The Biosphaerenpark Nockberge (Nockberge UNESCO Biosphere Reserve) protects the distinctive rounded mountain landscape of central Carinthia. Unlike the jagged limestone ranges elsewhere in Austria, the Nockberge are ancient metamorphic mountains worn to smooth, grass-covered summits over hundreds of millions of years. Alpine pastoral farming continues here as it has for centuries; the Biosphere Reserve designation protects both the ecology and the farming culture simultaneously. The Nockalmstrasse scenic toll road (35 kilometers, open May to October) provides the main access, winding through meadows and past traditional Almen to a summit at 2,049 meters. Access by car from Villach (45 minutes) or Klagenfurt (1 hour). Free park entry; Nockalmstrasse toll approximately EUR 20.
natural reserve in Bad Kleinkirchheim
Nockberge Biosphere Reserve
Also known as Biosphärenpark Nockberge
The Nockberge are visually unlike anything else in the Austrian Alps. These are ancient, heavily eroded mountains with smooth, rounded summits and wide alpine meadows, instead of the jagged limestone walls that define the Tyrolian and Salzburg ranges.
- Type
- natural reserve
- Destination
- Bad Kleinkirchheim
- Cost
- Paid entry
- Founded
- 2012
- Era
- Contemporary
- Address
- 9546 Bad Kleinkirchheim
- Coordinates
- 47.2272, 13.7242
- Official website
- Visit website