Dürnstein Castle — Attraction in Gemeinde Dürnstein

An excellent walk / hike that takes less than an hour. Superb views from the top. Steeped in history. Well worth a visit

“The castle is known for being one of the places where King Richard I of England, returning from the Third Crusade, was imprisoned after being captured near Vienna by Duke Leopold V of Austria, from December 1192 until his extradition to Emperor Henry VI in March 1193.

In 1428 and 1432, Hussite forces plundered the city and castle of Dürnstein.

In 1645, near the end of the Thirty Years' War, a Swedish contingent under Lennart Torstensson conquered Dürnstein. Upon their withdrawal, the troops destroyed parts of the gate system. As of 1662, the castle was no longer inhabited permanently, but was still listed as a possible shelter in the Austro-Turkish War (1663–1664).

In 1663, Conrad Balthasar of Starhemberg purchased the castle, which is still owned by his heirs to this date. From 1679 on, however, the castle was no longer habitable and was abandoned. Today, the fortress is part of the "Wachau Cultural Landscape" UNESCO World...

Was one of the best things we did on vacation. What you need to know. Bring a towel and you have to have flip flops or some sort of footwear. They do sell both there but if you don’t have, you’d be a lot better off stopping at a LIDL and grabbing some for €3 instead of €15-30 each. If you want to be able to swim in the indoor baths you’ll need a swim cap too. It’s supposed to be over 14’s only but this is because of the minerals, so do your research and if you are ok with it they won’t have a problem with you brining kids a bit younger in at your discretion (and at adult price). There are different rates on weekends and holidays. We went on the day before the national holiday and it wasn’t that busy but we were there just after opening. Lots of chairs available then. The food and drink options are pretty good and reasonable. My favourite might have been...

Lovely castle ruin with a rich history that is a short climb away from the Duernstein town center.

The ruin of the castle where King Richard the Lionhearted was imprisoned by the Austrian King following the first crusade. Apparently they were best buds while killing people in the Holy Land, but their bromance burned out (sad!). Richard was forbidden to pass through Austrian lands which just so happened to be right in the way of him getting back home. As the story goes, good King Ricky and his entourage tried to sneak through dressed as monks. Someone put two and two together when said monks started dropping kingly sums on their dinners that just didn't add up, alerted the authorities, and next thing you know Ricky's Mum is paying a ransom of one year's tax collection income to...