🇦🇹Roads in Austria
2 roads found in Austria, Europe
Grossglockner High Alpine Road
🇦🇹 Austria
The Grossglockner High Alpine Road is Austria's most famous alpine highway, climbing to 2,504 meters at its highest point, the Edelweissspitze. Built between 1930 and 1935, this 48-kilometer toll road connects Bruck in Salzburg province to Heiligenblut in Carinthia, passing through the heart of the Hohe Tauern National Park. The road features 36 hairpin bends and offers unparalleled views of the Grossglockner, Austria's highest peak at 3,798 meters, and the Pasterze Glacier. The road is a masterpiece of engineering and one of Europe's most visited tourist attractions, drawing nearly a million visitors annually. A detour to the Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Hohe viewpoint provides a dramatic panorama of the glacier and surrounding peaks. Along the route, several exhibition points explain the alpine ecology, geology, and history of the region. The road is well maintained with wide lanes, but the sheer number of switchbacks and the altitude demand respect from drivers.
Silvretta High Alpine Road
🇦🇹 Austria
The Silvretta High Alpine Road is a 22.3-kilometer toll road in the Austrian Alps connecting Partenen in the Montafon valley with Galtur in the Paznaun valley across the Silvretta range. The road climbs to the Bielerhöhe pass at 2,036 meters, where the striking turquoise Silvretta reservoir (Silvrettasee) sits at the foot of the Piz Buin, Vorarlberg's highest peak at 3,312 meters. Built between 1938 and 1954, the road features 30 hairpin bends and traverses a high alpine landscape of glaciers, mountain streams, and alpine meadows. The Bielerhöhe at the summit is a popular starting point for hikes and mountaineering in the Silvretta range. The reservoir's unnaturally vivid turquoise color, caused by glacial silt, creates a dramatic contrast with the surrounding grey granite and white glaciers. The road is less crowded than Austria's more famous Grossglockner road but offers equally impressive alpine scenery in a more intimate setting.