Winter hike A winter walk through the Imperial Gardens

Description

Innsbruck's Imperial Gardens offer numerous options for short strolls and long walks in the shade of mighty coniferous and deciduous trees from all over the world. The various paths through the park are ideal for relaxing and recharging your batteries. The park covers around ten hectares near Innsbruck's historic old town and has several entrances, with at least one on each side.

When strolling through the park, you are walking in historical footsteps. The origins of the Imperial Gardens date back more than 600 years. The area was initially part of the city's floodplains and was only later transformed into a Renaissance garden by Ferdinand II. After that, it was given a more Baroque style before being redesigned as an English landscape garden. The basic appearance of the Imperial Gardens has not changed for over 150 years. In 2001, the Federal Monuments Office placed the entire site under protection.

One of the paths leads along the inside of the perimeter. Attentive observers will notice the small rockery about halfway along the western wall, which is home to alpine plants such as saxifrage, fingerwort and toadflax. Other paths branch off towards the Hofgarten pavilion in the centre of the park. The inside of the pavilion is adorned with intricate wall paintings, which were uncovered and restored during the last renovation. Right next to the pavilion is an idyllic pond with water lilies and other water plants.

To the southeast, you can't fail to notice the gnarled catalpa bignonioides tree, which is 120 years old but still not the oldest tree in the Imperial Gardens. The Maria Theresa spruce that towers up to the north of the pavilion is around 260 years old.

All of the paths lead past impressive trees, local and exotic bushes and – in summer – colourful flowerbeds. For several years now, visitors have been allowed to walk on the grass and use the well-tended lawns. Sheep used to graze on these areas but today, machines are used to keep the grass short instead.

If you would like a longer walk through lovely green surroundings, you can stroll on through the "Kleiner Hofgarten" (the "Small Imperial Gardens") – also known as the Chamber Gardens or Governor's Gardens – along Rennweg road. On the other side of the road is the English Garden, which is where the chess players from the Imperial Gardens now play. From there, you can continue along the River Inn – either towards the Saggen district or towards the city centre and the Mariahilf district.