Nature’s Ice Palace at Hintertux Glacier

An ice-cold pleasure is waiting for you at the Hintertux Glacier. There you can explore the inner life of a glacier. Only about four minutes on foot from the top station of Glacier Bus 3 you enter the Nature Ice Palace. A magical world with frozen waterfalls, stalactites of ice and mystically sparkling ice crystals awaits you deep beneath the ski slopes.

Glacier experience all year round

Summer or winter, the Ice Palace has the same temperature all year round: 0°C. That's why you should think of suitable clothing, especially in summer. Therefore, sturdy shoes and a warm jacket should not be missing. In winter you can go directly from the slopes to the Ice Palace, because the tour is also possible with ski boots.

In the course of time, spanning a period of several million years, the Ice Palace was created through the nature of the Hintertux Glacier leaving a cavity above the crevasse. In 2007 the crevasse was first sighted by Roman Erler from “Natursport Tirol” during a hiking tour. It was then thoroughly measured and examined. As ice is known to change its shape in the course of time and is characterised by steady movement, at first, it did not seem as if this site was suitable to become a place for touristic visits. Shortly after the crevasse was discovered and thorough research was done, it became quite obvious that the glacier is free of eruptions and other forms of ice formation movements. Luckily, there were no other obstacles. So the Nature's Ice Palace was made accessible to the public.

By Car

From the direction of Gerlos: Should you be starting your journey in Gerlos, you first take B165 and follow the road until Unterberg where the road turns to serpentines up to the point you change to B169. Passing Ramsau im Zillertal and Mayrhofen, you then take a right on Tuxer Straße (L6). Following the road, it will directly take you to the centre of Hintertux.

From the direction of Innsbruck: Starting your journey in Innsbruck, you take B174 via Pradl and Amras leading straight to Inntal motorway A12. You then exit at Zillertal/ Achensee Straße/ B181 and keep afterwards driving further on Achensee Straße which then turns to Zillertaler Straße (B 169). Follow the road and turn right into Tuxer Straße (L6) leading straight to the centre of Hintertux.

From the direction of Italy: If you are on a road coming from Italy, you take the SS12 and follow the road for 10 km (6 mi) before you continue straight into Karl von Etzel Street. Afterwards, you take the first exit in the roundabout leading directly to B182. Hereafter, you take a left towards the Brennersee (lake). From here you get onto the driveway to Innsbruck. Follow the A13 for 33 km (20.5 mi) and then change to A12 for another 35 km (21.7). Exit at Zillertal and leave the motorway via Achensee Straße (B181). Follow the road for a short time and turn then into Zillerstraße (B169) which you follow up to the point you will have just passed Mayrhofen. Take a right onto L6 leading straight towards Hintertux.