Linz. I do believe, that the third-largest town of Austria is truly underrated. Years ago already, when we had our Austrian travel bloggers’ meeting in Linz, I have been impressed with what you can do in the city of Linz. Getting creative, that is, baking your own famous Linzer cake for instance. Visiting the internationally acclaimed Ars Electronica Center as part of an exciting mix of events. Around Linz, I have explored the fascinating abbeys Sankt Florian & Kremsmünster, as well as the Christmas markets of Wels, the largest in this part of Austria.
Art meets architecture: The Ars Electronica Center by the Danube river, right opposite the old town of Linz.
So did you know that, among others, you may stay as a hermit in the dome cathedral of Linz? That city beekeepers are “humming up” town, and that the “Linzer Höhenrausch” is unique all over Austria?
As I said. Linz, the capital city of Upper Austria, about one and a half hour’s drive west of Vienna, is simply totally underestimated. Just recently, my friend Janett and I went on a summer city trip and had a fresh look at all that Linz may offer. “Paul’s Linz“, for example, a really great restaurant located right on Cathedral Square of Linz’s Mariendom. It is also just a few minutes away from our hotel, the Kolping Hotel, which has been awarded the Austrian Eco-Label for their sustainable energy management in tourism. Thanks to the hotel’s location right in the middle of the city, we can easily reach everywhere, yet still enjoy quiet nights thanks to our rooms’ location facing the inner courtyard. Nice.
Starting from our Hotel Kolping …
… whose breakfast honey, by the way, is made with lots of tender loving care by local city beekeeper Manuela Rabengruber …
… we first of all visit the town of Linz …
… its mighty dome dedicated to the Holy Mary, in whose tower you may apply to reside as a hermit for a week …
… after our walk through the old town …
… we enjoy dinner at “Paul’s Linz” …
… visit the hill opposite the old town, called Pöstlingberg thanks to this comfy little train which leaves from the city centre every 20 minutes …
… then there is a small ride inside the hill, not only suitable for children but loved by adults, too!
Do get your Linz Card for a great many discounts, even free entries, across town and all major attractions, as well as public transport.
Downtown Linz: Ars Electronica + “Linzer Höhenrausch”, a kind of “house top walk” combined with international art exhibitions.
If you visit Linz, you must make sure to set aside a couple of hours for the Ars Electronica Center. There’s a so-called “Deep Space” Laboratory there, among others, taking you on 360° flights around space provided by 8K resolution cameras: I have never “seen space” in quite the same way before. The interactive museum, then, allows and welcomes you to touch almost everything. Janett and I even made sure to have a 3D photo made of us, which you too may watch here (quite hilarious, really)!
Loving the interactive “Deep Space” at the Ars Electronica Linz …
… a museum that truly caters to all the science nerds and lovers of all things new technology among you.
Finally, the so-called “Linzer Höhenrausch“, whose entrance is located right inside the old town and along the city’s main pedestrian street, is a unique combination of outdoor walkways high above town and into larger-than-life exhibits, topical art (“water”, this year) as I’ve never seen it before. With water as its motto, there are plenty of opportunities to freshen up during the walk, perfect now during this hot summer. Check this out.
Many very talented, international artists make up the “Höhenrausch” in Linz each year …
… featuring large scale exhibits such as this one sculpture made entirely out of refugee boats in the Mediterranean …
… there are views of the city, too, that you cannot enjoy otherwise …
… let alone the many opportunities to freshen up …
… and to enjoy the art on display: Love this one by a Japanese artist made out of wool strings woven together!
Last but not least, do make sure to get on a “Mural Harbour Tour” followed by a short street art graffiti session, as well as visit the voest alpine steel world in Linz, fascinating in its kind.
“When the water we need for producing stell is pumped back into the Danube, it is two degrees warmer and actually much cleaner than before,” our highly experienced guide at the Stahlwelt Linz smiles at us now. How is that possible, I wonder? Our factory tour leads us right behind the scenes of one of the most ecologically sound steel production companies in the world, and also gives us an overview of its history, all the way to its present-day position in a global, “steel-hungry” society. How the choice of steel production fell on Linz in the first place. How humble beginnings led to the Voest Alpine being one of the leading steel production companies on the world market. And how all of this is happening inside the framework of sustainability, and energy management.
Visiting the steel world at the Voest Alpine Linz …
… we haven’t been allowed to take further pictures beyond the factory tour, but I’d still encourage to visit if you have a knack for global context steel production. Very insightful what we’ve learned here on this tour.
The “Mural Harbour Tour” is not far, either …
… taking place inside a quiet part of the Linz Harbour …
… and taking us around many commissioned and officially endorsed murals, such as this one.
After the tour, Janett and I get to become creative ourselves, and are invited to try spraying art on a nearby wall: It’s not as easy as it looks! Reminds me of having tried something like this in Brazil, too!
You may also get creative in the city of Laakirchen close to Linz. At the local papermaking museum, you have the opportunity to craft your own handmade paper in the immediate vicinity of the famous Traunsee lake …
… and it’s true that we just had to escape the city heat for a while, have our dips in the Traunsee lake, one of Austria’s most famous ones, in order to be ready for our next creative workshop: The art of paper making. It does sound a little crazy, I admit, yet if you consider what else Janett and I have already been up to (a dumpling cooking class in Salzburg, a mojito mix lesson in Costa Brava, a chain saw carving lesson in Burgenland, etc.) it’s really quite normal for us.
Visit the ALFA event venue & paper making factory in Laakirchen …
… where you can have fun making your own paper as a nice little give away (there’s a Facebook Live Video about it too!).
Disclaimer: We have been invited on this trip by Linz Tourism Board, Hotel Kolping and the Austrian Eco Label for Tourism. All opinions are my own.