Trip from Vienna to Melk, Durnstein and back to Vienna
 

Hello again,

On our upcoming visit to Vienna (June this year) my wife and I were hoping to take the following day trip from Vienna:

Vienna to Melk by train
Visit Melk Abbey
Melk to Durnstein by boat
Visit Durnstein
Take a train back to Vienna (via whatever means are available).

I have just read the very lengthy post http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...rom-vienna.cfm which sort of describes what my wife and I wish to do. However, given the number of times the post veered off into different directions and that there have been reported changes to the Rail system from Vienna, I was hoping for a more succinct explanation of how we should go about our planned day trip.

Thanks in advance,

Steve

I assume it's best to wait until molker, the local expert, reads this, but before your thread sinks:

From checking ÖBB (Austrian Rail) website, I cannot see any problems or changes of rail services in June.

What I would do:

Go to Wien Westbahnhof station
Buy Combi Ticket Rail+Ship+Melk for €57pP
Ask for next train to Melk. This may require one change. One or more connections per hours. If interested, check oebb.at for schedule.
In Melk, visit the monastery and town.
When done, go to the docks and take next Blue Danube or Brander boat towards Krems. (check timetables at companies' websites - there are not that many boats per day)
Get off in Dürnstein and explore.
When done, take next boat to Krems. (If wait is too long, get the bus - should NOT be included in Combi Ticket but should cost just a few euros. Even a taxi won't cost you a fortune for 15kms)
In Krems, take next train back to Vienna.
Done.

While the post you mentioned does indeed veer off in any direction, keep in mind that the trip you plan to do is a very easy day trip from Vienna and no Amazon backwaters exploration - nothing which would need tons or preparations :-)

Thanks heaps Cowboy,

Just about exactly the response I was after. I understand your sentiments about the ease of the day trip (we have certainly taken on far more and coped in our past European outings) but I was finding it difficult to get a simplified "how to" until your reply.

Thanks again and warm regards,

Steve

My pleasure, steve..

Just wanted to make sure that you do not worry too much about your day trip.

Hope you have a grand time in beautiful Vienna and the Wachau valley.

I did this loop last September. It was as Cowboy1968 described.

I think you want to start early. If you are planning take the 10:55 English tour of the Abbey http://www.stiftmelk.at/englisch/Opening%20times.pdf, here are some considerations.

If are early at the OBB Wien station, the friendly ticket counter might suggest you to take the 9:18-10:30 train to Melk because it does not require change and it matches the 10:55 tour. HOWEVER, I thought about this, but took the 8:44 train requiring change in St. Pölten. This allowed us to visit the Melk Abbey garden before the tour and allowed us to go straight to Melk town for lunch at noon to catch the 13:40 boat.

One confusing thing about the boat is that when you come down to the river level, you are presented to go to "cabin cruise" or the "scheduled cruise". You want the scheduled cruise. DO NOT CROSS ANY BRIDGES to the cabin cruise dock! The boats to Durnstein/Krems depart from the main land dock. You exchange the voucher you received with the OBB loop package to an actual DDSG or Brnandner ticket at a ticket kiosk about 100 yards before the boats.

Be careful of which boat dock you go to in Melk after finishing the abbey tour - my friends with me went to the wrong dock - a dock farther out in the Danube for long-distance boats from Passau or Vienna - the DSDG boat dock is closer to the town.

For lots of coverage of this wondrous day trip check out www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

We walked from Durnstein to Krems - a wonderful stroll thru vineyards - just a few miles rather than taking the train or bus or waiting for the next boat.

Greg and Palen, thank you both for your input. I remember both of you giving the same warnings in the original longgggg thread I alluded to at the head of this post. I did take note of that sage advice, but again just needed some clarification of the actual trip because it got lost in all of the various digressions that post took.

Thanks again and I am sure we will enjoy Vienna and all she has to offer.

Regards,

Steve

thanks - the train back to Vienna goes to the secondary Franz-Josefs Bahnhof, with tram and I believe metro connections. To leave you leave from the West Bahnhof or perhaps Sudbahnhof now if it is done - mainline stations.

You can also rent bikes from the ship company to bike along what is one of Europe's primo bike routes - cycle paths along the Danube in the gorgeous Wachau Valley - ride between boat docks.

http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/desti...chauvalley.htm

Love him or not Rick Steves has some great info.

Hi Palen,

Just read the ricksteves piece on the Wachau Valley. Like you say, great info. If I can talk my wife into cycling I would love to do the Dürnstein to Krems leg on a bike.

Thanks again for your help.

Regards, Steve

As I recall when we walked from Durnstein to Krems the path went inland thru vineyards and not along the river (there could be a river path too but I do not remember there beoing one) - I may suggest biking on paths that hug the river before Durnstein and ending the bike trip there or continuing the few miles onto Krems - the Durnstein-Krems biking thing would be short and not the essence of biking along the Danube itself if I recall correctly!

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