What it is
The Schlossberg carried a mighty fortress until Napoleon's troops razed it in 1809; the citizens of Graz paid a ransom to save the clock tower and the bell tower with the bell called Liesl. The Uhrturm took its present form around 1560, and its hands are reversed because originally the clock had only an hour hand, which was made large so that it could be read from afar.
Today the hill is a park with shady paths, the casemates open-air stage, cafés and viewpoints over the red roofs of the old town, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Getting there by bus
Trams 3 and 5 stop at Schloßbergplatz/Murinsel at the foot of the hill, from where a lift inside the rock and the Kriegssteig stairway both climb to the top; the Schlossbergbahn funicular leaves from Kaiser-Franz-Josef-Kai nearby. Bus 30 stops at Karmeliterplatz on the east side, where a gentler path leads up.
The clock tower is about halfway up the stairway, so it can be seen even without going to the top.
