"Graz - capital of Styria!" Graz by coccinella169

Graz Travel Guide: 555 reviews and 1,445 photos

Hauptplatz, fountain with Erzherzog Johann statue

When I was studying in Graz there was the saying that Graz is a city with on one hand a huge number of students, and on the other hand with a huge number of retirees, and that there is not much in between. Well, it is definitely correct that there are a lot of students in Graz because there is Austria`s second largest university (Karl Franzens Universität), and most young people from Styria and Carinzia move there after finishing school.
Graz in my eyes is on one hand very conservative, where you can see people wearing traditional styrian clothes on the street and with traditional values as well, on the other you have some interesting movements regarding innovative art, architecture and theatre. Especially on occasion of Graz being european capital of culture in 2003, some new artworks were displayed in the city of Graz- samples are the Murinsel or the Marienlift. An interesting new building you could pay a visit is the Kunsthaus (called "friendly alien" , when you see it you`ll know why:)).

Little elefant in the Neue Welt Gasse

Graz is a city which is especially nice in spring, when there are a lot of people strolling in the centre and everything is in bloom. Graz then seems to have an almost mediterannean air. Don`t miss to get you an ice cream from the Temmel shop in the Herrengasse then :). And I love it in autumn, when there are stands selling Maroni (chestnuts) and Sturm (a rather sweet wine you only get in autumn).

Herrengasse

1999 the old centre of Graz was added to the list of Unesco world heritages because it is a very unique and harmonious blend of various architectural styles. You can discover a lot of gems like the house on the picture in Graz. The house is called "Herzogshof" or simply "gemaltes Haus"- and the paintings show gods of greek-roman mythology.

Pros and Cons

Pros:Small, clean, lots of culture and nice surroundings

Intro Updated Feb 13, 2007
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Reviews (13)

An evening at the opera Nightlife (1)

Graz is Austria`s second largest city and has it`s second large opera house. The building seems to be baroque style, but... more travel advice

International interpretation of styrian... Restaurants (4)

Eckstein is a rather chic restaurant in the centre of Graz, on one of the nicest squares- the Mehlplatz. The interieur... more travel advice

Books and magazines Shopping (1)

Moser is the most traditional and best bookshop (at least in my opinion :)) in Graz. Not only it is worth a visit... more travel advice

Kaiser Josef Markt Things to Do (6)

This is a very nice market close to the Graz opera. Farmers from the region sell their vegetables, fruits, meat... more travel advice

Hotels (1)
Very comfortable!

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Comments (11)

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Maurizioago Feb 7, 2012 at 1:44 AM

Graz seems a nice town.

Ciao!
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TravellingPierre Apr 9, 2010 at 1:50 PM

Went to Eckstein for dinner with a local business partner who knows his food. He was not wrong. The food was great and the restaurant was hopping with beautiful people. The service was good and the staff was suitably aloof. All in all a great experience.
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KiKitC Sep 16, 2009 at 3:04 AM

Fabulous tips! Thank you for the tour of this beautiful city. Hope your birthday is full of friends and laughter.
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Hermanater Sep 16, 2008 at 11:51 AM

Happy Birthday. I really enjoyed visiting your pages. Austria is a place I always wanted to visit since my Great Grandfather is from there.
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Toshioohsako Jun 1, 2008 at 1:47 PM

Yes, i want to visit Graz again in Spring. My last visit was in the Fall.
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Jim_Eliason Aug 12, 2007 at 2:35 PM

great pics!
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toonsarah Jun 10, 2007 at 2:29 AM

Excellent tips, I really like the sound of this city. I love to see old and new architecture blended together so would like the bookshop and Murinsel - and I know already that I love pumpkin seed oil ;)
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Vulindlela Apr 8, 2007 at 2:33 PM

Thanks for a great Graz page! Pretty pictures too.
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hunterV Mar 5, 2007 at 1:36 PM

Hallo und - vielen Dank!
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MeZuGa Aug 1, 2006 at 5:41 PM

Is Terrible, i like this city.....