Dornbirn: Gorges, Urban Trails and Museums

In places, the trail through the Rappenloch Gorge is attached directly to the rock face. Visible rock folds and fossils bring the geological history of this natural area to life. The hike leads through the gorge to Lake Staufensee, circles the lake and then returns to the starting point along the same route.

Gorge Trails and Urban Trails

The Rappen and Alploch gorges are closed during the winter months for safety reasons. If you want to reach the entrance to the Rappenloch Gorge by bus, Landbus route 177 runs directly from Dornbirn train station to the Dornbirn Gütle stop. From there, the entrance is about a ten-minute walk; check the timetable before setting off. Along the circuit through the Rappenloch Gorge, on the southern shore of Lake Staufensee, is the historic Ebensand run-of-river power plant, which has been in operation since 1899.

At the mountain station of the Karren cable car, the 12-metre-long glass Karren Edge offers panoramic views. The circular route “City Trails. Industry and Change” takes a different approach: at 15 stops, it tells the story of Dornbirn’s industrial rise and decline, as well as its continuities and ruptures. You can also explore the route in sections, including between inatura and Sägen, and between the Karren cable car and Gütle.

Museums of Nature, City and Culture

The Dornbirn City Museum is housed in a 200-year-old patrician house right on the market square. Across three floors, selected objects and works of art illustrate important chapters in the city’s history, as well as everyday life in Dornbirn as a key economic centre in the Rhine Valley. The inatura – Erlebnis Naturschau Dornbirn uses interactive experiments, display objects, films and images to present habitats typical of Vorarlberg—mountains, forests and water—as well as the human body.

The FLATZ Museum – Centre for Photography hosts changing exhibitions focused on photographic art, curated by international guest curators. Its events include readings, lecture series, discussions and performances. The Schubertiade Museum is housed in a building dating from 1659 and shows how posterity has preserved Schubert’s work.

The Mohrenbräu Beer Experience World presents the history of brewing interactively and using multimedia, across more than 700 square metres and four floors. Its centrepiece is a fully preserved historic brewing system from the Schäfle inn brewery in Satteins, dating from the 19th century and in operation until 1917. The Austrian-Swiss Rhein-Schauen Museum presents the history of the Rhine, including its high waters and floods.

In Hohenems, the Jewish Museum commemorates the Jewish community of Hohenems and features a permanent exhibition as well as a changing exhibition on Jewish life today. The Schlossberg and Glopper areas are protected for their largely natural character and their high landscape and ecological value.

Cycling and History in Lustenau

The Lustenau Historical Cycling Circuit connects 13 stops covering different aspects of local history. Seventeen information panels take visitors from the earliest settlement through to the 20th century, drawing attention to surviving historic buildings and changes in the municipality’s structures.

A route from Gaißau on the Old Rhine via Lustenau to Dornbirn is mostly flat and technically easy. It is suitable for trekking bikes, gravel bikes, everyday bicycles and e-bikes. This provides information for planning a cycling trip that covers both historical themes and details about the terrain, technical difficulty and suitable types of bicycle.

Discover more destinations: Dornbirn, Lustenau, Hohenems, Bregenz, Feldkirch, Bludenz.

View the main travel overview: Vorarlberg.