In Pöllau, church architecture and history sit alongside experiences centred on experiments, herbs and trails through the landscape. When planning your trip, you can weigh up a cultural attraction against an outdoor or hands-on activity; each offers a different focus.
Church, castle and the history of physics
Pöllau Parish Church is often called the “Styrian St Peter’s Basilica” because of its size and floor plan. The comparison is based on a specific architectural connection: the church’s floor plan and the imposing domed structure of Pöllau Castle were modelled on St Peter’s Basilica in Rome. Pöllau Castle is the former Augustinian Canons’ monastery and is located in the centre of Pöllau. Guided tours are offered of the church of the former monastery, now the parish church, as well as the Baroque town centre. If you want to do more than simply admire the architecture and understand it in its local context, this option combines sacred architectural history with the townscape.
The Echophysics Museum introduces the interested public to the history of European physics and European physicists. It displays more than 700 instruments, photographs, films and documents. These include the complete collection of original measuring instruments from the Vienna Institute for Radium Research and those belonging to Styrian Nobel laureate in Physics Victor Franz Hess. Experiments are demonstrated during guided tours, and visitors can also operate instruments themselves. In this way, the museum tours differ in approach from tours of the church and town centre: at Echophysics, experiments and instruments take centre stage.
Trails and activity stations
The Pöllau Nature Park Experience Trail starts in Pöllau Castle Park, passes Aupark and the outdoor swimming pool, then returns to the castle park. The starting and ending points are therefore in the same park, while the route passes two other named areas. The “Hirschbirn hirsch’n” experience also begins in the castle park, at an information station. There are interactive activity stations at seven locations. These two offerings share a starting area but differ in format: a signposted circular route on the one hand, and several activity stations on the other.
The Fieberbründlweg 945 passes through the Schönau Gorge and forms a circular route together with the connecting road via Schönaudorf. Schönau Gorge is a cool, damp ravine forest on the Kroisbach, about one kilometre northwest of Schönaudorf. The NaturKRAFTpark offers 13 stations in scenic surroundings, where visitors can explore outer and inner paths.
Herbs and archery courses
At the Bio Kräuterhof Zemanek, visitors can sample herbal specialities in the herb garden. Also on offer are walks through the aromatic garden and herb fields with master gardener Wolfgang Zemanek. The two activities have different focuses: a tasting and guided walks. At the Tobisch Archery Ranch, there is a 3D course and a field course; compound bows are not permitted. This restriction is relevant when planning if you are considering archery as an activity.
Discover more destinations: Kaibing, Riegersdorf, Bad Waltersdorf, Siebenbrunn, Flattendorf, Tiefenbach Bei Kaindorf, Sankt Jakob Im Walde, Schildbach
Back to the regional travel overview: Hartberg-Fürstenfeld.
