Admont: what to see, where to stay and how to get around

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Admont is a small market town that grew around one of the oldest abbeys in Austria, and the abbey still owns much of the valley, its forests and its farms. Its library is the reason most people come: a baroque hall of books and light that survived the fire that burned nearly everything else. This route starts at the abbey, then drives a short way up and down the Enns valley to the monks' palace, a pilgrimage hill and the mouth of the gorge. Half a day; the abbey ticket covers the library and the museums.

A short history of Admont

The Benedictine abbey of Admont was founded in 1074 by Gebhard, Archbishop of Salzburg, in the valley of the River Enns in Styria, and it is one of the oldest monasteries in Austria still in operation. For centuries the abbey was the most important landowner in the area, and the village around it housed people who worked for it. In 1776 its library hall was completed, about 70 metres long, with a painted ceiling and wooden sculptures, and it is considered the largest monastic library hall in the world. In 1865 a fire broke out that destroyed most of the abbey buildings, but the library was saved. Today it holds about 70,000 volumes.

The ten best sights in Admont

1
Admont Abbey Library
The largest monastic library hall in the world, white and gold under painted domes; book a time in summer
2
Abbey church
Neo-Gothic church with twin spires, rebuilt after the great fire of 1865
3
Abbey museums
Natural history, art and modern art on one ticket with the library
4
Abbey herb garden
The monks' herb and medicinal garden beside the abbey
5
Schloss Röthelstein
The abbey's baroque country palace on the hill, now a hostel
6
Frauenberg pilgrimage church
Baroque church on a knoll above the Enns, 6 km west; wide valley view
7
Schloss Trautenfels
Castle museum of the Enns valley's life and crafts, 30 minutes west
8
Gesäuse National Park office
Maps, trail advice and guided walks, in the centre of Admont
9
Gesäuse entrance
Where the Enns enters its gorge; viewpoint and a riverside path
10
Weidendom
A dome grown from living willows and the park's nature trail by the river

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Tours in Admont →

A guide in your headphones: open the walk on our site, walk from stop to stop, and at each one your phone tells its story. No guide, no group, and free. This is the first walk in Admont:

Free walking tours in Admont

The monks' treasure

Abbey church · The abbey was founded in 1074 by Archbishop Gebhard of Salzburg, on lands left to the Church by Hemma of Gurk, a Carinthian noblewoman later made a saint. The church you see is newer: the old one burned in 1865 and was rebuilt in neo-Gothic style within a few years.
Abbey Library · The hall was finished in 1776 to plans by Joseph Hueber: about 70 m long, under seven domes painted by Bartolomeo Altomonte, then in his eighties. When the fire of 1865 swept through the abbey, the library was the part that was saved.
Natural history museum · Father Gabriel Strobl, a monk of Admont, collected insects for decades around 1900, and left about a quarter of a million of them, one of the largest such collections in Europe. A part is on show in old cabinets.
Schloss Röthelstein · The abbots built this baroque palace in the 17th century as a summer seat above the valley. It still belongs to the abbey, and families and school groups now sleep in its rooms as a hostel.
Frauenberg · The church on the knoll is a Marian pilgrimage place cared for by the monks of Admont, rebuilt in baroque style in the late 1600s. Below it lies the flat moorland of the Enns valley.
Gesäuse entrance · The name Gesäuse comes from "sausen", to roar: here the Enns leaves the wide valley and squeezes between the mountains, and in spring melt you can hear why.

The roaring gorge

Below Admont the Enns cuts a 16 km gorge between limestone walls that rise more than 1,500 m above the water. This is the Gesäuse, Styria's national park, and one of the great climbing grounds of the Eastern Alps. The route follows the river into the gorge, then turns up the side valley of Johnsbach. A car and walking day; the huts are for real hikers, but the riverside stops need only good shoes.

Weidendom · The Gesäuse became a national park in 2002, the only one in Styria. This dome of living willows on the riverbank is its open-air classroom, and the trail beside it shows how the Enns floods and remakes its gravel banks.
Gstatterboden · The railway through the gorge opened in 1872 as part of the Crown Prince Rudolf Railway, cut along the river wall where there was barely room for a path. Gstatterboden, a hamlet inside the gorge, still has its station.
Haindlkar · The cirque under the north walls of the Planspitze and the Dachl was the training ground of Viennese climbers from the late 19th century, and the Gesäuse earned the nickname "the university of climbing".
Hochtor · At 2,369 m the Hochtor is the highest peak of the Gesäuse, and even its easiest way up from the huts is a long, exposed scramble for experienced hikers only.
Climbers' cemetery · Since the late 19th century, climbers who fell on the Gesäuse walls have been buried around the little church of Johnsbach. Many of the stones carry the name of the face or route where the climber died.
Mödlinger Hütte · The hut is named after the Alpine Club section of Mödling, a small town just outside Vienna that built it. Like many huts in these mountains, it was the work of city people who came here every weekend by train.

The iron mountain

East of the gorge lies another Styria, the land of iron. The ore of the Erzberg fed the forges of the whole region for centuries, and the town of Eisenerz below it still lives by the shift bell and the mine. The drive goes through the end of the Gesäuse and over to Eisenerz, with a gorge and a lake on the way. About 100 km there and back; the mine tours run in the warm months, and the giant-truck ride is the one children remember.

Hieflau · Hieflau stands where the Enns leaves the Gesäuse, and it was the junction where the railway up to Eisenerz and the Erzberg left the Enns valley line.
Wasserlochklamm · The path climbs the gorge of a short stream on steps, ladders and bridges, past a chain of waterfalls, up to the cave from which the water springs out of the mountain.
Leopoldsteiner See · The lake lies at the foot of the Seemauer, a rock wall that drops straight into it, so on the far side the path round the shore runs right under the cliff.
St. Oswald, Eisenerz · The parish church is the largest fortified church in Styria, ringed by a wall with towers in the 16th century against Ottoman raids. The miners' town paid for it with iron.
Schichtturm · From this tower on a rock above the town a bell rang the start and end of the miners' shifts. It was built in the 16th century and is one of the symbols of Eisenerz.
Erzberg · Iron ore has been dug here for well over a thousand years. Open-cast mining has cut the mountain into giant terraces, so from the valley it looks like a red stepped pyramid; it is still worked today.

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Getting to Admont and getting around

Admont station · Regional trains through the Gesäuse gorge and to the junction at Selzthal
Admont station bus stop · Buses into the national park and up to Johnsbach; the summer park bus stops here
Selzthal station · Rail junction 12 km west, with fast trains to Linz, Graz and Salzburg

Cheap eats in Admont

Admont is a small place, and lunch is simple and Styrian. Expect a Brettljause, a wooden board of cold meats, cheese, horseradish and bread; pumpkin-seed oil, the dark green pride of Styria, on salads and even ice cream; and trout or char from the mountain waters. The cafés near the abbey are the place for a coffee and cake after the library. In the gorge itself there are only a few inns, so eat or buy food in town before you drive in.

Café Wagner · Cake café in the centre; coffee and a slice about €5-8
Café Stockhammer · Coffee and small snacks, about €3-7
Bäckerei Seidl · Village bakery; rolls and pastries about €1-4
Mustis Wursteleck · Sausage stand; a sausage with bread about €4-6
Stiftskeller · The abbey's own inn and beer garden; a lunch dish about €12-18

Museums in Admont

Abbey Library · The baroque hall, about 70,000 books on show
Abbey museums · Insects, stuffed animals, church art and a modern art wing
Schloss Trautenfels · Enns valley life, crafts and nature in a castle
Abenteuer Erzberg · Show mine underground and terraces above

Nature and day trips near Admont

Gesäuse entrance · Viewpoint where the Enns enters the gorge
Lettmair Au trail · Flat path through the river woods and gravel banks
Haindlkarhütte · Hut under the great north walls; a steep 2-hour hike
Leopoldsteiner See · Lake walk and swimming in summer
Kaiserau · High meadows with easy walks above Admont

Things to do in Admont with kids

Hauly truck ride · Ride up the mine terraces on the back of a huge dump truck
Weidendom · Willow dome, river games and the nature trail
Abbey herb garden · Smell and touch the monks' herbs
Natural history museum · Cabinets of insects, birds and strange specimens

Where to eat in Admont

Stiftskeller · Abbey inn with a beer garden
Gasthof Zeiser · Styrian dishes in the centre
Gasthaus Kamper · Regional Gasthaus at the north end of town
Landgasthof Buchner · Family-run country inn
Hotel die Traube · Hotel restaurant by the abbey
Kölblwirt · Mountain inn at the end of the Johnsbach road

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Frequently asked questions about Admont

What is there to see in Admont?

The top sights in Admont are Admont Abbey Library, Abbey church and Abbey museums. The full list on this page has 10 sights, each with a photo and a short note.

How many days do you need in Admont?

Three to four days are enough to see the best of Admont without rushing, including at least one walking tour.

Is there a free walking tour in Admont?

Yes. sleepntrip has 3 free audio walks in Admont, with no guide and no group: your phone tells the story at every stop. The first one: The monks' treasure.

How do you get to Admont and get around?

The main ways are Admont station, Admont station bus stop and Selzthal station. Full details are in the transport section on this page.

Where to stay in Admont, and for how much?

sleepntrip shows only rooms in Admont that meet nine conditions: a good location, high guest scores, cleanliness, and a price of up to $80 a night for two. Pick your dates and see what is free.

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