Wachau Valley and Melk Abbey

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Wachau Cultural Landscape (2000). A 36 Km River Valley Of Terraced Vineyards Of Gruner Veltliner And Riesling, Apricot Orchards (Wachauer Marille), Medieval Towns Such As Durnstein And Krems And The Baroque Benedictine Melk Abbey On A Rock. Often Visited By Danube Cycling Or River Cruise. · Melk, Lower Austria

The Wachau is a 36 km stretch of the Danube between Melk and Krems in Lower Austria, about 1 hr 30 min from Vienna, and a UNESCO World Heritage cultural landscape since 2000. Steep terraces of Gruner Veltliner and Riesling climb above the river, apricot orchards flower in late March and April, and small medieval villages such as Durnstein, Spitz and Weissenkirchen sit between ruined castles. At the western gate stands Melk Abbey, a Baroque Benedictine monastery on a rock, with a Marble Hall, a library and a church, and a link to The Name of the Rose. The honest picture is a valley best seen slowly, on a bike or a river boat, because the villages are small and the abbey is the main indoor sight. Summer weekends are busy, the Danube has flooded in 2002 and 2013, and Heurigen taverns open only in set weeks. Plan one full day, or two days if you want the tastings and a hike without rushing. Trains from Vienna make it an easy day out, and the boats let you leave the car at home.

Stretch of the Danube between Melk and Krems in Lower Austria, about 80 km west of Vienna, with vineyard terraces, apricot orchards, ruined castles and Melk Abbey, Melk, Lower Austria, Austria

The valley is open all year, but spring to autumn is when boats, ferries, bike hire and Heurigen run. Melk Abbey is open daily from roughly March to November, with a shorter winter programme and some CLOSED rooms. Heurigen open for set weeks only, so check locally.

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