Innsbruck, Austria

Arrived in Innsbruck at our accommodation early afternoon. We stayed at Grand Hotel Europa, Südtiroler Pl. 2, 6020 Innsbruck. This 5-star hotel is opposite the railway station, so it's convenient for train travellers, has a restaurant and bar, gym, sauna & steam room. The Austrian's like the Scandinavian have dedicated wellness areas with infrared or traditional saunas as well as steam rooms. Our rooms were ready and quite large & modern. The hotel offers a secure ski room for your equipment.  A typical scene in the lobby most mornings and late afternoons was skiers dressed to go skiing or returning from the slopes. It seemed somewhat strange to see skiers in a city hotel and yet be the norm.

Photo courtesy of Grand Hotel Europa

At the Grand Hotel Europa and a few other hotels, they have a free shuttle bus that leaves at regular intervals to take to the local ski resorts. The closest is Axamer Lizum about 40 minutes by bus. The ski area was where the women's downhill was held at Innsbruck Winter Olympics. The area would have about 25% beginner; 60% Intermediate & 15% expert runs. Whereas the other larger ski area Stubai Glacier, which is about 45 minutes away, is approximately 60% beginner, 30% Intermediate & 10% expert. We enjoyed Stubai Glacier the most, as it had good length runs, fewer people and we had fresh powder snow, what a blast! One thing to know is that it's freezing on the top of the glacier we had a high of -22C, thoroughly enjoyed the coffee break after that.

Innsbruck itself is a smaller city, with everything you would need, good restaurants, great shopping lots of places to visit and nightlife. The one thing I loved about Innsbruck was that it didn't matter which street you looked down at the end was a mountain covered with snow. It's stunning to the eye and such a picturesque city in a valley surrounded by mountains high in the sky with a cap of snow.

One of best places to grab a snack was the Speckeria where we enjoyed Leberkase rolls (a meatloaf) for about 3 euros each. Quick, yummy and cheap eat. Across from the Speckeria was Kroll a strudel cafe. They have both sweet & savory strudels, worth the wait you sometimes encountered. Although my top pick for authentic home styled Austrian food is Stiftskeller, we enjoyed more than one meal there. The choices of Austrian dishes was extensive, and the food was excellent. I'd recommend it if you wanted to try local cuisine. We also tried out a local bustling burger joint, where they emphasised that the products were organic and healthy. Enjoyed my turkey burger as chicken is not as common here. I also recommend that you check out the Tirol Geniessen, do a taste test on the local schnapps & liqueurs of Austria.

I like Innsbruck for its city vibe without the chaos of a larger city, its beautiful surroundings and  having the ski areas practically at your front door. I would definitely recommend a visit to this picturesque city.