Swarovski Kristallwelten reopens in April

Swarovski Kristallwelten, a crystal-themed museum in Austria, showed more charms when it reopened on April 30.

The expanded Swarovski Kristallwelten will provide visitors with more fresh travel experience. "After the expansion, the Swarovski Kristallwelten (Crystal Worlds) will make visitors enjoy more high-quality services. All sectors including entrances and exits have been redesigned, enabling visitors to appreciate the charms of crystals. Meanwhile, the reconstruction program serves as our company's tribute to the history and heritage, and a vision for the future development. Swarovski Kristallwelten represents our love for our homeland Wattens", said by Swarovski Executive Board Member Markus Langes-Swarovski.

Constructed under the joint efforts of many world-leading artists and designers, the expanded Swarovski Kristallwelten covers a total area of 7.5 hectares, and consists of specially designed buildings. Five exhibition rooms inside the museum have been redesigned and reconstructed.

On the occasion of the centennial of Swarovski Group in 1995, Swarovski Group presented the Swarovski Kristallwelten (Crystal Worlds) as a big gift to its employees and customers. Swarovski Kristallwelten (Crystal Worlds) has been world-renowned since its establishment in Wattens 20 years ago, receiving 12 million visitors from 60 countries across the globe up to now.

Prelude of a new era

With a 1.5-year construction period and an investment of 34 million euros ($ 37.45 million), Swarovski Kristallwelten (Crystal Worlds) has been expanded from an area of 3.5 hectares to 7.5 hectares. Inside the Swarovski Kristallwelten, five exhibition rooms have been reconstructed. The Giant, a head sculpture, is entrance to the Crystal Worlds, and around it lie some artistic buildings newly designed by world-renowned architects.

"We have been striving to build a brand new Crystal Worlds to attract more tourists from all over the world. More tourism highlights have been added and tourists can have a 4-hour tour. Tourists can only visit here for two hours before the Crystal Worlds was expanded", said Stefan Isser, general manager of D. Swarovski Tourism Services GmbH.

The expansion project is a witness that Swarovski Group has been all along striving for excellence in such fields as arts, culture, architecture and design. Since its establishment in 1895, Swarovski has cooperated with world renowned artists to promote innovation and development. Carla Rumler, Cultural Director at Swarovski, is in charge of the expansion project. She explained, "We are committed to passing on artistic treasures. We select first-class artists and develop new projects, and we also find ways to discover the hidden charms of crystals."

Upgraded experience

The exhibition rooms copied the design of Schloss Ambras Innsbruck and it has attracted numerous tourists in the past 20 years. Its designers include the Dutch designer Tord Boontje who used 150,000 Swarovski crystals in his design, Korean designer Lee Bul who used his modeling works to explore the interaction between visitors and the space.

The design of Fredrikson and Stallard from the Great Britain led visitors to enjoy the largest crystal produced by Swarovski. The Belgian artist Studio Job used action, music and reflection to tell hundreds of wonderful stories.

The dome and pillars of Swarovski Kristallwelten Store are decorated with the traditional mosaics designed by a Italian company Bisazza, creating a refreshing look.

Swarovski Kristallwelten is located in Wattens, 15 kilometers away from Innsbruck, Tyrol. Tyrol receives more than 9 million tourists from over 50 countries each year. The Alps region was the most popular holiday destination in 2014, and attracted about 43 million nights' room booking. Tyrolean tourism industry has a history of about 200 years, and is world-renowned for countless innovative services. Visitors can enjoy unforgettable travel experience close to nature and high-quality services.

In 2014, Tyrol received about 190,000 Chinese tourists, becoming the second most popular tourist destination in Austria for Chinese tourists. Tirol Tourist Board, with headquarters in Innsbruck, is an official agency to promote the state's tourism resources. The board is striving to promote Tyrol as Alps region's number one tourist attraction.

Year 2015 marks the 120th anniversary of the operations of Swarovski Group and the 20th anniversary of the founding of Swarovski Kristallwelten. The expanded crystal-themed museum is welcoming tourists from all over the world.