  Wachau Cultural Landscape, Austria
Wachau is a valley in Austria carved by the Danube River. It is located between the towns of Melk and Krems, covering an area of about 30 km. Wachau has been inhabited since prehistoric times. There are several lovely towns in this area including Melk, Krems (in full, Krems an der Donau) and Dürnstein.
Ruins of Durnstein Castle, where King Richard was held captive by Duke Leopold
Author: Airin (Creative Commons Attribution 1.0)
Dürnstein Church
Author: Jimmy Harris (Creative Commons Attribution 2.0)
Dürnstein Church
Author: Alexxx86 (Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 3.0)
Dürnstein Church
Author: Denis Barthel (Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 3.0)
Dürnstein Church
Author: Georges Jansoone (Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 3.0)
What to See in Wachau Cultural Landscape
The landscape of Wachau is characterised by the Danube river and the vineyards on either sides. Some of the towns in Wachau worth visiting are:
- Dürnstein was where Richard the Lion Heart of England was held captive by Duke Leopold V shortly before Christmas 1192. It is a small town on the Danube River, and is one of the most visited.
- Melk is one of the main towns in the Wachau region. It was first mentioned in 831 AD. The sights and to-do's in Melk includes visiting its baroque Benedictine monastery, called Stift Melk; visiting the Forsthaus, which contains the city archives and tourist office, and a walk around the town.
- Krems an der Donau is the biggest city in the Wochau region. A walk through the Old Town is one of the activities for tourists. Among the sights is the Steiner Tor, the medieval gate built in 1480.
World Heritage Site Inscription Details
Location: N 48 21 52 E 15 26 03
Inscription Year: 2000
Type of Site: Cultural
Inscription Criteria: II, IV
Location
Wachau is about 70 km to the west to Vienna. View location on map.
Getting there
There are regular train services from Vienna to the towns of Melk and Krems in Wachau. By car, you can take the West-Autobahn (A1 / E60) to Melk. Alternatively, you can take the Donauufer-Autobahn (E59) to Stockerau, and continue on the Stockerauer-Schnellstraße (S5) to Krems and to Dürnstein.
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