2025 Europe – Day 15 – Melk and Durnstein

It was another fine and hot day for us today. Deb decided on a quiet morning while she struggled with the head cold that has now seemed to infect a good portion of the passengers. The morning excursion was to the Melk Abbey, which is a Benedictine abbey above the town of Melk which is also the gateway to the Wachau valley, a famous wine producing districe. The abbey contains the tomb of Saint Coloman of Stockerau and the remains of several members of the House of Babenberg, Austria’s first ruling dynasty.

The Abbey is still a working monastery and is also a school for about 900 students, both male and female. Fees are quite low at around 100 Euros per month with costs also being defrayed by the 450,000 tourists that visit every year. The money also goes into the restoration. Photography is not permitted inside the Abbey because there are many ancient paintings that get degraded by the use of flash photography. It is my view that if someone asks you not to take photos in their house, then you should respect that. Unfortunately that view is not broadly shared by the touring public. The abbey tour features and exhibition of historical artifacts from the combined Babenberg and Hapsburg families that ruled Austria until 1918. It also contains a spectacular library of about 130,000 books dating back 100s of years.

Me and my cruise buddy, Ian walked back to the ship through the town, which offered some quaint shops that I suspect only exist for the passing tourists. We stopped for coffee and watched all the other tourists we knew wander by. The walk back offers views up to the abbey as it dominates the skyline.

Once back on the ship, we had a BBQ lunch prior to setting off down the Wachau Valley which is formed by the Danube River. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations of Lower Austria, that is best known for its high-quality wines. It is 36 kilometres long and has been settled since prehistoric times. Castles and ruins combined with the urban architecture of its towns and villages, and the cultivation of vines as an important agricultural produce are the dominant features of the valley. Of note is Dürnstein Castle (pictured below), where King Richard I of England was held captive by Leopold V, Duke of Austria for four months in 1193.

We had some free time this afternoon and Deb was feeling up to exploring the town of Durnstein. It’s another small medieval town that is one of the most-visited tourist destinations in the Wachau region. Its most visible landmark is Dürnstein Abbey which was established in 1410 but rebuilt in 1710 in a Baroque style and is famous for its blue tower, which is clearly visible from the river. Inside it features opulent gold atrifacts and there are good views available from the terraces.

It was around 30 degrees walking around, so we looked after the necessities and tasted some of the local apricot-based liqueurs, which are kind of like apricot jam, but much warmer in the tummy. We finished our exploration with an ice-cold beer.

Until tomorrow.