{"id":8746,"date":"2026-04-01T03:06:48","date_gmt":"2026-04-01T03:06:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/justpaste.in\/blogs\/amazing-melk-abbey-wachau-austria-hiking-wachau-world-heritage-trail\/"},"modified":"2026-08-04T09:56:24","modified_gmt":"2026-08-04T09:56:24","slug":"amazing-melk-abbey-wachau-austria-hiking-wachau-world-heritage-trail","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/justpaste.in\/blogs\/amazing-melk-abbey-wachau-austria-hiking-wachau-world-heritage-trail\/","title":{"rendered":"Hiking The Wachau Valley In Austria: World Heritage Trail And Melk Abbey Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"

After a brilliant night\u2019s sleep at Weingut Holzapfel-Prandtauerhof<\/a> and a relatively rushed breakfast (might have slightly over-slept\u2026), we headed out to explore the Wachau in the best way possible \u2013 by hiking through it.<\/p>\n

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The World Heritage trail is one of the best hiking routes in the Wachau Valley.<\/p>\n

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It\u2019s one beautiful view after the other as you start from the village of Wei\u00dfenkirchen to Spitz and I can\u2019t recommend it enough! It\u2019s absolutely fantastic!!!<\/p>\n

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A few things worth knowing before you do it:<\/p>\n

a.) The hike is fairly easy and very clearly signposted (you can do most of it on well-paved roads \u2013 too small for cars but perfect for cyclists and hikers).<\/p>\n

b.) Take some water with you \u2013 the hike takes about 3.5 hours, possibly longer if you stop for photos.<\/p>\n

c.) There\u2019s an app for this hike. The one we used was in German but be sure to download it before you arrive here as it\u2019s handy to have on your hike.<\/p>\n

d.) You don\u2019t have to hike back \u2013 from Spitz, you can catch a bus which takes like 5 \u2013 10 minutes to drop you back at Wei\u00dfenkirchen. Or you could take a taxi back \u2013 again, the journey is short so the taxi is cheap, the only problem might actually be how to find the taxi driver (suffice to say, there\u2019s no Uber here). \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

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While you try to figure out how to get back to Wei\u00dfenkirchen, pop in for lunch at Gasthof Goldenes Schiff<\/a> in Spitz. It\u2019s not gourmet food or anything (not that I was expecting that) but it\u2019s pretty good and exactly what you need after your long hike! (And yes, it goes without saying that you should get a glass of wine too\u2026 or two, you deserve it).<\/p>\n

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Back in Wei\u00dfenkirchen, we checked out, hopped into the car and headed over to Melk Abbey (which I mentioned in my previous post here). Weingut Holzapfel-Prandtauerhof<\/a> was built by the same monks who built Melk Abbey and we were told we absolutely had to visit.<\/p>\n

Also, Melk Abbey is one of the two Abbeys that heralds the start and end of the Wachau Valley, depending on which part of it you start in.<\/p>\n

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We stopped off briefly at St Michael\u2019s church, which we\u2019d seen on the way back to Wei\u00dfenkirchen (easier to explore once we had our car with us).<\/p>\n

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The church here is impressive but also rather gruesome as although it was closed, you could peek in and there were parts of it that had bones just piled on top of each other.<\/p>\n

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Melk Abbey needs no signposting when you get there \u2013 you can see it sitting right on the edge of the cliff, imperiously overlooking the valley.<\/p>\n

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You do have to drive up through the back (it\u2019s like 5 minutes from the town at the base) to get into it and there\u2019s a huge car park up here which is free so having a car here is pretty handy.<\/p>\n

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Melk Abbey is as impressive as they said it would be!<\/p>\n

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It\u2019s absolutely magnificent and leaves you in awe as you walk through it.<\/p>\n

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You\u2019re not allowed to take photos in a fair bit of it so it\u2019s even more impressive than I can show you in these photos (but hopefully you can get a sense of how fantastic it is even from these photos).<\/p>\n

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At the top, there\u2019s a balcony with a great view of the valley.<\/p>\n

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Pretty, right?<\/p>\n

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Alas, half of the Abbey\u2019s fa\u00e7ade from this point was covered in scaffolding but even with that, you still leave the Abbey thorough impressed and with a newfound appreciation of the Weingut Holzapfel-Prandtauerhof<\/a> hotel, built by the same monks, that we\u2019d stayed in the night before.<\/p>\n

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\nSaying farewell to Melk Abbey meant saying farewell to the Wachau valley (albeit with a promise to return soon) but we left with excitement as we were off to explore another special part of Austria \u2013 this time in the upper region of Austria!<\/p>\n

Read more: Best things to do in Austria<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

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12 Best Places In Austria To Visit<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n