I have been to Graz for several days earlier this year and I can tell you that this town has much more to offer than just the famous Clock Tower (Uhrturm) for which it is known.
Graz is the third-largest town in Austria, it is located about 200 km south of Vienna, it is the capital of Styria (one of the nine provinces of the Republic of Austria), and there is also a univeristy in Graz.
Football fans might remember that one of the teams based here (Sturm Graz) played (and lost) against Manchester United in the Champions League.
Other than that, Graz is not very well known in the UK. But it is certainly worth to spend a few days here to explore the attractions, to do some shopping or simply to enjoy the scenery and relax.
If you drive to Graz by car, please bear in mind that - unlike in other Austrian towns - there is a very strict speed limit of 30 km/h with the exception of some priority roads where you are allowed to drive at a maximum speed of 50 km/h (it did cost me approx. GBP 25.- to be too fast).
Public transport: There is no underground in Graz, but they operate quite an efficient tram and bus system, which means that you do not have to use your car to get around in Graz.
Graz is known as the Green Town because there is a lot of green in the town, like extensive parks and gardens and the famous Schlossberg hill (details follow below). Even the trams are green (at least there were green originally before some of them were turned into moving commercials by allowing companies to paint the trams with their product advertisments).
WHERE TO GO AND WHAT TO SEE
There is an airport in Graz, but I doubt that you will find any direct flights form the UK. The only available options are via Zurich, Frankfurt Munich or Vienna.
Let's assume that you arrive at the main railway station (by train from Vienna).
You should then walk down the Annenstrasse towards the town centre. Annenstrasse is known to be the most famous shopping street in Graz (and it is the most expensive property in Graz in the Austrian version of Monopoly).
At the end of Annenstrasse you cross a square (Südtiroler Platz) and then you cross the river Mur to continue into the Murgasse until you arrive at Hauptplatz (main square, town centre).
On your way, apart from the shops, you will see a number of quite old houses including a very old (but still operational) hospital and pharmacy.
Hauptplatz is the heart of Graz, there and in Herrengasse (starts at Hauptplatz) you will find the most attractive buildings, fine houses, restaurants, museums and shops.
Luegg house, for example, is known for its stucco facade dating back to the 17th century, whereas the Landhaus (seat of the local parliament) is a remarkable renaissance building.
The Zeughaus (also in Herrengasse) is a muesum of arms, one of the largest such colleciton in the world, with a lot of armoury in excellent order, previously used by the knights and soldiers in the 1700s and 1800s. More than 29,000 weapons of all kinds are on display here (cold steel, arms on poles and fire-arms, arquebuses, pistols, muskets, etc.).
SCHLOSSBERG
A visit to Graz is not complete without having been to the Schlossberg, the green hill overlooking Graz from about 120 meters.
For your way up the hill I recommend to use the old Schlossbergbahn (a funicular). You might have difficulty to find the entrance, it is hidden in a row of terraced houses alongside the Mur river, in Franz Sackstrasse.
The Schlossberg offers a number of gardens and terraces with magnificent views over the Mur valley and Graz, and there is also a belltower and the most famous clocktower (Uhrturm) which you will find on every postcard of Graz.
The Uhrturm (clock tower) has large dials on all four sides. And the strange thing with those dials is that they are wrong, and you might be confused when you look at it. The long hand points to the hour and the short hand points to the minute!
EGGENBERG
Schloss Eggenberg (situated within Graz, about 4 km from the centre to the west) is one of the finest palaces that you can see in the whole area. It was built to the current style between 1625 and 1635 by Italian architects, as home of the Eggenberg family.
In total there are four buildings, with an arcaded court in the middle. When we were there, we have seen a lot of peacocks in the gardens surrounding the palace.
Inside, you should visit the Baroque Apartments (Prunkräume) on the second floor, still in the original decoration of the 18th century, baroque style, a lot of stucco and fine paintings as well as some of the original furniture.
There are two museums as well, a Collection of Antiquities and a Hunting Museum.
AUSTRIAN OPEN AIR MUSEUM
If you have got some more time, I recommend that you visit the Austrian Open Air Museum, the first of its kind worldwide. It was opened in the 1960s, but enlarged since then. The museum is situated about 15 km outside Graz, direction Bruck/Mur.
It is a two hours walk up into the forest, and there have been rebuilt more than 50 rural homes and their dependencies from the different regions of Austria. You can also see a historic shop, some farms, a church and a school. A sawmill, smits and mills complete the picture of the formar rural community in Austria.
PIBER
If you like horses, then this is certainly for you. The world famous Stud Farm of Piber, where the white horses (Lippizaner) are trained before they come to the Spanish Riding School in Vienna.
It is located west of Graz, close to Köflach, about half an hour drive. Piber is open to the public from Easter to the end of October, guided tours are available at 9 am and 2 pm every day.
We have seen about 35 horses that were born a few months ago. They did not yet have the typical white colour of the Lippizaners, this will take until they get 4 - 7 years old.
This year, they had implemented special precautions because of Foot and Mouth in some parts of Europe. We had to pass desinfection mats (by foot and with our car).
A visit to the stables and a walk in the fields nearby is great.
SUMMARY
Graz is a very nice city, which is normally not the first choice for tourists that come to Austria (Vienna and Salzburg attract much more tourists), but I think that Graz has a lot to offer, too.
This is even more true if you like the hilly scenery, the many parks, gardens, forests, historic buildings, museums, and just to spend some time to relax and enjoy life.
Take care, Michael
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