Schloßberg Castle
Schloßberg Castle is a castle in Austria, located in the city of Graz. It is the city’s most favorite and famous landmark. The castle is located in the old part of the city, on a very high hill. The name Schlossberg means “Castle Mountain”. Other popular attractions include a park, cafes, a theater, and numerous glades.
History
The castle was built in 1125 and has been the residence of emperors since the 15th century. It was never captured until 1809. Three times Napoleon’s troops tried to take the castle, and only in 1809 did they succeed in blowing it up. And in 1839 a city park was laid out here, but the castle itself was never fully restored.
.Tourists
At the moment, there are many interesting structures to visit in this place. Many fortifications, as well as theaters, cafes and a park located on the castle grounds.
There are three ways to access the castle grounds. One of them, and one of the most difficult, is to climb on foot. And since the height of the mountain – 70 meters, and the steps are located zigzag, which complicates the ascent, it will take about half an hour and will take a little bit of strength. However, the whole ascent is equipped with rest areas, from which you can enjoy the views of the nearby town. Most castle visitors prefer to go down rather than up this way. The second way up is the funicular, which has been called the Schlossbergbahn since 1894. And the third way is the elevator, which rises to a height of 77 meters in a matter of minutes.
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Until five in the evening, you can book an informative guided tour of the castle grounds. You can also enjoy a delicious lunch in small cafes and buy traditional souvenirs in specialized stores.
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You can visit the castle every day from 10:00 to 17:00. And the price of admission ticket is for an adult – 4$, and for a student or child – free.
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Attractions
The most interesting and popular place to visit is the Clock Tower, built in 1265 and restored in 1569. This chapel is interesting and unique in that it originally had only one hand on its clock, showing only hours. Over time, a minute hand was added to it, but it was smaller than the previous one. Now the long and thick hand shows the hours and the smaller hand shows the minutes, confusing visitors. From this place and the nearby Bell Tower there is a wonderful view of the surrounding countryside.
.There is also a military museum built on the castle grounds. It exhibits ancient cannons, and ancient weapons collected from as far back as 1551. It is the largest arsenal of weapons in the world, its number is 30,000 exhibits. Nearby, in the open air there is a theater and in the warm season in it you can see performances. Also worth seeing are the exhibition halls in the catacombs, the beautiful Chinese pavilion, and the unusual Gothic entrance gate.
.Useful information
Address
Wickenburggasse 13, 8010 Graz
How to get there
Take streetcar 4, 5, 12 to the Schlossbergbahn (Sackstraße)
stop.
