The Danube Valley

A trip along the Austrian Danube unfolds like a treasured picture book. Roman ruins (some dating to Emperor Claudius), remains of medieval castles-in-air, and Baroque monasteries with "candle-snuffer" cupolas perching precariously above the river stimulate the imagination with their historic legends and myths. This is where Isa—cousin of the Lorelei—lured sailors onto the shoals; where the Nibelungs—later immortalized by Wagner—caroused operatically in battlemented forts; and where Richard the Lion-Hearted was locked in a dungeon for a spell. Today, thanks to the technology of modern dams, travelers have the luxury of tamely observing this part of Austria from the deck of a comfortable river steamer. In clement weather the nine-hour trip upriver from Vienna to Linz is highly rewarding. If your schedule allows, continuing onward to Passau may be less dramatic but gives more time to take in the picturesque vineyards and the castles perched on crags overlooking the river. More »