So here’s the story: My last trip 2020 and my first official trip 2021 took me to the same Austrian city, Graz! Coincidence? No. Graz really is for life! I have already been fascinated with the Mediterranean flair of Austria’s second-largest city way back when the Styrian capital became European capital city of culture almost twenty years ago. For the past ten years, and ever since its official award as “Genusshauptstadt” (Austria’s foodie capital city), I have visited Graz at least once or twice a year. Graz is a city to come and enjoy all over again, as you will learn from reading my blog posts about the city’s annual foodlover event, the Graz Truffle Festival or the Graz Beer Walk ..! So much #GrazLove to discover!
Welcome to Graz. Above all, do make sure you bring enough time to laze around in between sightseeing, eating and drinking ..!
Why not discover Graz the sporty way? #LetsGoGraz & #7SummitsGraz may have just what you are looking for!
“Dear Elena! You’ve already been to Graz many times. But, do you know about our ‘Seven Summits’ ..? No? Ah, you must come and join me, then”, says Susanne Höller of the city of Graz marketing. She has got my attention: What on earth is meant by the hashtag expression #7SummitsGraz ?
Susanne and I, climbing one of the #7SummitsGraz, the Fürstenstand hill (763 metres above sea level). It offers wonderful views over the city of Graz in the background!
“Launching our own ‘7 Summits Graz’ is actually a result of the pandemic”, Su explains. “Everybody started to climb our iconic hill, the Schlossberg in the city centre of Graz. But there are many more little hills and summits all around Graz. To encourage their use as day hike destinations with top views over Graz, we’ve created the platform Seven Summits Graz“.
What a nice idea! Our hike up and down the Plabutsch – Fürstenstand hill has actually been really easy-going. Climbing the local Seven Summits of Graz has nothing to do with their “true cousins”, climbing the seven highest summits on each continent! After all, it wouldn’t be Graz if it wasn’t, once again, all about food and drinks, too. Check this out.
Take bus number 40 from Jakomini-Platz to Graz-Gösting and exit at the final stop. It is right where one of the #7SummitsGraz day hikes begins.
The first part of the hike (about 12km in total, covering an altitude difference of about 600 metres) is pretty steep, but only for about 20 minutes or so. It’s fairly easy-going afterwards.
Rewarding you for the initial climb: A view of the Gösting castle ruin towering up ahead of you!
After reaching the tiny village Thal am See, the place where Arnold Schwarzenegger has been born, Su tells me that this lake commemorates him proposing to his Maria Shriver! A local canoe has been erected on the occasion.
During the hike, keep following these yellow signs towards Plabutsch – Fürstenstand. You can buy food and drinks up at the top, or stop in one of the grocery stores in Thal am See.
This is the final viewpoint of the tour, overlooking the city of Graz and its iconic clock tower hill, the Schlossberg.
Afterwards, I recommend stopping at Gasthaus Zur Sonne in Graz-Gösting. They will spoil you to a nice beer and a typical, Styrian salad made of fried chicken, string beans, potato, cabbage and green leaf salad. It has to be topped with typical Styrian pumpkin seed oil. Yum!
Don’t travel to Graz without indulging in at least one of these foodie travel delights!
Culinary delights are on, then! Together with my fellow Austrian travel writers, we have finally been able to meet and eat together again after many months of lockdown and forced shutdowns of bars, restaurants and hotels. It was SO LOVELY! And I can definitely recommend the place we chose for our reunion: The renowned Graz restaurant Landhauskeller.
Bring on summer foodie vibes: Enjoying my veggie + salmon risotto at the Landhauskeller restaurant in Graz!
If typical fried chicken (Backhendl) is what you’re after, I can recommend you visit the iconic restaurant “Der Steirer”. Why iconic? They are known for having created an array of typical Styrian tapas, one more delicious than the other! My tip for you: Do try their Styrian salad as a side, and order a glass of white wine from the nearby South Styrian wine district. It’s also a good idea to book a table ahead, as places fill up quickly. Enjoy!
Welcome to “Der Steirer” and enjoy your meal: Typical Backhendl and Styrian salad for dinner here!
My third and final tip for you as a foodie traveller is to book a picnic basket filled with local products by Frankowitsch, one of the best delicatessen in town. Check out this page about Graz listing all picnic spots to go to, and how to book a picnic basket for you and your family, friends or group of travellers. A truly worthwhile experience!
I loved our picnic after a guided tour of the Schlossberg hill.
Talking about guided tours in Graz: Should you follow an app, take a ride with the open air bus or make a complete discovery of the iconic Schlossberg hill?
Why not all three! Let’s start with the Schlossberg hill. It is not only worth the climb for having a picnic at the top, as we did. Book yourself a guided tour of the Schlossberg, such as one offered by Sigrid Alber of the certified Graz Guides. She tells us many fascinating historical aspects of the original settlement and development of this central part of Graz, from the iconic clock tower to the Turkish Well and all the way to the bell tower and its “Liesl”. I have never seen neither the bell tower nor the bell “Liesl” before!
What would Graz be without its iconic clock tower? Sigrid tells us during the Schlossberg tour that it was nearly blasted in the French invasion several centuries past, but that the local citizens at the time kind of bought it off the French invaders for ransom to save it from destruction!
Water poured from your drinking bottle takes many, many seconds to reach the ground of this well, some 100 metres deep!
Further up the Schlossberg hill, you can find the bell tower and its “Liesl” bell, the third-largest bell in Styria weighing about five tons. You can only get in as part of an official, guided city tour.
Once you’ve walked up the Schlossberg, make sure you stop at the modern Schlossberg Museum Graz …
… its multimedia storytelling exhibit about the history of the Graz Schlossberg is truly worth seeing.
The view over Graz from the Schlossberg never gets old! I have taken this picture right next to the iconic clock tower.
If you love some action, do make sure you “slide down” the Schlossberg – inside! A giant slide takes you down the mountain through a spiral tunnel in a run of about 40 seconds. Well worth it!
Last but not least, I can recommend you download the Locandy app and try the self-guided tour called “Grazer Grazien“. It includes a quiz about the historical facts you discover, and is – in my opinion – especially suitable for travelling with friends or kids! I have also loved my spontaneous decision to board the open air city bus tour in Graz, taking us a little further out than what you would normally see of Graz on a typical city tour. There’s that rumour that it soon runs with food on board, too!
View over the Schlossberg hill from the open air deck of our city bus.
“Grazer Grazien” a view of my using the app while navigating Graz. Also works offline (via GPS).
We have actually spent our days in Graz being hosted by the family-run Parkhotel Graz, a place I can recommend not only for its excellent location within Graz. It has a chandelier in its fitness area 😉 a nice big pool and a small, lovely wellness area to relax in after spending the day exploring the city. The restaurant and its food offer is great for both breakfasts and dinner, as we’ve experienced both! Check out more about the Parkhotel in my Instagram stories.
I have published even more travel photos from Graz on Flickr:
When will be your turn to #VisitGraz?
Disclaimer: I have been invited by the city of Graz to come on this trip. All opinions are my own.