Innsbruck City Tour: Guided Old Town Walks, Food and Christmas Market Tours

Price, Length and Group Size Side by Side

The table compares the five city walks by listed price, length, group size and what the price covers, from each tour's own listing. The Welcome Tour is priced per person in a shared group of up to 35. The private highlights walk is priced per group of up to 10, so the cost is the same for two or ten of you.

Who Each Walk Suits

This table matches each walk to the traveller it fits, with the listings' own ratings and review counts.

Meeting Points and Routes

The Per Pedes Welcome Tour meets at Innsbruck Tourismus, Burggraben 3. Be there 10 minutes before the start. The route runs along Maria-Theresien-Strasse into the Old Town, out to the Inn Bridge for the view of the Nordkette, into the cathedral when it is open to the public and past the Hofburg. Children up to 5 walk free with a parent who holds a ticket.

The private highlights walk starts at a meeting point you arrange in the centre and can end at your hotel in the centre. Cathedral visits are only possible outside church services. The food tour meets in front of the monument and the Christmas market walk meets at the Leopold fountain, directly under the arch.

Pace, Weather and Getting There

Plan for 1 hour on the Welcome Tour, 1.5 hours on the private walk, 2 hours on the strudel and Christmas market walks and 3.5 hours on the food tour. Arriving by air, bus line F links the airport with the main station and the city centre in around 20 minutes.

Included and Extra on Each Walk

The table lists what each listing includes and what it leaves out. Museum tickets are the common extra: a guide shows you the outside of the Hofburg and the Golden Roof, and entry is paid at the door.

Museum Tickets You May Add

If the walk makes you want to go inside, the Golden Roof Museum costs €6.00 standard and €3.00 concession. It opens Tuesday to Sunday 10:00 to 17:00 and closes on Mondays. The City Tower climb is 133 steps to a platform 31 m up, for €4.50 an adult, says the Tyrol tourism board.

The Hofburg opens daily 9:00 to 17:00, last entry 16:30.

In the Old Town

The Golden Roof is the stop every walk makes. Emperor Maximilian I had it built between 1497 and 1500 on the south facade of the Neuhof, and it is covered with 2,657 gilded copper shingles. The Hofburg is a 3-minute walk away.

The Court Church holds Maximilian I's tomb, surrounded by 28 larger-than-life bronze statues, the Schwarze Mander. Eight of them are women. It opens Monday to Saturday 9:00 to 17:00 and Sunday and holidays 12:30 to 17:00, last entry 16:30. The City Tower was finished in 1450 and its platform looks over the Old Town roofs.

Above and Beyond the Old Town

The Hungerburg funicular takes eight minutes from the Old Town (Congress station) to Hungerburg, with an optional stop at the Alpenzoo. The cable cars are closed for maintenance from 2 to 19 November. Schloss Ambras and Bergisel sit outside the centre, so pair a morning walk with one of them in the afternoon.

The Greeter Walk and the Card Walk

The table compares the two free options with the cheapest paid walk. The free terms come from the Greeter association and Innsbruck Tourism, the paid one from its listing.

When the Paid Walk Is Worth It

A greeter is a local volunteer, not a licensed guide, and you send a request rather than pick a listed slot. For a fixed start time with a licensed guide, the $21 Welcome Tour is the low-cost paid option.

The Markets the Walk Can Reach

Innsbruck has seven Christmas markets with about 200 stalls. The table gives the dates and hours of the three a walk is most likely to visit, from the organiser.

Timing Your Market Walk

The Old Town market has a 20 m real Christmas tree with a viewing platform. Marktplatz has the Swarovski Christaltree, 17.5 m high. The Old Town, Marktplatz, St. Nikolaus and Wilten markets close on 23 December. Only Maria-Theresien-Strasse and Hungerburg stay open to 6 January.

The Hungerburg leg depends on the funicular, which is closed from 2 to 19 November. Book after 20 November if you want the mountain market. The walk can also add the Lumagica light park and a historic tram ride as options.

Full Meal or One Sweet Stop

The Innsbruck Walking Food Tour with Full Meal costs $129.59 per person for 3.5 hours, in a small group of up to 12 with an English-speaking guide. Across at least 4 stops you eat the equivalent of a full meal, with water and at least one alcoholic drink for over-18s. Tips are extra. Guests with severe or life-threatening food allergies cannot take part.

The History and Strudel Walk costs $152.32 per person for 2 hours. It is private, led by an art historian, and ends with a strudel or gelato and coffee or tea. Pickup from selected hotels is included.

Eating on Your Own Before or After

The Markthalle on the Inn bank has 40+ vendors and 7 places to eat. The hall opens Monday to Friday 7:00 to 18:00 and Saturday 7:00 to 13:00, so it works for lunch after a morning walk.

A One-Day Plan Built Around a Walk

Start with the Per Pedes Welcome Tour at $21 for 1 hour, or the private highlights walk at $173 per group for 1.5 hours. Both pass the Golden Roof and the Hofburg. Go inside one of them after the walk: the Hofburg's last entry is 16:30.

Have lunch at the Markthalle. In the afternoon, ride the Hungerburg funicular eight minutes from Congress station to Hungerburg, or stop at the Alpenzoo on the way. The Nordkette cable cars run every 15 minutes. In Advent, finish at the Old Town market, open until 21:00.

If You Have Two or Three Days

A second day adds a themed walk, such as the 3.5-hour food tour, and Schloss Ambras or Bergisel. The mountain, Swarovski and day-trip options sit with the other Innsbruck tours.