Lienz: Culture, Cycling Routes and Excursions

Lienz combines the history of a town with routes and activities. Details about routes and distances help you distinguish between different destinations and trails.

Historic Sites in Lienz

Bruck Castle was built by the Counts of Gorizia and has towered high above the town for over 750 years. The museum collection comprises more than 20,000 objects and archival materials. At Bruck Castle, the building’s long history and an extensive collection come together.

The Franciscan monastery also has its own historical connection: it was originally founded as a Carmelite monastery. The history of the parish church of Lienz-St. Andrä goes back further. A church stood in its immediate vicinity as early as the 5th century. This is a different historical connection from the monastery’s founding history.

The Liebburg was destroyed just as it had been completed. During its reconstruction, it was given the towers that are now characteristic of the townscape. Together with Bruck Castle and the churches, the town thus offers various historical points of interest for a stay.

Routes and Activities on the Hochstein

Two themed trails are easy to distinguish by their distances and starting and ending points. The Albin Egger-Lienz Trail is 3.9 km long and runs from St. Anthony’s Church on the main square to Bruck Castle. The Dolomitenblick themed trail is 8.5 km long and starts and ends at the Zettersfeld valley station. One trail therefore runs between two specified points, while the other returns to its starting point. As route details may change seasonally, check the route before setting out.

Another route option is the 8.2 km Russenweg, which runs from the Hochsteinbahn in Lienz to the Hochsteinhütte. The Osttirodler runs for 2.7 km from the Moosalm via Lienz Castle Hill to the finish at the Hochstein Arena. The details about distances and endpoints give you different starting points for planning, without requiring you to treat the two options as the same kind of route.

The Hochstein climbing park offers 18 different courses, with jumps of up to 20 m in height. Children as young as 2 can take part in the Kidspark with their parents. The park operates seasonally, so check whether it will be open on the date of your visit.

Cycling Routes, Getting to the Iseltrail and the Town Market

The Drau Cycle Path runs through Lienz and continues along the Drau river floodplain to the Carinthian border. The Lienzer Talboden Cycle Route No. 35 has different features to look out for: it is uniformly signposted throughout, has only gentle climbs and crosses the main road via underpasses. This allows you to distinguish between the two routes based on their described courses and features.

To reach the main railway station in Lienz for the first stage of the Iseltrail, take a train or bus; from there, it is only a few minutes’ walk to the start. Allow for this short walk when planning your journey, and check the timetables before setting off.

The Lienz town market offers a wide variety of local products all year round, with seasonal highlights. If you would like to include local products in your travel plans, the market is a point of interest in its own right alongside the historic sites and routes.

Discover more destinations: Innergschlöß, St. Veit in Defereggen, Bruggen, Matrei in Osttirol, Schlaiten, Innervillgraten, Sankt Leonhard, Leisach.

Go to the main travel overview: Lienz.