Top 13 Caves around Brandenberg

May 24th – October 26th, 2025, every Saturday and Sunday. July 10th – September 7th, 2025, also every Thursday and Friday during the summer holidays between 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM as required. Tour duration: approximately 30 minutes. Please register in advance for groups of 10 or more. Admission Prices €9.00 Adults €7.00 Concessionary (e.g., Tyrolean Family Pass, Guest Card, etc.) €4.00 Children https://eishoehle.tirol/

The small inscription cave below the Schneidjoch Pass in the northwestern Brandenberg Alps is the site of seven Rhaetian rock inscriptions. These date from the Late Iron Age (circa 500–15 BC) and are documents of Rhaetian, a language related to Etruscan that was displaced by Latin after the Roman conquest of the Alpine region. Four of the seven inscriptions in the cave are comprehensible: They record the names of individuals who presumably performed cultic ceremonies at this site. It is particularly noteworthy that three of the four inscriptions belong together, as the names recorded in them are those of a father and his two sons. The nature of the cultic ceremonies performed in or in front of the inscription cave is unclear; perhaps the inscription of names on the rock surface itself was already considered a ritual act (https://tir.univie.ac.at/images/8/88/Steinberg.pdf).

One of Rattenberg's special sights is the parish church of St. Virgil and St. Catherine. This Gothic building has two naves. Once, it was a separate church for citizens and miners. Important artists redesigned the building in the Baroque style. A chapel commemorates Saint Notburga, who was born in Rattenberg. Noteworthy: an elevator leads from the Painter's Corner to the church portal. 😉

A hand-dug tunnel about 10m long in the Gratlspitze mountain range. On the back of the mountain there are numerous other former tunnels that indicate mining.

You just have to see this one!

The immediate proximity of the steeply sloping Schlossberg site and the spatial limitations of the building site meant that the church building itself showed some special features. The origins of the church are Gothic. It was built between 1473 and 1506 and acquired its current Baroque architectural style in the 18th century. The main artistic features are the so-called "Annenaltar" in the southern choir stalls with its statues, the vault frescoes by SB Faistenerger and Matthäus Günther and the Lourdes Shrine.

Südtiroler Strasse 67 is the birthplace of Saint Notburga, who enjoys great prestige in the region. She was born in Rattenberg in 1265 and, as a child, was appointed maidservant to the Count of Rottenburg in the Lower Inn Valley. She always saved some of the meals she received there to give to the poor and beggars. After the death of the countess, his stepdaughter Ottilie forced her to leave the castle and she became a maidservant on a farm in Eben. The farmer was harsh and exploited his staff. He wanted to continue working in the evening, but Notburga did not want to give in and shouted loudly "Rest time". She threw up her sickle, which miraculously stayed in the air. When Ottilie died she returned to the castle where she served faithfully until her death. She died on September 14, 1313 and is now located in the Notburgakirche in Eben, Tyrol. You cannot visit her birthplace, but you can read all about her miracles and her life on the facade plaque.

The sights of Rattenberg also include the St. Virgilius Church, which has existed since 1507. In the 18th century, this Roman Catholic Parish Church received its current Baroque interior. The church is a masterpiece of the Hagau architectural style. On the high altar, above the large painting, one sees the well-known triangle surrounded by rays and angels, with the Hebrew tetragrammaton in the center.