A relaxed and unpretentious atmosphere pervades the inhabitants of Innsbruck, and it makes perfect sense to pick this town as your year abroad destination; a strong student quota equates to a healthy nightlife, and lots on during the year in terms of student events. Nordpark offers a challenging yet very scenic hiking trail, which is replaced in the colder months by various ski routes, also well worth looking into.
The impressive Alpine backdrop has proved popular with many a skier, but the atmosphere remains very much calm and tranquil - although it more than makes up for it in pure star quality. Innsbruck has had the pleasure of hosting the Winter Olympics not once, but twice - an impressive feat seeing as only Switzerland and the US can boast the same achievement. And if that wasn't enough to tempt you to set up camp here, a little known fact is that its star-studded Alpine sky inspired none other than Douglas Adams to write his famed novel The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. 
