Holiday tips for September in Tyrol: Tips for the hiking month

Sporting events in September

The Ötztal Cycle Marathon is not for the faint-hearted or the faint-hearted. The participants in this race for well-trained amateur athletes have to conquer 5,500 metres of altitude over 238 kilometres with gradients of up to 18 percent. The seven to 14 hours that the bikers need for such a route lead through impressive mountain landscapes from Ötztal via Kühtai to Innsbruck, over the Brenner Pass to South Tyrol and back up over the brutal last stage of the Timmelsjoch. If you haven't already registered for the race, you can also cheer on the athletes from the roadside or hiking trail.

420 kilometres from St. Johann in the Kitzbühel Alps to St. Christoph am Arlberg - the Adlerweg is not called the "king of all long-distance hiking trails" for nothing. Those who cover the enormous distance in 33 daily stages get to see some of the most beautiful mountain landscapes in Tyrol. The Goetheweg, which runs along the ridge of the Nordkette mountain range past Innsbruck, is one of the highlights of the tour. You cross (state) borders on the Carnic High Trail. Over the course of eleven days, the 168-kilometre route literally takes you on a ridge walk across the main Carnic ridge in the Austrian-Italian border region. The trail from Sillian to Unterhörl in Carinthia is an important historical site with its trenches from the First World War still visible.

Cultural events in September

Alpine pastures are not just the end points of hikes where you can eat cheese dumplings - in summer they are the residences of farm animals. Around 110,000 cattle, 70,000 sheep, 5,500 goats and 2,000 horses find a place to graze on the 2,100 Alpine pastures in Tyrol. In September, the return to the valley, ideally unscathed, is celebrated extensively - with festivals, parades and flower decorations for the animals returning from their summer retreat. In Kufstein, the cattle drive takes place on the upper town square. The municipality of Reith im Alpbachtal celebrates the returning cattle with a large church festival with a farmers' market and music. There is a wide and varied range of different Almabtrieb festivals.

Lovers of "new music" are in the right place at Klangspuren Schwaz.