruck (except for one that made it into the Bavarian National Museum in Munich).

Also in the church is the tomb of Tyrolean folk hero Andreas Hofer (1767-1810). After Napoleon gave Tyrol (amongst others) to Bavaria, Hofer led a famous battle against the French and Bavarians at Bergisel, where the modern ski jump is located. This revolt briefly drove the Bavarians out but they ruled Tyrol until 1815 when the borders of Europe were redrawn during the Congress of Vienna.

Admission to the Hofkirche is via the Tiroler Volksmuseum (Tyrolean Folk Art Museum) – separate admission fees apply.

"Wer mich berührt, den Krieg verliert, zweimal schon ausprobiert!"
(Inscription on a post-World War II bell – "Who touches me loses the war; it has already been tried twice!)

I simply love church bells. I have fond memories of hearing bells in numerous cities and, in contrast to many people, have never found them a nuisance even late at night or early in the morning. Church bells have never woken me up but I fondly recall hearing early morning the delightful chime of the bells of I assumed the Westerkerk while staying in Amsterdam as well as late at night those of St Michel in Hamburg. Visiting the Glocken Museum (Bells Museum) was therefore a priority while in Innsbruck.

The museum is to the south of the old town towards Bergisel near a couple of interesting churches and basilicas. It is a combination of a museum with a huge bell shop and a working bell foundry. Large windows from the museum allow the workshop to be observed in action and although there was no actual bell casting while we visited, we could see several shells and bells in progress.

The museum not only explains the bell making process but also the history of bells. The first bells were used around 3,000 years ago in China. Previously associated with heathen and pagan practices, bells were only accepted by the Christian church during the second century. In Europe, bells have frequently been melted down during wars to make cannons with the process reversed at times of peace – see the quote above!

Since the 15th century, it has been possible to tune bells. Following the Second World War, many cities in Germany used the opportunity when new bells had to be casted to tune the different church bells for more harmonious ringing. (In Germany, churches and indeed their bells belong to the various cities and worldly powers but the right of use as well as the right to ring the bells belongs to the congregations. When Frankfurt, where four 90-minute bell-ringing sessions are held annually, wanted to ring the bells at the reunion of Germany in 1990, the congregations refused such political request.)

A further section of the museum has numerous bells that can be touched, rung, and hammered to the joy of not only the children. I particularly enjoyed a water bell. This is basically an upside down bell filled with water. The idea is that if you rub the two handles with sufficient force and in harmony, not only does the bell hum, the water inside starts to jump almost as if boiling. Having previously seen and tried one with limited success while visiting Leipzig, I was delighted that my efforts here were much more successful than anticipated. Unfortunately, only the direct family was at hand to enjoy my spectacular success but they were frankly keener on hammering some of the other bells themselves – a process that requires zero skill and not even much force.