A fresco that stretches across all four walls of a knights’ hall gives Friedberg Castle a distinctive historical touch. In Volders, archaeological traces, a historic circular walking trail and the landscape of the Voldertal Valley round out the picture. This gives you a choice of different themes for planning your trip: architectural history, early settlement, a hike or the scenery of a side valley.
Cultural history and archaeological traces
Friedberg Castle was built in the first half of the 13th century in the Late Gothic style by the powerful Counts of Andechs. The knights’ hall features a fresco created around 1510, uncovered in 1968, which runs across all four walls. The construction period and the creation of the fresco mark different historical phases; its uncovering took place much later. St Charles’ Church is also known for its unusual architecture. The tradition of Maibaumkraxln, climbing the maypole, is also kept alive in Volders. The castle’s history, the mural, the architecture and local customs thus offer different ways to explore culture and tradition.
The Rhaetian settlement of Himmelreich is situated on a rise between Volders and Wattens. It was inhabited from the 2nd century BC to the 4th century AD and was destroyed by fire. The foundations of eight buildings can be viewed on the site. Its long period of habitation, its destruction by fire and the surviving structural remains provide several specific points of interest: its place in history, the settlement’s past and the preserved foundations.
The Historic Circular Walking Trail
If you would like to include a hike in your travel plans, the Historic Circular Walking Trail is a well-defined option: it is about 9.5 kilometres long, relatively easy and suitable for families with children. The trail starts at the car park at St Charles’ Church by the Volderer Inn Bridge and passes, among other places, the Himmelreich open-air museum. Its length, difficulty level and starting point make it easy to plan this hike as a separate part of your stay. St Charles’ Church is known not only for its unusual architecture but is also located at the stated starting point of the circular trail.
The Voldertal Valley and route planning
The Voldertal Valley is a side valley of the Inn Valley and extends across the municipal areas of Tulfes and Volders. On the eastern side, within the municipality of Volders, the slopes are fairly gentle; the valley is home to numerous alpine pastures. The Voldertalbach stream flows through the Voldertal Valley and joins the Inn at Volders. These details highlight different aspects of the landscape: its location as a side valley, the varied slopes in the Volders municipal area and the course of the stream to its confluence.
The most common route to Schwarzbrunn leads from Volders via the paid Volderwildbad car park. From there, continue on foot into the Voldertal Valley along a wide vehicle track. When planning this route, both the paid car park and the walk that follows are factors to consider. This is a practical alternative to the hike along the Historic Circular Walking Trail, whose stated starting point is at St Charles’ Church.
Getting there by regional bus
Various regional buses stop at Volderer Brücke, near St Charles’ Church. If you plan to use the bus for your journey or day’s itinerary, check the timetable in advance for your travel date. This lets you include the specific connection in your plans without trying to infer journey times from the stop’s location alone.
Discover more destinations: Pfons, Obernberg Am Brenner, Sankt Jodock Am Brenner, Wattens, Birgitz, Schönberg Im Stubaital, Oberhofen Im Inntal, Mutters.
Go to the broader travel overview: Innsbruck-Land.
