Hall in Tirol (574m/1,883ft; pop. 13,000) lies 10km/6mi east of Innsbruck at the foot of the precipitous Bettelwurf chain (2,725m/8,940ft). Formerly known as Solbad Hall, it has been a place of some consequence for centuries thanks to its salt mines which had been worked since the 13th century right up to the 1960s. The former spa rooms, now converted to a function complex, seat some 1,000 people; in the basement there is a sauna with steam bath and a public bath.
Hall in Tirol is known to be one of the best kept, most well preserved towns in Austria. In the past, Hall in Tirol was a prime economic centre. Several festivals run throughout the year, and there are some prime tourist attractions in Hall that are worth visiting.
2km/1.25mi to the northeast of Hall in Tirol the old village of Absam (632m/2,074ft) possesses a much frequented pilgrimage church (originally Late Gothic, remodeled c. 1780).
The village of Absam is home to the Karwendel nature park.
Address: Absam Tourist Office, Dörferstraße 37 , A-6067 Absam, Austria
A pleasant excursion from Hall is to the Gnadenwald (to the northeast), a beautiful upland terrace 15km/9mi long and up to 3km/2mi wide, below the Bettelwurf range. The hamlet of St Martin was the birthplace of Andreas Hofer's companion in arms Josef Speckbacher.
The Village of Gnadenwald is scenic and is ideal for nature lovers who enjoy hiking and exploring.
The old salt road from Hall in Tirol proceeds northwards past the Bettelwurfbrünnl (spring) and climbs some 6km/4mi to the Herrenhäuser (1,483m/4,860ft) on the Haller Salzberg, with the old salt workings (closed 1968).
In the Hall in Tirol Unterstadt (Lower Town), to the south of the Unterer Stadtplatz, stands Burg Hasegg (c. 1280), in which coins were minted from 1486-1809; it is now a municipal museum. The Münzerturm (Coiner's Tower) is the town's principal landmark. The Münzertor (gate) dates from 1480.
There are several monuments in Hall. In the west of the town, by the moat, can be seen a memorial to the Tirolese freedom fighter Joseph Speckbacher (1767-1820), who was born nearby. On Unterer Stadtplatz the St Barbara Column (St-Barbara-Säule), carved in relief, was dedicated to their patron saint by the "Brotherhood of Miners" in 1486.
In the eastern part of Hall in Tirol's old town can be found the harmonious little Stiftsplatz, in which are situated the Jesuit Church and Jesuit College (17th C.) and the Damenstift, a religious house founded in 1566 by the Emperor Ferdinand's daughter and reoccupied as a nunnery in 1912. The church has an elegant Baroque tower with a copper dome.
7km/4.5mi east of Hall, on the south bank of the Inn, lies Wattens, which has a fine open air swimming pool. Paste diamonds and optical instruments are manufactured here. To the southwest of the village are excavations of an old Raetian settlement of the third-fourth C. A.D.
Address: Wattens Tourist Office, A-6112 Wattens, Austria
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Absam, Austria
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