Austria
Austria's second city, where the university makes up a fifth of its population, then a wine-growing canyon carved by the Danube
Austria
A journey far from Vienna and the Salzkammergut: Graz, Austria's second city, whose young, creative atmosphere, driven by a student population representing nearly a fifth of its residents, contrasts with Viennese classicism, then the Wachau Valley, a gorge carved by the Danube between terraced vineyards and medieval villages, UNESCO-listed for a cultural landscape shaped by over two thousand years of continuous winemaking.
When
May to Sept
Price
From 2 400€ excl. flights
(based on 2 people sharing)
How long
5 nights
Ideal length
Days 1-2
The first chapter unfolds in Graz, Austria's second city, whose historic centre, UNESCO World Heritage listed, remains dominated by the Schlossberg, a wooded hill crowned by an emblematic clock tower overlooking the Mur River running through the city. Graz claims the highest proportion of students per capita in all of Austria, a university population that breathes cultural and creative effervescence into the city, perceptible in its contemporary art galleries and resolutely modern architecture, exemplified by the Kunsthaus, a museum shaped like a spaceship installed at the heart of the baroque old town.
Day 1
The Schlossberg and the clock tower
An ascent to the Schlossberg, a wooded hill overlooking Graz, to discover the emblematic clock tower and a full panorama over the UNESCO-listed old town.
Day 2
The Kunsthaus and Murinsel island
A visit to the Kunsthaus, a contemporary art museum with futuristic architecture, then a stroll to Murinsel, an artificial floating platform installed in the middle of the Mur River.
Days 1-2
The road to the Wachau Valley, a roughly thirty-kilometre gorge carved by the Danube between Melk and Krems, UNESCO World Heritage listed for a cultural landscape shaped by over two thousand years of continuous winemaking on steep terraces lining the river. The village of Dürnstein, dominated by the ruins of the castle where Richard the Lionheart was imprisoned in 1192 after the Third Crusade, and the baroque Melk Abbey, perched on a rocky promontory above the river, rank among the most emblematic stops in this wine-growing valley.
Day 1
A Danube cruise to Dürnstein
A Danube cruise through the Wachau Valley, between terraced vineyards and medieval villages, to Dürnstein and the ruins of the castle where Richard the Lionheart was imprisoned.
Day 2
Melk Baroque Abbey and a wine tasting
A visit to Melk Baroque Abbey, perched on a rocky promontory above the Danube, then a tasting of white wines produced on the valley's terraced vineyards since antiquity.
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