Melk travel guide
Prandtauer's abbey, the Danube and the Wachau wine valley
A small Danube town crowned by Melk Abbey, one of the great baroque monasteries of Europe, at the start of the Wachau wine valley. April to October is best, when the boats run. A day is enough; stay overnight to see the abbey before the crowds. Prices are above average, and many passports need no visa for Austria.
Melk is a small Lower Austrian town on the Danube at the western gate of the Wachau valley, and nearly everyone comes for one building. Melk Abbey, a vast yellow baroque monastery, stands on a rock over the river. Benedictine monks have lived on the site since 1089.
The present abbey was rebuilt from 1702 to designs by Jakob Prandtauer. The visit runs along the Imperial Corridor, about 200 m of portraits of Austrian rulers, through the Marble Hall with its ceiling painted by Paul Troger, out onto a terrace over the Danube and into the two-storey library of some 80,000 volumes. It ends in the church, a blaze of gold leaf under a high dome.
Readers of The Name of the Rose may feel they know the place: Umberto Eco's narrator, Adso, is a novice from Melk. Timing matters more than literature, though. River cruise passengers and coach tours arrive late in the morning, so come at opening time or after 15:00. From November to March weekday visits are by guided tour only, at set times that are best booked ahead.
Below the abbey, the old town takes ten minutes to cross: a main square, a few lanes of 16th and 17th-century houses, some cafés. The abbey park, with its baroque garden pavilion, opens from May to October. For the best view of the whole complex, walk up the Wachberg, a low hill on the eastern edge of town.
Most visitors pair the abbey with the Wachau. From late March to October, boats sail downstream past Schönbühel castle, the Aggstein ruin, Spitz and Dürnstein to Krems, where trains run back to Vienna. Bikes travel on board for a small fee, so you can ride one way on the Danube cycle path and sail the other.
The Wachau grows Grüner Veltliner and Riesling on terraces above the river. Its apricots turn up as jam, brandy and Marillenknödel, sweet dumplings rolled in buttered crumbs. In town, eat at one of the hotel restaurants on the main square or at the abbey's own restaurant by the entrance.
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Top things to do in Melk
A baroque abbey, a terrace over the Danube, the Wachau by boat or bike and apricots in every form.
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Best time to visit Melk
Month by month, so you can pick the weather and the crowds you want.
Boats sail the Wachau from late March, the abbey park opens in May and autumn brings the grape harvest.
Quiet; no boats, and on weekdays the abbey opens only for guided tours.
Arrive at opening time or after 15:00: river cruise groups fill the abbey from late morning through lunch.
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Getting there
Train from Vienna, boat from Krems
Take a train on the Westbahn from Vienna, about an hour, direct or changing at St. Pölten; the abbey entrance is a short uphill walk from the station. From Vienna International Airport, ride into Vienna and change. Drivers leave the A1 at the Melk exit, 85 km from Vienna. From late March to October, boats sail from Krems.
- By train
- About an hour from Vienna, direct or changing at St. Pölten
- By car
- A1 Westautobahn, exit Melk
- DDSG Blue Danube
- Several sailings a day between Krems and Melk, late March to October
- Brandner
- Two sailings a day, also calling at Weißenkirchen
- Both boat lines carry bicycles for a small fee, so you can ride up the valley from Krems and sail back.
- Pick a direct train on the way out if you want to reach the abbey for 09:00 opening.
- DDSG Blue Danube runs several sailings a day; Brandner runs two, calling at Weißenkirchen.
Where to stay
Below the abbey on Hauptplatz or out in the Wachau villages
One night in Melk is the only way to be at the abbey door at opening time without an early train from Vienna. The town has only a handful of hotels and guesthouses, so the real decision is whether to sleep below the abbey or move downstream into the wine villages, where evenings are spent in Heurigen courtyards.
- Hauptplatz and Linzer Strasse
- Hotels on and near the main square, a few minutes' climb to the abbey; quiet once the day visitors leave
- Emmersdorf
- Across the Danube bridge on the north bank, on the cycle path and a little cheaper, but a longer walk to the abbey
- Spitz, Weißenkirchen or Dürnstein
- Wachau wine villages with riverside inns and Heurigen, best for cyclists; you need the boat, a bike or a taxi to reach Melk
- Krems
- Larger town at the eastern end of the valley, with more beds and direct trains to Vienna
Getting around
Nextbike stations and the Danube cycle path to Krems
Walk Melk's old centre in about ten minutes; the climb to the abbey is short but steep. Beyond town, take a bike, a boat or a taxi. Nextbike stations in Melk and the Wachau villages let you rent after registering in the app and return at any station, ideal for a one-way ride down the Danube cycle path to Krems.
- Nextbike
- Hourly or daily rental, returned at any Wachau station
- Danube cycle path
- Runs through Melk along the river to Krems
- Taxis
- Several local firms, booked by phone
- For the classic view of the abbey, walk up the Wachberg, a 285 m hill on the eastern edge of town.
- Several local taxi firms take bookings by phone.
Know before you go
What makes Melk worth the trip, and what catches visitors out.
Why travelers love it
- The abbey library, two storeys of leather spines under a Troger ceiling.
- The abbey terrace, between the Marble Hall and the library, with the Danube below.
- The Wachberg, a low hill east of town with the best view of the whole abbey.
- A boat downstream to Dürnstein, past castles, terraced vines and riverside villages.
- Marillenknödel, apricot dumplings in buttered crumbs, in summer.
Good to know
- Late morning is the crush, when cruise passengers arrive; come at opening or after 15:00.
- Winter weekdays mean guided tours only from November to March; book a slot in advance.
- Boats stop in winter, sailing only from late March to October.
Trip fit
BookingMentor editorial ratings out of 5, based on a first-time visitor's experience.
Weather in Melk, month by month
Month-by-month climate figures for Melk are being researched.
Prandtauer's abbey at nine, Aggstein and Dürnstein by boat
Spend a day on Melk and the Wachau: take a morning train from Vienna, be at Melk Abbey when it opens for the Imperial Corridor, Marble Hall, terrace and library, allowing about two hours, then take an afternoon boat down the Danube past Aggstein to Dürnstein. Boats run from late March to October.
Eat lunch on Hauptplatz, or skip it and climb the Wachberg on the east side of town for the classic view of the whole complex above the river.
Early in the afternoon, board a boat downstream. The river bends past Schönbühel castle and under the Aggstein ruin before the vineyards close in at Spitz and Weißenkirchen. Get off at Dürnstein and walk up to the castle ruin where Richard the Lionheart was held, then take a glass of Grüner Veltliner in a courtyard below. The last stretch to Krems is short, and trains from there return to Vienna in the evening. With a bike on board, ride back upstream on the Danube path instead.
Grüner Veltliner, Riesling and Wachau apricots
The Wachau's terraces, held up by dry-stone walls above the Danube, produce some of Austria's best white wine. Two grapes dominate: peppery Grüner Veltliner and taut, mineral Riesling. Melk sits at the western end of the valley; the classic wine villages, Spitz, Weißenkirchen and Dürnstein, lie downstream and are all on the boat route.
Wine is best drunk where it is made. Heurigen in those villages open on rotating dates, and a bundle of greenery hung over the door shows which ones are serving. Expect the grower's own wine with cold meats, cheese and spreads, in a courtyard or a garden among the vines.
Apricots are the valley's other harvest. The trees blossom in spring and turn the slopes white, and the fruit ripens in July. Roadside stalls sell it fresh, while inns and bakeries turn it into jam, Marillenschnaps and Marillenknödel, apricot dumplings rolled in buttered breadcrumbs and dusted with sugar. Back in Melk, the hotel restaurants on Hauptplatz and the abbey's own restaurant by the entrance serve Austrian dishes with Wachau wine.
Abbey tour times, apricot blossom and the Wachau harvest
The abbey keeps two timetables. From April to October it opens daily from 09:00 with last entry at 17:00, and the abbey park with its baroque garden pavilion is open from May to October. From November to March, weekday visits are by guided tour only at fixed times, weekends are more flexible, and booking ahead is wise.
Boats on the Wachau run from late March through October, which is why most people come in that window. Spring brings apricot blossom on the hillsides and fewer cruise passengers. High summer is the busiest time, when river cruise passengers fill the corridors from late morning, so be there at opening or after 15:00. September and October bring the grape harvest, new wine in the Heurigen and cooler air for cycling, the best months of all for the valley.
Winter is quiet and grey, with no boats and limited abbey hours, but a tour group in January may have the library almost to itself. The tourist office on Linzer Strasse, open April to October, hands out a free town map with a self-guided walk.
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How we research our Melk travel guide
Abbey hours, Danube boats and Westbahn trains for Melk were checked with the town, Austria.info and ÖBB.
Last updated . Spotted something out of date? Tell us.
Checked against trusted sources:
Official website of MelkAustria.infoÖBB Austrian Federal Railways
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Quick answers to the questions travelers ask most before visiting Melk.
Cancellations & changes
Some trains are direct and others change at St. Pölten; either way the trip takes about an hour. By car it is about 85 km on the A1.
Timing & weather
About two hours for the abbey rooms and the church, longer if you walk the park. A full day lets you add a Wachau boat trip.
From late March to October, linking Melk with Spitz, Dürnstein and Krems.
The best time to visit Melk is Apr to Oct. Danube boats running, the abbey open daily and the Wachau vineyards in leaf.
- Best overall: April - October (Boats sail the Wachau from late March, the abbey park opens in May and autumn brings the grape harvest)
- Winter: November - March (Quiet; no boats, and on weekdays the abbey opens only for guided tours)
General
Only at weekends. On winter weekdays the abbey is shown on guided tours at set times, so check the current schedule and book on the abbey's website.
It is if you want the abbey before the cruise crowds, or a quiet evening by the Danube before a day of cycling.
Yes. Rent a bike at a Nextbike station in Melk, follow the cycle path through the Wachau, drop it at any station downstream and come back by boat.
From the Wachberg, a 285 m hill on the eastern edge of town, which looks across at the whole abbey and the river.
Umberto Eco made his narrator, Adso, a novice from Melk, so readers of the novel often come to see the abbey library.
Walk Melk's old centre in about ten minutes; the climb to the abbey is short but steep. Beyond town, take a bike, a boat or a taxi. Nextbike stations in Melk and the Wachau villages let you rent after registering in the app and return at any station, ideal for a one-way ride down the Danube cycle path to Krems.
Getting there
A short walk. The station is on the south side of town, and the abbey entrance on the east side of the complex is a brief uphill climb away.
Take a train on the Westbahn from Vienna, about an hour, direct or changing at St. Pölten; the abbey entrance is a short uphill walk from the station. From Vienna International Airport, ride into Vienna and change.
Stay & facilities
The abbey runs its own restaurant beside the entrance, serving Austrian dishes, and the hotel restaurants on Hauptplatz and Linzer Strasse are a few minutes below.
Visa & documents
Austria is a Schengen country. Citizens of the EU and of many other countries, including the US, UK, Canada and Australia, can visit visa-free for up to 90 days in any 180-day period; other nationalities need a Schengen visa. The EU's Entry/Exit System (EES) records non-EU travelers' fingerprints and a photo at the border.
Health & safety
Crime rates in Austria are very low. The main risks are in the mountains: changeable weather, avalanches and hiking accidents. Check avalanche warnings before skiing off-piste, start hikes early after checking the forecast, carry insurance that covers mountain rescue, and call 112 in any emergency.
