Wachau World Heritage Trail 13: Unterbergern-Mautern

Description

Welterbesteig Wachau - Wachau World Heritage Trail: From Oberbergern to Mautern

The stage from Oberbergern to Mautern impressively combines wine landscapes, cultural heritage and varied natural areas. From Unterbergern, the trail leads via Göttweig Abbey, which can be seen from afar, and runs for around 13 kilometers through the characteristic wine-growing areas of the Wachau and Krems Valley ("Kremstal" in German). The route is accompanied by numerous wine taverns and sweeping views over the Danube valley and the surrounding hilly landscape.

Through a varied landscape of forests and meadows, the trail reaches the Am Giritzer plateau and continues into the impressive loess gorge of the Zellergraben. The destination of this stage is the historic Roman town of Mautern, which, with its long settlement history, forms a striking conclusion to this scenically and culturally rich section of the Welterbesteig Wachau - Wachau World Heritage Trail.

Hiking along the Welterbesteig Wachau - Wachau World Heritage Trail reveals step by step why the Wachau has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage region. Along finely curated World Heritage spots, the defining World Heritage highlights become visible - the interplay of historic cultural landscape, traditional viticulture, extraordinary natural spaces and the Danube as a shaping element.

Thanks to good rail connections, a relaxed and sustainable journey to the Wachau is easy. A dense network of public transport in the region ensures that all stages can be easily reached by bus, train, ferry and boat. This also makes it very easy to combine different stages.

The Welterbesteig Wachau - Wachau World Heritage Trail has also been awarded the Austrian Hiking Seal of Quality. This certification stands for high quality standards in terms of route guidance, signposting, safety and infrastructure and confirms the World Heritage Trail as a reliable and high-quality hiking offer in the heart of the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Starting point of the tour

Unterbergern, town center

Destination point of the tour

Mautern, town hall square

Route description Wachau World Heritage Trail 13: Unterbergern-Mautern

Our stage starts in the town center of Unterbergern. Several Heurigens in the village invite you to a cozy stop. We follow the main street heading southwest and after about 300 m turn left and immediately right again. We go uphill and turn left at the next intersection. After a few minutes, we reach the plateau "Am Giritzer." Just before the model airfield, we keep right and reach a small forest and the Red Cross. From there, we follow the path straight ahead to the rest area at the linden tree in Baumgarten, which offers a wonderful view over Krems, Stein, Mautern, and Stift Göttweig.

We walk a short distance on the country road to the right and turn left at the next junction into Zeiling country road. We follow it to the end and turn right onto the main road. We pass through the small Steinaweg wine cellar lane and after about 150 m go left downhill to Steinaweg. At the bottom, we go right and then left over a small bridge to reach the Steinaweg chapel. Over another small bridge crossing the Fladnitz brook, we begin our ascent to Göttweiger Berg and the abbey. After crossing the railway tracks, the path goes uphill. Through an untouched hornbeam, oak, and pine forest, our path leads up to Stift Göttweig (stamp station), where we can stop in the abbey restaurant.

Then the path continuously goes downhill into the vintner village of Furth. At the train station, we keep left and go under the railway lines. At the second street after that, we turn left into Kargelmayer lane and walk parallel to the Fladnitz brook (on the right). We cross the next bridge and reach the Furth parish church of Saint Wolfgang. We go under the church and immediately left uphill (St. Wolfgang path). We reach the Furth Kellergraben with Heurigens and go right. At the next intersection, we go left and are now in the "loess gorge" Zellergraben. The loess walls are among the most impressive in the whole region and are a natural monument. At the end of the gorge, we reach the rest area Zellerkreuz and hike right through the cellar path through the Furth and Mautern vineyards (Ried Silberbichl). At the end of the cellar path, we go right and continue to the main road at the Mautern barracks. We turn left, cross the roundabout, and follow the street to Mautern town hall square, where our stage ends.