Pöllauberg: Pilgrimage Church, Trails and Views

Pöllauberg combines impressive sacred buildings, viewpoints and signposted trails into a destination offering a variety of holiday experiences. Here, you can combine culture and landscape, include the themed gardens around the pilgrimage church in your plans or prepare for a hike towards Masenberg. When choosing a holiday apartment, it is therefore particularly important whether you want to focus your stay on the cultural features of the pilgrimage site, scenic views or longer trails.

High Gothic and Baroque at the Pilgrimage Site

The parish and pilgrimage church of Pöllauberg is located at Oberneuberg 1 and is one of the main works of Styrian High Gothic. It is the cultural centre for anyone wishing to explore sacred architecture and regional history in Pöllauberg. The Annakirche stands just above the pilgrimage church at the highest point of the mountain. This small Baroque building dates from around 1730.

The Annakirche also houses the high altar from 1644 with the painting “Anna Selbdritt”. It is considered the oldest surviving early Baroque altar in the region. Thus, different periods meet at the pilgrimage site: the parish and pilgrimage church represents Styrian High Gothic, while the Annakirche and its high altar add Baroque accents. Those who enjoy taking a close look at individual buildings during their holiday can include these two churches as separate cultural highlights in their daily itinerary.

Views, Gardens and Short Breaks

A new viewing platform was created northwest of the Pöllauberg pilgrimage church in 2009. In addition, the “Room with a View” next to the pilgrimage church offers a magnificent view of the cultural landscape in the Pöllauer Tal Nature Park. These two viewpoints give your stay a scenic focus without requiring you to commit exclusively to a hike.

There are 10 different, freely accessible themed gardens around the Pöllauberg pilgrimage church. You can include the gardens as a peaceful part of a day focused on culture or combine your visit with the churches and viewpoints. There is also a drinking fountain directly below the pilgrimage church, offering residents and tourists free refreshment with pure drinking water. Such specific stops are helpful if you want to shape a day not around a single destination, but around several brief discoveries.

Signposted Trails to Pöllauberg and Masenberg

Several described route options are available for active days out. One tour is signposted throughout as the Hirschbirnweg Pöllauberg or as Trail 942 from Pöllauberg to Masenberg. The Hirschbirnweg towards Pöllauberg is a moderately difficult hike covering 12.6 km with 520 m of ascent. It leads from Pöllau Castle Park to the pilgrimage site of Pöllauberg. This information helps you realistically incorporate the route into your daily itinerary before setting off.

The Masenberg circuit via the Lüßwaldsattel starts at the Naturparkarena in Pöllauberg. On this circuit, the red-white-red marker No. 942 leads to Masenberg. Depending on your preferred holiday focus, you can therefore choose between a culturally oriented stay around the pilgrimage church and travel planning centred on an explicitly signposted hiking destination. You should take the different starting points – Pöllau Castle Park and the Naturparkarena in Pöllauberg – into account when looking for a suitable accommodation location.

Arrival and Accommodation Planning

For orientation when travelling by SAM, the nearest stop to the Pöllauberg pilgrimage church is stop HF 5809 at Pöllauberg main square. If you are looking for a holiday apartment, you can first decide whether the pilgrimage church, viewpoints and themed gardens or the aforementioned hiking starting points should be the focus of your stay.

Other Places for Your Travel Planning

Other places in the higher-level selection include Burgau, Sankt Jakob Im Walde, Flattendorf, Geiseldorf, Pöllau, Obertiefenbach, Eichberg and Loipersdorf Bei Fürstenfeld.

To the higher-level travel overview: Hartberg-Fürstenfeld.