Litschau between Waldviertel Trails, Water and Culture

Litschau combines the typical Waldviertel landscape with long hiking trails, bodies of water, church art and special regional experiences. Anyone planning a trip with active days, cultural discoveries and excursions for different interests will find several clearly distinct focal points here. When looking for a holiday apartment or holiday home, you can therefore consider whether your trip should be shaped primarily by hiking, experiences on the water, culture or regional culinary delights.

Hiking trails for short and extended tours

For longer days of hiking, Litschau offers two notable routes to choose from. The 7-Village Circular Hiking Trail is 32 kilometres long. The Litschau Marathon Trail covers 42.195 kilometres. Both figures are important points of reference for planning the day if you specifically want to include a longer route in your trip.

A more compact option is the Höllgraben Trail. The approximately 8-kilometre loop begins at Litschau’s town square, leads through the Höllbach Gorge, across the Reißbach and through the village of Schönau before returning; it takes around two hours. The Höllgraben itself is a romantically rugged river valley with underground waterfalls and impressive granite formations. The hike to the legendary Fiedelstein also offers its own distinctive experience: it first follows the shore of Lake Herrensee through the forest and then continues through the varied, typical Waldviertel landscape.

Water, nature and a day at Lake Herrenteich

Lake Herrensee, also called Herrenteich on the municipal lido website, has a water surface of 24 hectares and is 1.6 kilometres long. The lido at Herrenteich offers an outdoor swimming pool and access to Herrenteich. During the main season, there is also a children’s paddling pool, a large playground with a climbing castle, a multi-purpose sports court and a beach volleyball court. This allows a stay by the water to be arranged differently from a longer hike, without the two travel ideas having to be combined.

Another natural feature is the Reißbach. This watercourse is protected as a Natura 2000 site and flows freely in meanders through species-rich wet meadows.

Church, museum and vibrant culture

The parish church of St Michael dates from the mid-13th century. Beneath it is the newly renovated lower church, the Credo Chapel. The former count’s gallery of the Gothic hall church also houses the parish museum. Sacred objects are displayed there, including old glass paintings, wooden statues and statues of the Virgin Mary, Baroque monstrances and chalices. Visitors interested in church art and regional history will find a cultural focus here alongside the landscape experiences.

Guided tours of the town can be booked through the tourist office. They include visits to the old town wall, the Fishermen’s Gate, the castle, the church and the local history and parish museum; the tour costs €2.00 per person. The Kulturbahnhof provides information about the history of the Lower Austrian State Railways, former freight transport and the railway’s technical safety systems. It also houses two historic museum carriages.

The Schrammel.Klang.Festival takes place around Herrenteich on numerous natural stages and is entirely dedicated to Schrammel music. Another special excursion is the nostalgic train journey on the Waldviertel Railway from Litschau to Gmünd through the landscape of northern Lower Austria. This makes it possible to combine local history, music and a journey through the region when planning your trip.

Regional specialities and choosing your accommodation

Culinary enjoyment is also part of the town’s character. Schlossfischerei Litschau offers a guided tour of the holding ponds, Himmelteich and the production facilities, followed by a tasting. Regional specialities associated with Litschau also include Litschauer “Mangerl” and the traditional Litschau wholemeal poppy-seed cake; both are mentioned in connection with local culinary enjoyment.

The tourist office provides advice on hiking, cycling tours, musical events at Herrensee, swimming, natural attractions and museums. When choosing your holiday apartment or accommodation, you can use these different interests as a guide for your personal travel plan. For further destinations in the same thematic area, Waldenstein, Kirchberg Am Walde, Haugschlag, Heidenreichstein, Ullrichs, Lauterbach, Sankt Wolfgang and Hoheneich are available for further orientation.

For the overarching travel overview: Gmünd.