To me, Austria is poor man’s Switzerland. If you don’t have the money to waltz through Switzerland but still want to enjoy beautiful alpine landscapes like Silvretta Hochalpenstraße, head to Austria! I love this tiny nation nestled in the Alps so much that I have lost count of the number of times I have been there. Much of my 2020 aka., the lockdown year, was spent hopping from one mountain to another and I had absolutely zero regrets. It is true what the wise say, mountains have a certain healing power.
After every weekend spent hiking in the peak of summer, I wanted an ‘off’ weekend but still wanted to be in close proximity to the mountains. An elegant solution was to go for a quick road trip through the Austrian Alps. Since, I always have a list of places dangling in my pocket, this was the perfect opportunity for me to strike out Silvretta Hochalpenstraße from this list. And oh boy, I am so glad I did for the beauty of this place is unrivaled! Mountains, glaciers, lakes, waterfalls, hikes… This place has it all. So, next time you are in the area, strike it out of your list too!
Contents
- What is Silvretta Hochalpenstraße?
- Why visit Silvretta Hochalpenstraße?
- Getting to Silvretta Hochalpenstraße
- Car/motorbike
- Public transportation
- When is the best time to visit Silvretta Hochalpenstraße?
- Things to do in Silvretta Hochalpenstraße
- Dine with a view at Restaurant Silvrettasee
- Hiking in the Silvretta Mountains
- Via Ferrata Silvrettasee
- Costs
- Ready, Set, Go!
What is Silvretta Hochalpenstraße?
Silvretta Hochalpenstraße (pronounced as Hoh-aalpen-straasseh) is firstly a tongue twister in itself. Germans love compound words. German language is full of these little nuggets making it so hard for a non-native speaker to pick it up! Albeit being a tongue twister, Hochalpenstraße is basically just three german words, ‘hoch’, ‘alpen’ and ‘straße’ meaning high, alpine and road. Put it together and you get ‘High Alpine Road’. Therefore as the name clearly suggests, Silvretta Hochalpenstraße is a road that runs at an attitude with spectacular views of the Silvretta Alps! Moreover, at the highest point of this road, there is a beautiful glacial lake with crystal clear turquoise waters. You can even spot the glacier that feeds this lake along with the zillion tiny waterfalls gushing in!
Why visit Silvretta Hochalpenstraße?
Silvretta Hochalpenstraße is easily one of the most panoramic mountain roads that I have ever been on. It runs for 22.3 km with over 34 hairpin bends. At the highest point (2032m), there is a beautiful reservoir called Silvretta Stausee with turquoise glacial water surrounded by the Silvretta Alps. Thus, if you are in need of a quick mountain fix without putting in the hard work of climbing all the way up, this is definitely the place to be. All you need is some time off your schedule and preferably some fun-loving buddies to annoy the hell out of and you are all set for a memorable trip.
Getting to Silvretta Hochalpenstraße
Silvretta Hochalpenstraße is a toll road that passes through two states of Austria, Vorarlberg and Tyrol. Since this is a stretch of road spread across two states, it can be accessed from either of these sides.
By Car
From Partenen, Austria
I visited this place as a day trip from Lindau, Germany. Therefore, it made sense for me to access the road from the toll booth in Partenen in Austria. If you are traveling from this direction, put this GPS co-ordinates in your navigation device and you are good to go! The co-ordinates correspond to toll gate in Partenen. The drive time from Munich to this location is just under three hours. Thus, I wouldn’t recommend this as a day trip from Munich. However, it can be easily done from Oberstdorf, Lindau, Friedrichshafen or even Kempten!
From Galtür, Austria
If you are coming from the other direction (For example, Ischgl or Innsbruck), the toll booth at Galtür is a better point to access Silvretta Hochalpenstraße! In that case, put this GPS co-ordinates in your navigation device!
By Public Transportation
For the longest time, I travelled without a car throughout Europe. Thus, this section will cover an alternate way of accessing Silvretta Hochalpenstraße and the glacial lake at the peak if you don’t have a car and still want to experience it all. The route specified assumes that the journey to Silvretta Hochalpenstraße commences from Bregenz, a small town in western Austria. If you are traveling from elsewhere, get to Bregenz by either using German Rail Services or Austrian Rail Services.
It is also possible to start from Dornbirn or Feldkirch.
From Bregenz, Austria
Bregenz is a small Austrian city by the massive lake Constanz (Bodensee). Unfortunately, there are no direct trains from Bregenz to Silvretta Hochalpenstraße. Thus, you will have to change your mode of transport one or two times. The whole journey can take around three hours. Nevertheless, as most of the journey promises stellar views of the Austrian Alps, the whole trip will be a very relaxing experience!
If you are traveling from Innsbruck airport, the first step would be to take the train to Schruns Bahnof. Depending on the time of departure, you can either take a direct train to Schruns or change at Bludenz once to get here. This trip can take anywhere between 90 minutes to two hours. Once at Schruns, take bus number 85 from Schruns to Bielerhöhe Silvrettasee. The exact schedules of the trains and the buses can be found here (The departure stations must be mentioned as ‘Bregenz Bahnof’ and arrival station must be mentioned as ‘Bielerhöhe Silvrettasee’). The bus from Schruns to Bielerhöhe Silvrettasee only runs during the summer months (mid of April till December). The schedule for the same is linked here.
When is the best time to visit Silvretta Hochalpenstraße?
The toll road that Partenan and Galtür with Silvretta Stausee is only open from the end of May till the mid of October. Thus, accessing Silvretta Hochalpenstraße is only possible in the summer months! Further, if there is snow on the road and you are driving with your own car, you will not be allowed to use the road without snow chains on the tires. My first attempt to go up here was in September 2019. Unfortunately, it snowed a few hours before my trip, and I wasn’t permitted to go through!
I would suggest planning your trip in the peak of summer. The sun, snow capped mountains and the lakes make a stunning landscape. Further, the beginning and end of summer can be quite chilly!
Things to do in Silvretta Hochalpenstraße
Dine with a view at Restaurant Silvrettasee
While on your trip, you will definitely be having one meal on the road. If you like dinig with a view, Restaurant Silvrettasee is the perfect choice! This restaurant is located at over 2000m above sea level with perfect views of the lake and the mountains. They are open everyday in the summer from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm and mostly serve Austrian delicacies from regional produces.
Hiking in the Silvretta Mountains
Silvretta Lake is one of the highest reservoirs in Austria. Thus, the views of the surrounding mountains and glaciers are simply mind-blowing! The easiest and shortest hiking trail in this region is the trail that runs around the lake in a loop. This trail Is just over six kilometers and takes approximately two to three hours with plenty of photo stops.
Via Ferrata Silvrettasee
Climbing is the ultimate adrenalin kick! If you are a climbing lover, there is a Via Ferrata built at the dam wall of Silvretta lake. There are several paths with varying difficulties and the whole climb takes about 45 minutes.
Costs
This section is hard to summarize because it will heavily depend on the kind of traveling you opt for! Regardless, here is a general overview of the costs you’ll encounter during your trip to Silvretta Hochalpenstraße.
Traveling with a Private Vehicle
Since Silvretta Stausee is a toll road, entry is only possible after paying for the access ticket. The price of the ticket depends on the mode of transport. The following are the prices for the most common modes of transport,
- Cars (up to 9 people) – 16.50 EUR
- Motorcycles – 13.50 EUR
Obviously, the fuel charges will also have to be added to this to obtain the correct estimate. However, this depends on your departure point, vehicle type, driving style etc.
Traveling with Public Transportation
For the public transportation option mentioned in this blogpost, the most economical way to travel would be to buy a ‘Vorarlberg Tagesticket Maximo’ (Vorarlberg Day Ticket). This can be used to travel in the entire Vorarlberg region of Austria from 12 am on the designated travel date till 5 am, the next day. More details about this ticket can be found here.
Additionally, every passenger has to pay a toll fee of 4.50 EUR to access the Silvretta Hochalpenstraße.
Food
Dining at Restaurant SIlvrettasee can be at least 20 EUR per person. As I take immense joy in budgeting my trips, I got some bread and snacks from the supermarket before starting the trip and had a picnic at the lake instead! Since I was traveling with a few friends, this was so fun, and I highly recommend doing this if you are up for a budget swap.
Ready, Set, Go!
While on the hunt for some beautiful locations around Austria, I came acsoss Silvretta Hochalpenstraße. This place was probably never on your travel radar! However, I am hoping that this blogpost inspired you to visit this gem of a place and gave you all the required information to explore the hidden corners of Silvretta Alps.
In the mood for an adventurous hike through the Austrian Alps instead? Check out this blogpost on Olpererhütte.
Looking for a quick introduction to hiking and all the equipment needed to conquer the Alps? I got you covered! Head over here and skim through this article!
Have any questions about traveling to Silvretta Hochalpenstraße? Leave them in the comments below!
Some of the photos featured in this blog are taken by my friend, @doyouflash
Akhil Anilkumar says
This is so detailed and beautifully written! ❤️