Description of the attraction
The mountaineering museum is currently located in the Hofburg Imperial Palace, located in the heart of the Old Town of Innsbruck. However, over its hundred-year history, the museum collection has moved several times both within the territory of Innsbruck itself, and even from one country to another.
The mountaineering museum was originally located in Munich, it is housed in a small old villa on the banks of the Isar River. The museum was founded in 1911. Then it was owned by the joint Austro-German society of mountaineering and rock climbing. However, in 1944, this building was completely destroyed during the bombing. Fortunately, the museum collection was not damaged, as it was evacuated to Tyrol even earlier.
Several decades passed before the museum reopened - this time in Innsbruck, in 1973. The first exhibition was in the former Thurn und Taxis palace, located on the main city street - Maria Theresa. Then the museum moved to a specially built climbers' club, and in 1996 a complete reorganization of the museum collection took place, supplemented by local and modern exhibits.
In 2002, called the Year of the Mountains, the mountaineering museum in Innsbruck organized the first open-air exhibition. It was dedicated to the northern mountain range of the Innsbruck Mountains. Since 2008, the museum's permanent collection, including the famous "Mountains - an Unknown Passion" exhibition, has been housed on the second floor of the Hofburg Palace. It occupies several premises with a total area of 700 square meters.
Tourists are invited to admire the views of the Alpine mountains, familiarize themselves with the ancient climbing equipment, and watch many documentaries about climbing the mountains. Many modern multimedia devices allow especially interested visitors to experience for themselves what it is like to stand on top of several hundred, if not even thousands of meters above sea level.
