Salzburg offers enough sights to fill a week. Mozart's birthplace, the dome, fortress Hohensalzburg and Mirabell Palace are just some of them. Many scenes from the "Sound of Music" were shot here, you can even join a tour that points out all the sights. The famous Getreidegasse is home to many shops; you won't have trouble finding the perfect souvenir there.

The house on top of the Kehlstein mountain used to serve Hitler for diplomatic meetings. It was given to him as a present for his 50th birthday, after being completed by about 3,000 workers. While most of the buildings at the Obersalzberg were destroyed during or soon after WWII, the “Kehlsteinhaus” has survived. Today it serves as a memorial and a restaurant and offers magnificent views of the surrounding mountains. To get to the house, you have to take a 400 ft. elevator through the mountain!

The Erzberg (“Ore Mountain”) is Central Europe’s largest iron ore mine. 12 million tons of material are excavated and up to 3 million tons of ore produced each year. Mining has been going on here for at least 850 years, but since ore reserves are estimated to exceed 235 million tons there is still enough of the precious stuff left for many more years.
Since 1988 the open pit mine has been used for sports events. First for car races (“European Pikes Peak”), from 1995 for endure bikes. The “ErzbergRodeo” attracts 1500 riders each year, 500 make it to the finals, the “Hare Scramble”, and less than 50 usually reach the finish line. No Austrian rider has ever won it, but whoever wins is usually riding a KTM.
Today the Erzberg is one of the area’s major tourist attraction. Guided tours are on offer and some of them even include a ride in a 75 ton dump truck (“Hauly Tour”).

This race track was first opened in 1969, it was initially called Österreichring. From 1997 to 2003 the name changed to A1 Ring, and after some major changes from 2004 to 2010 it reopened under the current name Red Bull Ring. In 2014 the first Formula 1 race on the new track took place, the last one was won by Michael Schumacher in 2003.

The European Bike Week started as a small Harley-Davidson rally in 1998, attracting 15,000 visitors. Since then, it has developed to become the largest Harley rally in Europe and the third-largest worldwide! In 2012 there were 120,000 visitors!

The 35 km (22 mi) Nockalmstraße ranks among the most beautiful Alpine roads in Austria. Enjoying the smooth ride through the round-shaped mountains (the Nocken) you will understand the origin of the road’s name. The Nockalm toll road was opened in 1981 for the first time and has ever since been very popular among motorcyclists. No surprise, the road, featuring total 52 hairpins, offers two service stations, so called Biker Points, along the way. Please keep in mind that motorcyclists are not allowed on the Nockalm Road between 6 pm and 8 am.

Cortina d'Ampezzo counts only 6,000 people but it feels big, important and sophisticated. Surrounded by tall mountains Cortina recognized its potential early on and in the late 19th century tourism emerged, quickly becoming the region's most important industry. Today the town welcomes about a quarter of a million tourists a year! In 1956 it hosted the Winter Olympics and the event helped greatly to build Cortina's Reputation as a famous, fashionable and expensive ski resort. In the 1960s the town lent its name to a car (Ford Cortina) and its career as a film location turned international. More than 100 films were made here, most notably The Pink Panther (with Peter Sellers, 1963), The Great Silence (1968) with Klaus Kinski, For Your Eyes Only (Roger Moore as James Bond, 1981), and Cliffhanger (1993) with Sylvester Stallone.
If you don't get to see any international superstars walking around you can just stroll up and down the pretty pedestrian zone and marvel at the grand old buildings and the stunning surroundings.

The name Dolomites is derived from the name of the French geologist, Déodat de Dolomieu. He discovered that the limestone in this area is different in its chemical composition compared to that of the northern limestone area. Special sedimentary rocks form incredibly rough and beautiful formations like Marmolada, Sella and the Tre Cime de Lavaredo. They are the most photographed mountains of the Dolomites. Historically, it is an interesting place. Belonging to the Austrian Monarchy during World War I, the frontline led right through the mountains. Fighting from 1916 to 1919, the soldiers had to stay in the mountains through summer as well as winter. A really tough life! Austria was one of the losers of the war. At the peace treaty of St. Germain in 1919, they agreed to hand Southern Tyrol over to Italy. That leads us to the explanation of the bilingual road signs and village names. You can very easily pick out the former border between Italy and Austria by looking at your map or by reading the signs. Don't be confused if you see village signs in three languages. The third one is Ladinish, spoken by a few people in a small area. Be prepared for an unbelievable ride in an incredible area!

This area was settled by the Romans in 15 BC. General Nero Claudius Drusus, to whom the name of the first settlement in the area refers to, set up this army camp by the River Isarco. The village founded nearby was called Bauzanum. Since its foundation and elevation to a town over 800 years ago, Bolzano has been a trading point. The main reason for this was its location in between the two major cities of Venice and Augsburg. Four times a year a market was held, and traders came from the south and the north. Therefore, a mercantile magistrate was founded in 1635. Every market season, two Italian and two German officers (appointed from the traders who operated there) worked in this office. The city was a cultural cross point at that time. The city's Italian-Austrian character, enhanced by the narrow cobblestone streets, Habsburg-era churches and pervasive bilingual signage, provide for the unique charm of a city halfway between Italian and Austrian cultures. Together with its natural and cultural attractions, this makes Bolzano a renowned tourist destination. Enjoy the great mixture of the Italian-Austrian lifestyle and cuisine in the wonderful historic centre of Bozen. In the archaeological museum in Bozen lies the more than 5000 years old Ice Man. The "Oetzi" or "Frozen Fritz", as he is called, was found in the mountains right on the Italian-Austrian border. Thanks to his discovery, many secrets of the way of life during his time in history were able to be revealed.