Heinrich Harrer Museum


One of Carinthia's most fascinating attractions is the Heinrich Harrer Museum, a former school now packed with items shipped back from Harrer's expeditions to various corners of the world. For anyone inspired to take to the road by the book and Brad Pitt film Seven Years in Tibet it's an unmissable place, with an entire section devoted to Harrer himself.

That biographical section kicks off the visit and focuses on Harrer's early life in Hüttenberg/Knappenberg, his sporting achievements, his awards and medals and celebrity status (look out for the photo of him with Bing Crosby). Further rooms examine individual expeditions he made, the most interesting being on the middle floor and the very top of the building, which are dedicated to Tibet and the Himalayas. There's a mock-up of a Buddhist temple plus all kinds of religious items, jewellery, costumes, masks, dolls, carpets and a few images of the Dalai Lama. Also don't miss the cellar where you can peruse Harrer's bibliography of 26 books and watch a film about the creation of the Lingkor, which rises on a cliffside opposite the museum. Allow at least 1½ hours to do the collection justice.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Lingkor

0.03 MILES

Insert a €2 coin into the turnstile set in a stupa to access this Buddhist walkway that climbs high above serene Hüttenberg. The metal staircases cling to…

2. St Bartholomew Church

6.84 MILES

St Bartholomew's is a towering 10th-century Gothic church that boasts some striking Romanesque elements, most notably the two almost-symmetrical towers.

3. Peterskirche

6.91 MILES

Parts of this pretty village church date back to the 13th century. It has unusually modest interiors that mix Gothic and later elements. The Peterskirche…

4. Bischofskapelle

12.79 MILES

This small chapel is part of the Dom zu Gurk and has unusually well-preserved late Romanesque paintings dating from 1263. One side is dedicated to the…

5. Dom zu Gurk

12.8 MILES

With its harmonious pillared crypt, the Dom (built between 1140 and 1200) is Austria’s foremost church from the Romanesque epoch. Inside you will also…

6. Burg Hochosterwitz

13.29 MILES

This fairy-tale fortress claims to be the inspiration for the castle in Sleeping Beauty and drapes itself around the slopes of a hill, with 14 gate towers…

7. Pilgrimage Church

20.07 MILES

Maria Saal, a small town perched on a fortified hill 10km north of Klagenfurt, is worth the 10-minute bus journey to see its early-15th-century pilgrimage…

8. Stadtpfarrkirche St Matthäus

21.55 MILES

Situated just below the castle, this restored church has Gothic and baroque elements that work surprisingly well together, especially in the combination…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "austria/huttenberg/attractions/heinrich-harrer-museum/a/poi-sig/1028650/1002600",
      "position": "superzone"
    }