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Austria's westernmost state is wedged between Germany, Liechtenstein and Switzerland, with the Alpenrhein drawing the Swiss border along its length. It is the second smallest of the nine Bundesländer and the only one that speaks Alemannic rather than Austro-Bavarian, so the dialect in a village Stube (the wood-panelled parlour of an inn) sits closer to St Gallen or Swabia than to Vienna. People here call themselves Vorarlberger first.
Bregenz, the capital, stands on the eastern shore of Lake Constance, the Bodensee, on the site of Roman Brigantium. Its 17th-century Martinsturm carries what is said to be the largest onion dome in central Europe, and a few streets away Peter Zumthor's Kunsthaus, a stack of etched glass completed in 1997, faces the water. Every July the Bregenzer Festspiele, running since 1946, stage opera on the Seebühne, a set built out into the lake with seating for around 7,000. The Pfänder rises behind the town to 1,064 m (3,491 ft), six minutes by cable car, with a view over three countries.
The Rhine valley below holds most of the population: Dornbirn, the largest city, with the Rappenloch gorge cut into the hills behind it; Feldkirch, medieval and arcaded beneath the Schattenburg; and Bludenz, where five valleys converge and a chocolate factory has run since 1888.
East of the lake, the Bregenzerwald gathers some twenty villages of shingled timber houses along the Bregenzer Ache. The valley turned its carpentry into an architectural movement, and the Werkraum at Andelsbuch, another Zumthor building, serves as the collective showroom for around ninety workshops. Dairying underpins the rest: the Käsestraße links the alp huts making Bergkäse and Alpkäse, and the Hirschen at Schwarzenberg, Fuchsegg above Egg, Mesmerhaus at Bildstein and Tempel 74 at Mellau all sit within it.
South, the Montafon runs 39 km from Bludenz into the Silvretta, ending under Piz Buin at 3,312 m (10,866 ft), the state's highest summit and still glaciered. The Silvretta Hochalpenstraße crosses the Bielerhöhe in summer. Schruns, the main village and home to Amrai Suites, keeps its Sura Kees, a lean sour-milk cheese made nowhere else.
Walser settlers from the Valais crossed these mountains in the 13th and 14th centuries and their descendants still hold the high ground: the Grosses Walsertal, a UNESCO biosphere reserve since 2000; the Kleinwalsertal, reachable by road only from Bavaria; and Lech am Arlberg, where Sonnenhof above the village and Haus W at Zug both occupy Walser houses within the old Tannberg parish.
Winter belongs to four ranges, the Silvretta, the Rätikon, the Verwall and the Arlberg. Ski Arlberg spans around 300 km of pistes and 88 lifts, the largest linked area in Austria, shared with St Anton over the Tirolean border. Käsknöpfle, the state's cheese-and-onion dumplings, and Riebel, a scorched maize dish eaten with stewed fruit, follow a day out. Late winter brings Funkensonntag, when villages burn tall brushwood towers to see off the season.
Zurich is roughly two hours by road, Friedrichshafen and Innsbruck closer, and the railway runs from Lindau through Bregenz and Feldkirch to Bludenz, where the Arlberg line climbs east.
Overlooking a dramatic diorama of mountains and valleys, this fun spirited luxury den threads the Heimat of Montafon with a modernist design aesthetic.
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Turrell’s latest skyspace is such an iteration, located in Lech, a little skiing town in the Arlberg mountains, Austria. At a height of almost 1800 meters above sea-level, The Skyspace-Lech, a lightroom inside a stone building at the end of a 15-metre tunnel, is set in alpine terrain, and is only accessible by foot or by skiing – so wear your walking shoes and your best raincoat.
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A legend since 1755, the rebirth of this historic hotel is a stylish bolthole – a chameleon of heritage, architecture, design, and alpine wellness in Austria's famed Bregenzerwald.
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Hike with the cows in this Alpine adventure of outdoor Austrian idylls, a famed foodie hotspot, the ladies have it good up here in Vorarlberg's Bregenzerwald.
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Set beneath the Hochkönig peaks, stieg’nhaus is Austria’s newest design hideaway. A modern Alpine retreat of soft luxury, sculptural calm and quiet hospitality shaped by light, craft and stillness.
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A two-star Michelin gem, this quirky 19th-century cottage lures food lovers worldwide with bold flavours, creative flair, and an unforgettable culinary journey worth every mile.
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Built into the original Medieval town walls of Hall, this former guilders’ house of traditional Tirol style has stood here for well over half a century with records dating back to 1450. Today, behind the rose petal façade, lies the small Kontor Boutiquehotel.
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Ullrhaus is a hotel of muted luxury, where cool design marries Alpine soul and a minimalist edge. Located in the resort of St. Anton in the Tyrolean Alps, home to some of the Alps’ most exhilarating skiing.
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It’s a place where Ernest Hemingway felt a connection, he found inspiration carried on the fresh air, solace amongst the strong personalities in the mountains, and soul-reviving exercise climbing and skiing the peaks
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A contemporary private den for discerning design purists, Ʌerli’s allure is a harmonious marriage of tradition meets modernity, continuing and furthering the strong architectural alpine remit of Tyrolean design.
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Drenched in Tirol originality and crafted by a setting of mountainous vistas. This luxury ski & spa hotel is all about boutique personality, passion, delicious food and a perfect location that hugs the snow-capped plateau, with windows that frame endless Austrian mountain eye-candy.
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Biophilic beats, wild venison, and 43,000 pieces of driftwood – Hotel Der Engel rewrites Alpine cool with raw craft, radical design and grounded luxury in Austria’s Tannheimer Tal.
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A cradle of the arts and style where twisted beams and heritage-thick walls flank a contemporary curatorial scene at this historic coaching inn and foodie haunt since 1350.
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You may recognize Salzburg as the stunning alpine location from The Sound of Music, but its cultural importance goes well beyond this. Birthplace of 18th-century composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, today it hosts the world-famous Salzburg Festival and its cobbled streets are home to many opera, concert and theatre venues.
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Four centuries from a forestry outpost to a five-star institution. A family-owned Alpine hotel where nature-inspired design, a farm-fed kitchen and Europe's first forest spa meet in Salzburger Land.
Get the insider news and lowdown on what we've been up to, where we've been, and who we've met along the way. Be the first to discover new places and get the scoop on our favourites.