Wachau Cultural Landscape

The Wachau is an Austrian valley with a landscape of high visual quality formed by the Danube river. The Wachau is well known for its production of apricots and grapes, both of which are used to produce specialty liquors and wines.
The Wachau was added to the UNESCO list of world heritage sites in recognition of its architectural and agricultural history.


Danube . Plague Column . Benedictines .

Reviews

David Berlanda (Italy / Czech Republic):
In the Wachau valley we have been only at the Göttweig abbey, founded in 1074 by the Augustinians on a hill on the right Danube bank. Across the entrance portal, near which is an the Porter's Lodge, remain of an ancient medieval castle, you pass to the main court, where is the Baroque church, with two towers and a porch projected by C. Biasino and J. L. von Hildebrandt. Inside is the Baroque nave and the Gothic apse, with chapels, tombs, an organ, a pulpit by H. Schmidt, altars, stuccos, a treasury paintings by Kremser Schmidt and A. Wolf and a Gothic crypt. In the abbey palace there is the imperial staircase, with frescos on the ceiling by Paul Troger, and many buildings and rooms: the imperial apartments, the Hall of St. Cecilia, the "Grand Hotel", the library, the choirboys' seminary, the gatehouse and the Chapel of St. Erentrudis.
I liked very much this abbey because of the quality of its architecture. It's worth to be visited if you are in the Low Austria and I think that Wachau justifies the inscription, even if I have seen only this abbey.
Photo: Göttweig - Abbey church
Date posted: February 2006
Klaus Freisinger (Austria):
The Wachau Valley stretches for over 30 km along the Danube River between the towns of Melk and Krems in Lower Austria, west of Vienna. It is certainly one of the nicest areas in Austria, and if you´re lucky enough and the weather is fair, it makes for an unforgettable trip - preferably by boat, although there are nice bike trails as well. The valley´s steep banks are covered by vineyards, and there are many small villages with churches and castles. The abbey of Göttweig, the ruins of the castle at Dürnstein, where Richard the Lion-Hearted was held captive and Blondel came to his rescue, and above all the fantastic Benedictine abbey of Melk, featured in The Name of the Rose, are also in this WHS. It is probably one of the best daytrips you can make from Vienna (but not in winter): go by train to Melk, see the abbey, go by ship to Krems, go to a wine restaurant (a Heuriger) there, and then go back to Vienna.
 


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