Small enough to reach everything by bike in almost half an hour. Big enough to cater for different tastes and interests. Graz is a city with just the right size! The river „Mur” flowing right through the city makes it as special as the tiny mountain „Schloßberg” with the town’s landmark “Uhrturm” (Clocktower) up there. Must See In Graz!
Must See In Graz
In Austria, Vienna and Salzburg enjoy major slices of the tourism sachertorte thanks to their history, beauty, and Sound of Music accolades. But what about Graz?
Austria’s second-largest city by population, it received more than 630,000 visitors in 2016. This is a healthy number, to be sure. But the capital city of the southern Austrian province of Styria is still largely overlooked by foreign tourists.
The Schlossberg
The Schlossberg (“Castle Mountain”) is one of Graz’s most popular attractions, offering views over the medieval roofscape of the Old Town. Though the massive fortifications have mostly been leveled. The old Clock Tower, which dates back to the 13th century, remains a landmark of the city. Enjoy the sunset from the terrace of one of the restaurants, sipping a glass of local Sauvignon Blanc.
The fortified medieval tower got its present shape around 1560. And its characteristic wooden gallery as a fire station. Three bells are ringing from the Clock Tower. Three coats of arms decorate the walls.
Botanical Garden
Resembling a large, exotic animal, the botanical garden greenhouses lie between art nouveau mansions in one of the most beautiful districts in Graz. They bring together exotic flora from four distinct climatic zones and world-class Graz architecture, without parallel. A place for science, inviting visitors to study, marvel, linger and unwind! The highest value so far achieved internationally.
Orientation and structure of the glasshouses allow a light transmission of 98%. The highest value so far achieved internationally. Thanks to slightly curved, double-walled acrylic glass elements framed by a minimum lightweight structure. Supply pipes are not visible as they are partly integrated in the structure.
Old Town Graz
The best way to get to know the city is “from above”. A lift, tram, walkway and steps lead up to the Schlossberg [Castle Hill]. A wonderful 360-degree all-round view is your reward for the ascent.
What is most striking about Graz is the beautiful architecture of its medieval and Italian Renaissance buildings. Explore the Old Town. UNESECO World Cultural Heritage Site, with its stuccoed facades, secret courtyards, and narrow alleys. Duck into galleries, museums, cafes, restaurants, and shops in the lively heart of the city.
Eat in Graz
Graz is an exceptional base for exploring the depths of Austrian cuisine.
Aiola Upstairs’s Caesar salad, for example, features local heart of lettuce and is drizzled with pumpkin seed oil, a major agricultural output in this region. Other can’t-miss restaurants include Der Steirer, Gasthaus zur Alten Press, and Der Krebsenkeller.
Eggenberg Palace
Take an afternoon to visit this magnificent Baroque palace on the Western edge of Graz. The palace’s layout, designed by Imperial Governor Hans Ulrich von Eggenberg, is based on the Gregorian calendar. Here you will find exactly 365 windows, 31 rooms on each floor, 24 state rooms with 52 doors and four corner towers, all alluding to time, the seasons, weeks, days hours, and minutes.
Don’t forget to take a stroll around the palace garden. The building represents a precisely calculated cosmos. It was commissioned by Prince Hans Ulrich von Eggenberg from the year 1625 to embody his wish for a harmonious structure, reacting to the chaos of the 16th century.
In Austria, Vienna and Salzburg enjoy major slices of the tourism sachertorte thanks to their history, beauty, and Sound of Music accolades. But what about Graz?
Austria’s second-largest city by population, it received more than 630,000 visitors in 2016. This is a healthy number, to be sure.
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