Home > Vienna > Melk Abbey and Danube Valley Day Trip from Vienna
USD $90.72
Melk Abbey and Danube Valley Day Trip from Vienna
Vienna, Austria
Discover the exquisite landscapes of Austria’s UNESCO World Heritage–listed Wachau Valley on this day trip from Vienna along the famed Danube River. Travel by coach through the gorgeous Austrian countryside dotted with imposing castles, abbeys, sloped forests and wine villages, and take a scenic boat ride down the Danube to the town of Melk to visit its impressive Benedictine abbey.
Board a coach in Vienna in the morning and relax on the drive out to the Austrian countryside. Travel through the Wachau Valley, a 24-mile (39-km) stretch of the Danube River carving a picturesque path between the towns of Krems and Melk. Characterized by vineyards, forested slopes, wine-producing villages, mysterious castles and imposing fortresses, Wachau’s harmonious blend of natural and cultural beauty won the area a UNESCO World Heritage title. Learn about the history of this beautiful part of Austria from your guide on your way to the medieval castle ruins of Burgruine Dürnstein, where Richard the Lionheart was imprisoned while waiting for his ransom to arrive from England. In Spitz, transfer to a boat and cruise down the Danube through the heart of the valley, passing the old wine town of Krems before arriving in Melk. Here you'll visit Melk Abbey, a magnificent Benedictine abbey on a rocky outcrop overlooking the river. First established in the 11th century and rebuilt in the 18th century, Melk Abbey has housed monks for 900 years, and today its architecture is a remarkable example of Austrian’s baroque style. Have time for lunch in town (own expense) before relaxing on the drive back to Vienna, concluding at the Vienna State Opera in the evening.
Please note, pick up services only available with certain hotels. Please check 'view additional info.' for hotel details and pick-up time.
Very nice tour. My only comment is that when we arrive at Melk Abbey, we were left to roam around without any idea of what to look for or see. After the Abbey tour we were told that our tickets enable us to go to the garden for free. This information should have been told yo us earlier so that we could visit the garden before the tour, since after the tour there is not much time.
Review by: Sotira S, August 2018
Great day out for all the family. Would have been nice to walk around old Kremz town but time was short. A long sail down the Danube was relaxing.
Review by: June B, July 2018
Fabulous trip and highly recommended
Review by: Susan C, July 2018
Excellent day trip. Well thought out. Brilliant guide.
Review by: caro5, July 2018
Nice full day of the Wachau Valley. The tour was a bit crowded, with over 65 people on the bus. Disappointed that the guide had to give the tour in 3 different languages. Felt that we missed things as the bus went from Vienna to Durnstein. Durnstein was rushed only 1 hour, luckily we visited it separately. Boat ride was fun, a bit of confusion with the tickets. Melk Abbey had a local guide who was incredible - she really did a great job ! Fun for the whole family, however needs better structure to make this worthwhile.
Review by: Natale, July 2018
Danube river cruise is a great way to see Austria.
Review by: Sandra Lynn C, July 2018
This was amazing; you can go visit and see so much. The cruise on the Danube was such a highlight. Melk Abbey was fantastic. Please book this tour you will not regret it.
Review by: Ana María R, July 2018
The timing needs reviewing. We wanted to see Melk Abbey and church. We spent 45' in an unnecessary visit of Dorstein. When we arrived at the Abbey, we were given 60 minutes' free time and were told we could visit the park, but the guide left us with no tickets. We started the one hour tour of the abbey at 3pm and were told to go back to the bus at 4:20. No park, and less than five minutes inside the church, which was supposed to be the highlight of the tour. It is a shame, because it could have been a memorable tour.
Review by: Nicolette T, July 2018
Beautiful tour of the Danube Valley between the bus and the cruise. Just wish we had more free time in Melk and in Durnstein!
Review by: Arup G, July 2018
We very much liked the day trip to Melk Abbey and Danube Valley cruise. It was well organized and our guide Mr. Thomas was a revelation - he was a perfect match for the scenario and kept us engrossed with his continuous explanation of the places, the history laced with few humorous quotes as well. The Danube cruise was fabulous and Melk Abbey was a place to behold.
Review by: richas0806, July 2018
Very nicely conducted and the guide was also very good. Highly recommended!
Review by: expertisepasi, June 2018
Good tour. Although it was a large group, double decker bus, the guide managed to keep everybody on time by telling them the bus left at such a time, with or without them. The bus was very comfortable also.
Review by: thanthrige P, May 2018
Excellent guide. Well organised. Great tour.
Review by: vasudhagk, April 2018
A lovely cruise and visit to the Melk Abbey
Review by: ashok , the Kiwi Indian, April 2018
If you are short of time, ideal way to go on a short cruise half day in River Danube !!
Review by: Mong Hwa T, March 2018
Awesome, beautiful Danube Valley and river, the coach is comfortable, tour guide is helpful, lunch is good too, highly recommended!
Review by: GG M, February 2018
This was so lovely...picturesque and real relaxing to sit in the upper level of the boat, drink and just watch all the towns go by. I really wish I could do a longer cruise. I loved the abbey. There was a cute town at the base that you had time to go around. The abbey was pretty and the guide was good.
Review by: Karen M, January 2018
Enjoyed our day immensely and would recommend.
Review by: William K B, January 2018
A very relaxing and enjoyable trip. Beautiful!
Review by: brianandrewosborne, January 2018
Excellent thouroughly enjoyed it would really recimmend it.
Review by: Anthony B, January 2018
Overall rating is terrible. Let me start with the best part of the tour. The visit at Melk Abbey was a jewel and the single part of the tour worth a praise. The rest was sorry to say, not so great. When we arrived at the first destination, Krems, the guide preferred to stay alone in the coach rather than accompanying us for a walk through the village. Then one can realise why - simply because there is nothing to see and probably he felt ashamed. Then we progressed for lunch at Emmersdorf. This lunch was in lieu of the Danune cruise, which in my opinion is the most important of the tour. To substitute the cruise for the lunch does not make sense, except for the organisers to maintain their revenues. It makes more sense to stop the tour at this time of the year as others do rather than go this low. Lunch was not bad but fastly served to close the restaurant. All on the tour wished to go out for a walk to look around, despite the bad weather, but when we did, the disappointment was visible on the faces of all - simply again because there was nothing to see. Luckily time passed and we came to the last part, which I have already referred to at the start. My recommendation is for this tour to be disregard from the list to save our similar disappointment.
Review by: matthew.mazzarelli, January 2018
Really nice views and really nice Monastery. We stopped in a small little village at the start which was a waste of time, but the monastery was really cool and really nice. Also some nice views from the balcony.
Review by: Carolyn J, December 2017
Historical aspects all good and tour guide very knowledgeable. Sadly, a VERY cold day and an hour traffic jam on return to Vienna - not the tour's fault but it did slow things down a little
Review by: ianmurray1000, December 2017
Best trip I made. Not to be missed. In spite of the rain, a wonderful trip up the Danube to an Abbey with great decorations. Excellent guided tour by an ex pupil of the abbey school.
Review by: Gay C, December 2017
Comfortable bus ride to and from. Appreciated stop in Krems on the way, tour and time to shop was adequate. However, lunch was unimpressive. Abbey was beautiful and should not be missed. Disappointed to find out no photos are allowed inside. Guides knowledgeable. Aside from the lunch option, I would highly recommend this tour.
Review by: Sara R, December 2017
I enjoyed seeing the villages. I was dismayed by how wealthy the abbey was.
Review by: Georsadd G, December 2017
It was okay.
Review by: Diosdado M, December 2017
It was worth the trip! Great tour guide. Good time management. Everything delivered as promised. My only comment was that at the station where you were supposed to board, there was no one in charge on which bus you are supposed to take. You will have to go ask the driver of each bus.
Review by: Yew Heng T, December 2017
I was a bit disappointed, the first stop at Krems was not interesting. It was a rainy day, so we can't really see the beautiful scenery along the way to Melk Abbey. Nevertheless, the interior of the church at Melk Abbey is really awesome.
Review by: Rosemary R, November 2017
I really enjoyed my trip to Melk Abbey and the surrounding area. The tour guide was execellent and very informative. Would recommend this trip.
Review by: Ricki T, November 2017
A nice trip out of the city, albeit departing late and the rain of course.
Review by: Roxanne D, November 2017
Fabulous tour of an iconic sight. You will love it, as my friends and I did!
Review by: Roxanne D, November 2017
Fabulous tour of an iconic sight. You will love it, as my friends and I did!
Review by: Rex S, November 2017
A fantastic day with a bus trip to the Danube Valley through quaint little villages full of history. The guide was great, speaking 3 languages to converse with our busload. Then a boat ride to Melk Abbey, our guide through this Abbey was amazing and very passionate and knowledgeable. Highly recommended.
Review by: Margaret I, November 2017
lovely tour even though the weather did not cooperate
Review by: nassirwm, November 2017
We enjoyed this tour very much and the tour guide is excellent.
Review by: Natale F, November 2017
Fantastic Tour
Review by: Chris B, October 2017
It was raining thew day we did this tour but that did not detract from it. Compared to other tours it was a relatively short time before we reached the boat we were to cruise up the river on an on the way we passed through vineyards which were very beautiful in their autumn colours. once on the boat we went up to the top deck which was open and partly covered so we could take photos and the scenery is quite spectacular with cloud cover and mist coming down into the autumn colour of the trees on the hills. The river is really wide on this part of the river and we passed a number of beautiful little villages and a couple of castles before we reached the Abbey which is perched on a hill with amazing views. The one thing we were disappointed in is we were not allowed to take photos inside the abbey but apart from that it was a good tour.
Review by: Cecille Marie M, October 2017
It was a great tour. Tour guide was very knowledgeable. It was great that we have time on our own to wander around the Abbey. Enjoyed the boat ride in the Danube.
Review by: Andrew J, October 2017
A good way to see sites when you are unable to rent a car. Lots of time to see the abbey and a senic boat ride.
Review by: Ida A, October 2017
Very enjoyable. Covered a lot of distance and saw some beautiful scenery. Recommended.
Review by: Karen W, October 2017
The trip was definitely worth booking and the river cruise was a highlight. Our tour guide at the Melk Abbey was humorous and informative.
Review by: Peggy, October 2017
Melk Abbey was nice, Danube Valley tour was really boring, the tour guide ushered everyone on the boat, and we ate, it's a boat tour. I guess because it was raining on that day, it was really nothing special. I addition, the guide was not great at all, he has to speak English and Spanish, and wasn't very friendly.
Review by: John and Valerie, October 2017
Once you get there it's great but be aware that you are on the bus and the freeway for about an hour before you get to the wine country and the river. Martin did a good job of trying to entertain along the way but a freeway is a freeway. Martin also did a great job of herding tourists to make sure we all had our boat tickets and were at the right place at the right time. I enjoyed the boat, the abbey and the lunch at the abbey cafe.
Review by: Mi C, June 2017
It was a fully relaxed day trip, especially the boat trip on the Danube. The instructor at the Melk Abbey is brilliant, amazed by the history of the Abbey. Definitely worth to go if you wanna spend a day outside of Vienna.
Review by: krebs.peterf, June 2017
I thought this tour was very well organized and everything ran smoothly. It was also perfectly paced. It gave time to explore on my own at Melk before the tour started. One can either eat on the ship on the way up to Melk or at the cafe when you're at Stift Melk. The tour guide did a very good job telling us about the area. We caught a beautiful day with blue skies. The bus dropped us off in the city afterwards, it was perfect timing and location to drop into one of the downtown restaurants for dinner and do some exploring afterwards with the setting sun.
Review by: Kaye L, June 2017
Such a great ride on the boat and the abbey is beautiful. Highly recommend this.
Review by: Ken R, June 2017
Excellent tour. Would highly recommend it. Tour guide excellent.
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