Festung Kufstein hosts company events, seminars, incentives, civil weddings, wedding parties, gala dinners and open-air concerts, with room for up to 4,200 guests across its event spaces. The fortress stands on a rock above the old town of Kufstein, in the Austrian state of Tyrol, close to the German border.
Seminars and company events
The fortress team plans private and corporate events of every size, as well as seminars and incentive programs. Groups can combine an event with guided tours of the fortress, including night tours and a tour themed on Emperor Maximilian I, visits to the museums, and a Burgherrenabend, a castle lord's evening with dinner. For overnight stays, the Kufstein Convention Bureau works with partner hotels and seminar hotels in the town. Celebrations held outside public opening hours do not require an entrance ticket.
Weddings and receptions
Civil ceremonies can be held at the fortress, followed by a wedding gala or wedding party in the same place. The Lounge in the Kaiserturm is used both for the civil ceremony and for the party afterward. Smaller wedding dinners can take place in the former castle chapel.
Rooms and capacities
The largest space is the festungsarena, an open-air arena inside the walls with a mobile roof that protects company events, classical concerts and live shows from the rain. The fortress as a whole takes up to 4,200 guests, and the arena is where its largest open-air events take place.
The Kaiserturm, the emperor's tower, holds two event rooms that were converted in 2015. The Lounge occupies its first floor and suits ceremonies, receptions and parties. The Bombardiergewölbe, on the upper floor, is a vaulted hall now used as a banquet room. The former castle chapel is the setting for small events, from a traditional castle dinner to a formal gala dinner.
Catering
Catering is handled by the Festungswirtschaft, the fortress restaurant and its exclusive event caterer. Its kitchen cooks traditional Austrian dishes with market produce and puts together menus for company parties, weddings, Christmas parties and birthdays. The restaurant is open to visitors every day during fortress opening hours.
History and setting
The fortress was first recorded in 1205. Emperor Maximilian I took it after a siege in 1504 and had the Kaiserturm built in the years that followed. The site later served as a state prison, and the Bürgerturm holds the Heldenorgel, a large open-air organ played daily at noon. Today the fortress houses several museums and exhibitions and is open every day, including public holidays.
Getting there
The main entrance is in the town center, behind the parish church, through the visitor center. The Panoramabahn lift carries visitors up to the fortress and back. Cars can park in one of the parking garages in the center, a few minutes on foot from the entrance. There is no coach parking at the fortress: coaches can drop guests at the Oberer Stadtplatz, in front of the town hall, and use public coach parking in town. Kufstein station is on the main rail line between Munich and Innsbruck.
