Erl
Erl, famous above all for its Passion Plays, is located at the border to Bavaria.
Altitude: 476 m asl
Erl is located 15 km from Kufstein, directly at the border to Bavaria. As one of the oldest villages of the Inntal valley, in the Roman era it used to be a country estate known as “Praedium Aurelianum” (Aurelianus’ possession). Indeed this area has already been settled in the 3rd century AD, which is testified by a Roman altar stone next to the parish church. In the 18th century the village was completely layed in ashes in the battles against Bavaria, while later on it was reconstructed from scratch.
Today Erl is above all famous for its Passion Plays, which are performed every six years. The next time these plays take place in 2013, when the event celebrates its 400th anniversary. Up to the year 1613 the history of the Passion Plays can be backtracked, when an Easter Play of the master singer Sebastian Wild from Augsburg was performed. The origins of these plays showing suffering and dying of Jesus Christ, rest upon a vow in the pest era. Since then it was meant to be expression of the deep faith of simple, devout people. Venue for the Passion Plays is an acoustic and architectonic masterpiece of the architect Schuller, which has also become symbol of the village. In addition to the Passion Plays, in 1998 the “Tiroler Festspiele Erl” were brought into being by the director Dr. Gustav Kuhn.
Those who love culture might come across several places of interest, e.g. the Roman altar stone with the inscription “dim pro salute”, which means “to the salvation of the invictable god Mithras”, as well as a larger-than life sized Baroque statue of the water saint Johannes Nepomuk (1732) which can be admired at the wooden Inn bridge. Popular destinations in the heart of nature are e.g. the “Blue Spring” characterized by a water flow of 700 l/sec, which is under natural protection. Other well-liked places are the Trockenbach waterfall as well as the panoramic summits of the Kranzhorn (1,367 m), Spitzstein (1,596 m) and Kalvarienberg. In summer the outdoor pool of Erl is the main attraction: this leisure-time facility includes a pool for non-swimmers, a baby pool, a beach volley field and table tennis. In winter the SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser - Brixental, offering 279 km of slopes, as well as the Zahmer Kaiser - Walchsee skiing area with 25 km of ski slopes are within a short distance.
Our recommendation: the Hartkaiser mountain in the surroundings is a popular destinations for those who love mountaineering. If you do not want to carry the equipment by your own, we recommend you to try lama trekking, a real adventure!
