“The new Hungerburg mountain railway”, Zaha Hadid
After a bit of sightseeing, shopping and lunch in town, go up the mountain for a coffee: you can do that in Innsbruck now because the mountain railway up to the Nordpark of Innsbruck has been completely rebuilt. This skiing, snowboarding and hiking centre “right on your doorstep” can be reached within 20 minutes from the centre of the city – from 580 m to an altitude of 2,300m. Celebrity architect Zaha Hadid has created a landmark again.
Section 1 of the rebuilt project takes passengers up and down from the Hungerburg to the Seegrube and on up to the Hafelekar. This is the quickest way for skiers, snowboarders and sun-worshippers to get out onto the piste. And for experts there are extreme pistes.
For nature lovers there are deep snow slopes, snowboarders and free-riders will enjoy the pipes and backcountry, and then there are the sun-terraces for those who simply want to relax. The contrast between state of the art technology and preserved historical buildings is particularly exciting. The mountain and valley terminals, dating from the 1920s have been very carefully adapted. An impressive example of this is the careful renovation of the restaurant.
A more spectacular architectural landmark is section 2 of the new cable railway project from Innsbruck`s Old Town up onto the Hungerburg. The celebrated architect, Zaha Hadid, who has already set a landmark at the Bergisel skijump, designed the terminals in the city centre, on the Hungerburg and at the Alpine Zoo. – bold shapes with clear functions. The ride up the mountain begins only a few steps away from Innsbruck`s Old Town and takes 20 minutes. During the ride you will cross the city, the River Inn, forests and craggy rocks before you get into the heart of the Alps. No other European city can offer you these contrasts in such a short space of time and in such an impressive way. In this way Innsbruck is really living up to its reputation as a European wintersports capital!
