Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe and the Pasterze glacier

What it is

The Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe is the end of the glacier road, the branch of the Grossglockner road that leaves from the Carinthian side. You are at 2,369 m, with the Grossglockner (3,798 m), the highest mountain in Austria, straight ahead, and the Pasterze glacier below. It owes its name to the visit of Emperor Franz Joseph and Empress Elisabeth in 1856. It is the longest stop of the day and the busiest.

What to see

• The viewpoint. From the edge you see the tongue of the Pasterze, the glacier at the foot of the Grossglockner. Its retreat, increasingly linked to human activity as the centre itself explains, is visible to the naked eye.
• The Kaiser Franz Josef panoramic trail. An easy circuit of about 1.4 km to the Kaiserstein viewpoint, with panels about the emperor and Sisi. Along the way, with luck, you see marmots, ibex, chamois and eagles. Allow an hour.
• The Nationalpark Crystal Grossglockner viewing tower. About a 10-minute walk from the car park; open from 10 to 16.
• The visitor centre. About 1,500 m² on five floors: the national park information centre with a projection about the Hohe Tauern, the Gletscher.Leben exhibition, with a 6,000-year-old Swiss pine found on the Pasterze, another on women in mountaineering, a cinema with a giant LED screen and the highest car and motorbike exhibition in Austria, with vehicles from 1926. It is open every day from 10 to 17 and admission is included in the toll.

Walks from here

• Gletscherweg, the descent to the glacier. A secured alpine path to the Pasterze: about 30 minutes down and an hour back up. It requires mountain footwear. The signs along the path show how much the glacier has shrunk.
• Pasterzenweg. From the glacier tongue to the Glocknerhaus, an hour and a half more.
• Gamsgrubenweg. A panoramic trail through tunnels towards the Wasserfallwinkl. At present it can only be walked as far as tunnel 6; the last tunnel requires a helmet and safety equipment and is done at your own risk.
• Alpe-Adria-Trail. The great trail to the Adriatic starts here, with stages of about 20 km.

Walk with a ranger

From mid-July to mid-September, the national park rangers lead a free guided walk along the panoramic trail every day, at 10:30 and 13:30. It lasts an hour.

Hours, price and parking

The Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe can only be visited when the road is open, from early May to early November. You pay nothing apart from the toll: €46.50 per car per day in 2026. Parking is free, with spaces also along the branch road as far as the Hoher Sattel and charging points for electric cars. Motorcyclists have lockers for their gear.

For eating there is the Gletscherrestaurant Freiwandeck, with a terrace, the Panorama Restaurant, with a lift, the Kaiser-Franz-Josef-Haus, reached on foot along the panoramic trail, and a kiosk at the Kaiserstein.

Accessibility, children and dogs

The visitor centre has a lift to all floors and there is an accessible toilet next to it. With small children the panoramic trail works well, without difficulty, as does looking for marmots; leave the Gletscherweg for older ones. Dogs may go on a lead along the paths, but not into the visitor centre.

If the weather changes

In low cloud the Grossglockner disappears in minutes. Check the webcam on the road's website before going up, and if it is foggy at the top, spend the time in the visitor centre. Even in summer it can be cold and snow: bring a coat.