Mühldorf combines the Wachau wine landscape with the wooded foothills of the Waldviertel. The town lies in the climatically favoured valley basin of the Spitzbach Valley, where the two landscapes meet. This offers a range of focuses to choose from when planning your trip: hiking, architectural and local history, and local traditions. The highest vineyard in the Wachau wine-growing region is located on the southern slope of Mount Trenning. Mühldorf is also six kilometres from the Danube, on the Wachau Wine Road.
Hiking between the valley and the World Heritage Trail
If you would like to explore Mühldorf on foot, Route 05 of the Wachau World Heritage Trail leads from Mühldorf to Maria Laach. The Way of the Cross in Unterranna offers a different kind of walk: it begins beside the wayside shrine of Saint John of Nepomuk and follows a steep mountain path, passing nine open, brick-built, semicircular Stations of the Cross, to the Baroque Crucifixion Chapel. The routes differ considerably: Route 05 connects two named places, while the Stations of the Cross and the steep path shape the course of the other walk. This lets you choose between a route connecting two places and a religious Stations of the Cross trail.
Architecture and history
Trenninghof is a manor house within the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Wachau. It lies at the northern foot of the Trenning in the Spitzer Graben, in the market town of Mühldorf, and is privately owned. Its present appearance dates to Renaissance renovations in the second half of the 16th century. At that time, two additional wings were added to the medieval manor house with its Gothic vaults. Its architectural history thus combines a medieval structure with a later extension.
The religious buildings also mark different periods in history. Oberranna Castle has a small castle church dating from the 12th century. The Trandorf branch church is dedicated to Saint Ulrich and was formerly a fortified church. Its present late Gothic ground plan probably dates from the early 16th century, after it was at least partially destroyed by the Turks in 1529. Graphite mining tells a different story of local history: it operated in Mühldorf from 1832 to 1968 and was one of the oldest mining operations of its kind in Austria.
Crafts, wine and local traditions
The Bakery Museum in Mühldorf showcases the life of bakers over several centuries. Bread is still baked once a month in the 1625 clay oven. If you would like to see the baking, check in advance whether it is taking place on the day of your visit. Local businesses sell fruit-based products year-round, including wine, schnapps and jam. Mühldorf also preserves old rural customs, celebrated at midsummer festivals and harvest thanksgiving.
Local highlights therefore range from trails through the landscape to architectural and industrial history, crafts and winegrowing. When planning your trip, you can choose the focus that interests you most: a named hiking route, a historic building, or local products and traditions.
Discover more destinations: Schwallenbach, Schönberg Am Kamp, Rossatz, Langenlois, Krems An Der Donau, Willendorf In Der Wachau, Grafenegg, Rohrendorf Bei Krems
Go to the overview of the wider travel region: Krems-Land.
