Hohe Tauern National Park
The largest conservation area in Central Europe
A surface area spanning 1.856 km2 is an appreciable figure, particularly if you consider that it concerns the scope of an Alpine conservation area. The Hohe Tauern National Park spans the three federal states of Carinthia, Salzburg and Tyrol and, on an area spanning over 1800 km2, it provides a habitat for many different very interesting animals, which is why it is also the biggest conservation area in Central Europe.
The oldest National Park in Austria
The largest conservation area in the Alps is not the only superlative that the Hohe Tauern has to offer. Modelled on the great National Parks in the USA, the state governors of Carinthia, Salzburg and Tyrol decided to set up Austria’s first National Park in the early 1970s in the Hohe Tauern region. Here you can find out everything you need to know about the Hohe Tauern National Park.
Animals and plants
The Hohe Tauern National Park is home to over 10,000 animals and to many different kinds of plants. The reason for this is its specific and special environmental conditions for instance its climate and the composition of its woodland areas. Many of the processes that occur in the Hohe Tauern can only be seen here, and there is a wide variety of different plant and animal species to see in this high mountain area.
Visitor centres
In the Mallnitz National Park centre and in the information centre on Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe the National Park meets its educational mandate. Visitors will be especially delighted with the new exhibit “univerzoom”, in which you can really get to the ‘nitty gritty’ of what happens in the National Park. The “rangerlabs” are chiefly concerned about learning about the natural surroundings and about gaining insights into the natural processes. National Park rangers take you with them on excursions, providing lots of information about the flora and the fauna. In the “House of Ibex” in Heiligenblut, with a focus on ibex, you can delve deep into the world of the high mountains.
Guided tours & programmes
On tour, not just IN the National Park, but ‘WITH’ it too. Our rangers and guides show you the parts of the park which you might not have discovered by yourself. Numerous programme points and adventure-packed guided tours open your eyes to the fundamentals of the natural surroundings. Observe the ibex or follow the experts in the Hohe Tauern National Park on winter snow-shoe hikes.
Interesting facts about the Hohe Tauern:
- Its development began some 12,000 years ago, with the retreat of the ice
- On an area spanning 1856 km2 it is the largest conservation area in Central Europe
- Spans the federal states of Carinthia, Salzburg, East Tyrol
- 878km hiking trails alone in the federal state of Carinthia
- 266 mountain summits, 551 mountain lakes, some 250 glaciers
- The highest mountain in Austria – the Großglockner 3798m
- 100 km from west to east, 40 km from north to south
- 1981: Foundation of the park in the federal state of Carinthia
- 75% of the surface area must be exempt from any commercial use
- And much more …
A Hohe Tauern National Park fan:
“Last summer during the summer holidays I visited the Hohe Tauern National Park for the first time. I got to watch the ibex with a Ranger, learned so much in Mallnitz visitor centre and got to see a glacier up close for the first time. I hope we go back to the Hohe Tauern on holidays this year”!
Be inspired by the natural area around the Hohe Tauern National Park and dive into a breath-taking realm with ibex, golden eagles and the like.
Get in touch for more information & details, or send us a no-obligation holiday enquiry. Telephone +43 4824 2700
