Day Two on our 48 hr Innsbruck Cards (Day One can be found here):
We arrived at Hofkirche in time for its 9:00 AM opening. The claim to fame of the Court Church is the presence of Emperor Maxmilian I’s cenotaph (that’s a monument to a deceased, not a tomb). It is located smack in the middle of the church, surrounded by 28 large bronze statues of relatives and heroes. It’s different, and definitely worth a look.
Access to Hofkirche is through the Tiroler Volkskunstmuseum, a museum dedicated to goods, festivities, and parlors (1450-1500) from the Tyrol region of Austria. Think centuries old folk art. It took us about thirty minutes to walk through the displays. Admittedly it was better than expected, but then again I did not expect much.
A ticket to the Hofkirche is €8, or a combination ticket with the museum is €12.
We left Tiroler Volkskunstmuseum about 10:00 AM and headed straight to the Goldenes Dachl Museum. There is not much one can say about a golden roof. It’s gold. And heavy. The museum was partially about the roof but mostly about Emperor Maximillian I, who had the roof constructed.
But for our Innsbruck Cards we would not gone to Tiroler Volkskunstmuseum or the Goldenes Dachl Museum (€5 each). Both were okay, but honestly we could have skipped them.
We made it back to our Airbnb for an early lunch before heading to the other side of town to the Patscherkofelbahn. Located in the Austrian Central Alps, Patscherkofel was the site of the 1964 and 1976 Winter Olympics. In the summer it is swarming with hikers.
Our journey started with short walk to the bus stop to catch the J Bus (its route goes back and forth between the Nordkettebahn and Patscherkofelbahn). The Innsbruck Cards include public transportation, saving us at least €11.20 in bus tickets.
After a thirty minute bus ride we walked straight onto a cable car. With our Innsbruck Cards we skipped the ticket lines and did not have to pay the standard round-trip fare of €26 each. Unlike the 50 person gondola on the Nordkette, the cable cars at Patscherkofelbahn seat eight and come at a constant pace.
Google Maps shows Mittlestation (at 1,716 meters, or 5,630 feet) part way up the mountain. I assumed it was like Seegrube, where we had to change Nordkettenbahn cable cars on the way up. Nope, we did not have to change cable cars.
Unknowingly we hopped off the cable car, walked out of Mittelstation, and found absolutely nothing but a gravel road leading to some trails. Basically it’s a starting point for hikers and bikers who don’t want to go to the top. We quickly turned around and hopped back on another cable car to continue the ride up.
Fortunately on Wednesday afternoon maybe one out of every ten cable cars was occupied. There was no waiting, and no sharing a cable car with others.
Exiting at Bergstation (1,965 meters, or 6,447 feet), not far below the peak of Patscherkofel, reminded me of going to a Mississippi State football game. Seriously. There are plenty of cows wandering around and every single one of them wears a cowbell.
Two restaurants are at the top, and the diners are serenaded by dozens of constantly ringing cowbells.
Stephanie and I went on a two hour hike on the Zirbenweg trail, from Bergstation to Boscheben (a restaurant), traversing the mountain rather than going up to the summit. This trail is fairly level and very popular. We came across a lot of elderly walkers on the trail.
One night a week Patscherkofelbahn stays open until 11:00 PM. I bet the top of the mountain would be an awesome place to see sunset and the city lights. Unfortunately our travel schedule prevented us from enjoying this experience.
So on day two we experienced Hofkirche, Tiroler Volkskunstmuseum, Goldenes Dachl Museum, Patscherkofelbahn, and rode the IVB bus. Had we paid separately, we would have spent €48.60 each.
Based on what we actually did over two days, the 48hr Innsbruck Cards (which cost €63 each) saved us €46.60 each, or €93.20 total. We definitely made great use of our cards.
For tourists wanting to see the museums in town, the cards are probably not worth it. But if you have time to attend multiple costly places (Nordkettenbahn, Alpenzoo, Patscherkofelbahn, and/or Swarokvski Kristallwelten), the cards can be a great deal.
After two long days of sightseeing, we spent our last day in Innsbruck doing nothing. A short walk, cleaning the Airbnb, and packing to leave was about it. The day’s highlight was baklava for desert at a nearby Turkish place, Mis Kebap & Döner.
On our way out of town we had about an hour to kill at Innsbruck Hauptbanhof before catching our train. With a long train ride ahead, we decided to grab McDonald’s for lunch. Walking in, I immediately complained about paying €0.40 per pack of ketchup. Stephanie quickly reminded me that we had a bottle of ketchup in our travel bag. Crisis averted.
On to Graz.
Garrett and Stephanie
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