Bludenz (Alemannic: Bludaz) is a town in the westernmost Austrian state of Vorarlberg. Bludenz is a popular starting point for hiking and mountain-biking in spring, summer, and autumn. It is located not far from many skiing resorts (e.g., Brand and Lech).

Understand

Bludenz has 15,000 inhabitants (2023) and was first mentioned in 830 CE. It is the administrative seat of the Bludenz District, which encompasses about half of Vorarlberg's territory.

The town is located on the Ill River, a direct tributary of the Rhine. It is surrounded by the ranges of the Bregenz Forest Mountains in the north, and by the Rätikon and Silvretta ranges in the south. Bludenz lies at the meeting point of five valleys: Walgau and Montafon (Ill), Brandnertal, Klostertal up to Arlberg Pass, and Großes Walsertal.

Bludenz Tourismus, Rathausgasse 5, ☏ +43 5552 63621-790, fax: +43 5552 30227-1712, [email protected]. M-F 08:00-18:00. Office for tourist information (updated Oct 2023)

Get in

By plane

• Zurich Airport (ZRH): 150 km from Bludenz

• Friedrichshafen (FDH): 90 km from Bludenz, but poor public transport connection

• Munich (MUC):= 260 km away, poor public transport connection

• St. Gallen - Altenrhein (ACH): 60 km away

By train

Bludenz has a train station. Check your route on ÖBB The sooner you book in advance the cheaper tickets are.

1 Train station Bludenz, Bahnhofsplatz 3, ☏ +43 5 1717 (general service hotline for ÖBB). M-F 07:10-17:45. (updated Oct 2023)

By car

From Vienna via A1, 6 hr 40 min. In order to drive on Austrian motorways you need to purchase a Vignette.

From Zurich via A3 it's about 1 hr 50 min

From Munich Via A96: about 1 hr 30 min

From Bregenz: 30 min

Austria requires autobahn drivers to pay a fee and purchase a Vignette (Austrian: Pickerl), a sticker which must be affixed to the windshield. Vignettes are available for €9.99 (10 days), €29 (2 months), and €96.40 (1 year); prices for motocycles are approximately 55% less. Careful: the Vignette is only valid 18 days after the purchase. The fine for not having a vignette is €120, payable on the spot (if you can't pay on the spot it goes up to €300). The well-known tactic of affixing vignettes with Vaseline (so that they can be easily removed and re-used) earns a fine of €240. The vignette must be pasted on the windshield; they are considered invalid if kept in the glovebox, which also earns a fine. The vignettes are available for sale at ADAC, ÖAMTC and TCS motor club offices (in Germany, Austria and Switzerland respectively; membership is not required), as well as at almost all petrol stations before the Austrian border. You can purchase them here.

By bus

There are no bus services to Bludenz.

Get around

The best way to get around town is by foot or bicycle.

• Stadtbus Bludenz (city bus), Bahnhofplatz 3, ☏ +43 5522 839 51-7461, fax: +43 5522 755 80-7469, [email protected]. (updated Oct 2023)

• City Taxi, Sankt-Peter-Straße 18, ☏ +43 5552 62000, [email protected]. (updated Oct 2023)

See

• 1 St.Laurentiuskirche (church), Schloß-Gayenhof-Platz 6. High above the old town, St. Laurentius Church, with its distinctive onion tower, and the baroque castle of Gayenhofen are the city's landmarks, visible from afar. It was first mentioned in 842. (updated Oct 2023)

• 2 Kloster St.Peter (monastery), St. Peterstrasse 45, ☏ +43 5552 62 329, [email protected]. St.Peter monastery offers fasting weeks, health weeks and specific offers for women. You can also book a room to stay as a guest. €60-70. (updated Oct 2023)

• 3 Schloss Gayenhofen, Schloß-Gayenhof-Platz 2. M-F 08:00-18:00. (updated Oct 2023)

• 4 Franziskanerkloster, Kapuzinerstraße 2, ☏ +43 5552 62251, fax: +43 5552 62251-10, [email protected]. M-W F Sa 08:00—11:30, 15:00—17:30; Th 08:00—11:30, 15:00—18:45. Franciscan monastery. (updated Oct 2023)

• 5 Brewery Fohrenburg, Fohrenburgstraße 5, ☏ +43 5552 606 - 0, [email protected]. The brewery was founded in 1881 and produced 800,000 L of beer per year. Now they produce 145,000 L per day of organic and non-organic beer. Guided tours are available. (updated Oct 2023)

• 6 Stadtmuseum Bludenz (City museum), Werdenbergerstraße 42, ☏ +43 5552 63621-247, [email protected]. May-Oct: Tu 16:00-19:00, Sa 09:00-13:00. History museum of the city. €3, €2 commissioned, free for children under 12 years of age. (updated Oct 2023)
• 7 Burg Ramschwag. Castle ruin.  
• 8 Montjola waterfall. Main fall height of about 30 m, 80m in total. There is a hiking trail (waterfall path) running parallel to the waterfall and an old pressure. (updated Jan 2024)
• 9 Schesa-Murbruch. One of the largest debris flows/mudslides in Europe. (updated Jan 2024)

Do

Cultural events

• Alpinale Short Film Festival, Raiffeisenplatz 1, ☏ +43 699 81446705, [email protected]. The next festival will take place from 6 - 10 August 2024, the horror shortfilm night on October 31.. The short film festival draws around 1,000 visitors to Bludenz. Every year, about 30 hand-picked international short films are screened. The best films are awarded the Golden Unicorn. (updated Oct 2023)
• Bludenzer Tage zeitgemäßer Musik (Bludenz Days of Contemporary Music), Am Raiffeisenplatz 1, ☏ +43 664 500 55 36, [email protected]. late October. The Bludenzer Tage zeitgemäßer Musik (Bludenz Days of Contemporary Music) is an international festival of contemporary music that has been taking place in autumn since 1988. (updated Oct 2023)
• Remise Bludenz, Werdenbergerstraße 42, ☏ +43 5552 63621-234, [email protected]. Remise Bludenz is a cultural institute, which offers movie nights, theater plays, concerts, standup comedy, etc.throughout the year. (updated Oct 2023)
• Milka Lädele, Fohrenburgstraße 1 A. M Sa 09:00-12:00, Tu-F 09:00 – 16:30. Milka chocolate hast been produced in Bludenz for over 100 years. Here, you can learn about its history, find out how it is produced and buy lots of chocolate. (updated Oct 2023)

Outdoor activities

• Sunna Weg (Sun Trail). The Sunna Weg is a cultural-historical path along the municipalities of Nüziders, Bludenz and Braz. It can be hiked as a day tour or in several stages. On the way there are also places to stop for refreshments. More info from the tourist office. (updated Oct 2023)
• Bürser Schlucht canyon is considered one of the most beautiful of the Alps with a forest resembling the jungle. It is 2.6 km long and it takes about 2 hr to walk through. Open 1st May - 31st Oct. +43 5552 62812

You can find many more hiking trails around Bludenz on this link. There are also many options to go mountain biking or e-biking.

Examples:

• 1 Buder-Höhe viewpoint.  
• 2 Brandnertal. A valley with many hiking trails  
• 3 Walgau.  
• 4 Vandanser Steinwand. A mountain group with most of the peaks reachable on foot from the valley in around three to six hours. The individual peaks are sometimes relatively far apart. Good fitness, sure-footedness and a head for heights are required. Some of the paths are not signposted and should only be walked when the weather is good. There is a risk of falling rocks.  

• 5 Zimba. A 2643 mountain known also as 'Montafon Matterhorn', available for climbers.  

• 6 Muttersberg. Accessible using cable car.  
• 7 Walderlebnispfad Marul (Forest adventure trail of Marul). A hiking trail with games of skill, points of interest for nature, information about flora and fauna and culture and history about the mountain environment. Hikers can choose between the short (3.4 km length, walking time approx. 1½ hours, approx. 300 m in altitude) and the long route (5.6 km in length, walking time about 2½ hours, about 450 m in altitude). (updated Nov 2024)

In the winter there is plenty to do: snowshoeing, tobogganing, cross-country skiing, and, of course, skiing. Check out all your options here and here for skiing.

Eat

• Restaurant Bludenzer, Klarenbrunnstraße 12, ☏ +43 5552 22300. M F 11:00 - 23:00; Tu 10:00 - 14:00, Th 10:00 - 14:00, 17:00 - 22:00; Sa 11:00 - 01:00; Su 10:00 - 14:00, 17:00 - 21:30. Situated on the river Ill along the bike path. Offers Austrian cuisine. (updated Oct 2023)
• La Noi, Untersteinstraße 5, ☏ +435552 30130, [email protected]. W-Sa 11:30 – 14:00, 17:00 – 22:00; Su 11:30 – 19:00. Family business, Moldavian and Austrian cuisine. €7-20. (updated Oct 2023)
• Schlosshotel Restaurant, Schloss-Gayenhof-Platz 5, ☏ +43 5552 63016, [email protected]. For lunch opens Tu-Th at 11:30, for dinner opens M-Sa at 17:30. Sundays only pizzas between 15:00 and 21:00. Gourmet food, you can also book a fondue night €20-30 main meal a la carte. (updated Oct 2023)
• Cafe Konditorei Fenkart, Wichnerstraße 18, ☏ +43 5552 62565, [email protected]. Tu - F 08:00 - 18:00, Sa 08:00 - 14:00, Su 10:00 - 18:00. Serve breakfast (gluten- and lactose free options available), and home-made cakes and desserts. (updated Oct 2023)
• 1 Sarotla Hut (Sarotlahütte). A refuge under the mountain range, includes a restaurant. (updated Jan 2024)

Drink

• Cafe Bar Remise, Raiffeisenplatz 1, ☏ +43 681 2055 4015, [email protected]. M-Th 11:00 - 17:00, F 14:00 - 22:00, weekends closed. They serve lunch (€8-14), hot and cold drinks (updated Oct 2023)
• Herr Muk, Rathausgasse 14, ☏ +4369917073961, [email protected]. W Th 18:00 – 00:00, F Sa 18:00 - 01:00. Serve food and drinks, outside seating available (updated Oct 2023)