North Tyrol borders Bavaria, Germany, in the north, the state of Vorarlberg in the west, South Tyrol, Italy, and Switzerland in the south and Salzburg in the east. East Tyrol also borders Carinthia in the east.
The highest mountain in the state is the Großglockner in the Hohe Tauern, with an elevation of 3,798 m (12,461 ft.). This is second only to the highest mountain of South Tyrol, the Ortler, 3,905 m (12,812 ft.), a summit that was in the times of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy the highest top of the empire.