Visiting The Arnold Schwarzenegger Museum (What To Expect)
Growing up I had always been a big fan of Arnold Schwarzenegger movies. Whether it was the Terminator, Kindergarten Cop or The Last Action Hero I loved all of them. Then as I got older and started lifting weights The Pumping Iron documentary became one of my favorite documentaries ever. As my girlfriend is from Austria she told me one day that there was an Arnold Schwarzenegger Museum in Austria.
I decided that I would have to go if we were ever close to it. So when we planned a trip to Graz which is close to the museum it was put at the top of the list of things to do.
Where is the Arnold Schwarzenegger Museum?
The Arnold Schwarzenegger Museum is located in Thal, Austria which is a 25 minutes drive from Graz. Thal is the small village up in the hills by Graz that Arnold grew up in. It is a beautiful area but very quiet and rural, a completely different planet from where Arnold lives now.
Arnold lived in Thal until 1966 when he was 19 years old. After this Arnold left Austria to conquer the world and the building he was born in was sold. In 2009 an investor bought the building of Arnold’s birth and it was decided to turn it into a museum.
Arnold liked the idea and sent many personal belongings to be put on display. So today you can walk through the building he was born in and see some cool movie props and other interesting belongings.
Entrance Fee Arnold Schwarzenegger Museum
The museum costs 8.90 euros so is very reasonably priced.
Inside The Museum
The Museum is not a large museum so will not take that long to look around. Each of the rooms has been dedicated to different parts of Arnold’s life. The first room shows the beds that he slept in growing up and the uniforms he wore in the army.
There are also many pictures of Arnold from his younger years in Austria. So it is quite interesting to see what life was like for him before he was famous.
Once you move into the next room there are much more memorabilia from when he became famous. There is a desk from when he was governor of California and other movie props that are super interesting.
Upstairs there is even more movie memorabilia and more facts about Arnold’s life. One thing that was surprising was all the facts about Arnold’s life in the museum. For example, I had no idea that he was rich through real estate investment before he became a movie star.
There is also a replica of a kitchen upstairs that shows what they were like at the time Arnold was born. Once again it is super interesting to see that Arnold had such a humble beginning to his life and the contrast to the life he lives today.
Outside The Museum
The museum is quite small and although interesting does not take long to look through. But there are some areas outside nearby that Arnold fans should check out.
There is a lake called Thalersee that is close to where the museum is. The lake is nice to go for a walk and there is also a couple of Arnold attractions along its shoreline.
The first is a boat that Arnold proposed to his first wife Maria Schriver. The boat has a portrait of the two in it and he was actually rowing it on the lake when he proposed.
The next is some pull up bars attached to a tree that Arnold used to work out on when he was young. They are both strange things to see but the lake is nice to have a walk around so it is worth heading down.
Visiting the museum and the lake will only take up a couple of hours of your time. But it is definitely worth it if you are an Arnold fan and are going to be nearby.
That Is All There Is To Know About The Arnold Schwarzenegger Museum
It is a quirky little museum that will be interesting whether you are an Arnold fan or not. It is super interesting to see how he came from such humble beginnings in Austria to become a global superstar. If you visit let me know how you liked the museum in the comments below.
Travel, health and fitness fanatic. Co-founder of happyhealthynomads.
