The Bergisel ski jump terrace

The Bergisel jump stands on a wooded hill about 250 metres above the city, where the Tyrolean militia fought in 1809 and where the Four Hills Tournament comes every January. The current tower, finished in 2002 to Zaha Hadid's design, is a single concrete and steel curve with a lift inside; at the top there is a café and, above it, an open terrace at the head of the inrun.

From there the jump falls away below you in one straight line to the outrun and the stadium, and beyond it Innsbruck fills the valley with the whole Nordkette standing behind — city, mountain and a piece of hard modern architecture in a single frame, which is not something most cities can offer. Turn around and the tower itself, seen against the sky from the terrace steps, is the other picture.

The terrace faces roughly north over the city, so it is even and shadowless for most of the day, and the two best windows are the morning, when the Nordkette is lit and clean, and the last hour, when the range goes warm while the valley cools. Haze is the usual enemy in summer; winter and early spring give the sharpest air and snow on the range behind.

The tower is ticketed, with opening hours that shift by season and a last admission, and it closes to visitors around competitions and training days — the Four Hills round is at the start of January. Check the day before you build a session around it. Tram 1 and the Stubaitalbahn stop at the foot of the hill, and it is a steep ten-minute walk up from there.