En route through Upper Austria: avant-garde Linz, thermal baths and beer in an abbey

The Danube is the axis that guides us to get to know Upper Austria. The river with undulating waters reflects along its course green forests, rows of vineyards and castles on top of the hills of what is one of the nine federated states of the country. A very pleasant route to do by

camper

or by car, stopping where something interesting appears, be it a landscape or an unexpected brewery. Because the course of the river in this part of Austria leaves many surprises, among them the avant-garde city of Linz, a monument that remembers the greatest human barbarism or two monasteries that make beer and excellent wines. This is one of the Austrian territories most unknown to visitors, and Upper Austria offers a pinch of everything that makes the country a fantastic destination to explore in peace: an extraordinary river, a rich musical legacy, classic and elegant cafes, medieval towns, magnificently preserved Augustinian abbeys and spas.

Beyond Linz, its capital, there is a territory full of rustic farms where you can stop and taste homemade

most

(cider), with surprises in the landscape such as the limestone pinnacles of the Kalkalpen that provide shelter to the elusive lynx, passing through picturesque towns such as Steyr and Schärding, which display a soft chromatic range. The hills usually stretch northwards, shrouded in mist, towards the Czech Republic, and the wheat fields at sunset make you want to take out your watercolors to immortalize a peaceful beauty.

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Linz, the Austrian ultra-avant-garde

Linz can be the starting point to explore the region. For foreign tourists, the capital of Upper Austria goes unnoticed, but for Austrians “

In Linz begins

” (“everything begins in Linz”), a saying that summarizes the character of this dynamic city, essential to take the pulse of the technological industry of the country: Bold art installations, an emerging cultural scene, a cyber-centre and an avant-garde gallery that looks like the set of a science fiction film point to the Austria of the future. Since 2014, it has been recognized by UNESCO as a City of Digital Art, and in addition to its urban center, it maintains an old town full of charm and baroque architecture.

More information in the Lonely Planet guide to Austria and at lonelyplanet.es.

In the cutting-edge technology laboratories Ars Electronica Center you can interact with robots, practice animating digital objects or travel (virtually) to outer space. At night, the LED glass façade changes color like a kaleidoscope. Across the Danube, the famous Linz Lentos contemporary art gallery displays works by Warhol, Schiele and Klimt, among others, in a glass and steel building, and is also spectacularly illuminated at night. Another essential avant-garde center is the Landesgalerie, a 19th century building that exhibits 20th and 21st century paintings, photographs and installations. The modern works in its outdoor sculpture park contrast with the neoclassical architecture inside.

Entrance of the Ars Electronica Center, in the city of Linz.Alamy Stock Photo

Street art is another of Linz's hallmarks, especially in the graffiti-filled industrial facades of the Hafenviertel, next to the port. There you can see works by artists such as Roa (Belgium), Lords (USA), Aryz (Spain) and many Austrians. The best way to understand them is to join one of the frequent guided walks, workshops or cruises.

But Austria's third city is not just modernity. The immense Mariendom, also known as Neuer Dom (new cathedral), is a gigantic neo-Gothic church that fascinates with its riot of pinnacles, flying buttresses and stained glass windows with filigree tracery. Of course: in its layout, in the mid-19th century, they had to adjust the highest height of the spire so that it surpassed the Vienna Cathedral. The old cathedral of Linz is the Alter Dom, with two identical towers that guard this 17th-century temple and dominate the city sky. The interior is decorated with stuccos, a pink marble altar and golden pillars.

The Neuer Dom, or New Cathedral, Linz, capital of Upper Austria.Alamy Stock Photo

Linz Castle is also worth a visit. He has seen it all: Romans, Habsburg emperors, fires and so on. It is worth enjoying the panoramic view of the city before delving into the treasures of its museum, a collection of objects from abbeys and palaces gathered over centuries.

Below, art continues in the streets, as in all Austrian cities, in the Hauptplatz (main square), where street artists entertain passersby, trams pass and residents relax in cafes guarded by baroque buildings and houses Renaissance pastel colors.

A sweet note: the Linzer Torte

Apart from its avant-garde art, Linz is famous for its cake: the Linzer Torte, a classic recipe from 1653 based on hazelnuts, spices and sour currant jam. With multiple layers, it is the biggest rival of the famous Viennese Sacher. For example, you can try where it was born, at the famous Café Jindrak, which today is a chain with nine stores in the city that produce more than 100,000 units a year of its famous Torte, made according to the family recipe.

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Another place to escape for a moment from glass, steel and avant-garde trends and return to the times of the Empire is the kuk Hofbäckerei Café, a delicious café frozen in time that occupies a building from 1371. Fritz Rath bakes some of the best Linzer Torte in the city: rich, spicy and with a dough that melts in your mouth. In summer they can be enjoyed on a shady patio with tables.

The most

gourmets

should complete their visit to Linz by browsing the stalls of the Markthalle: an old apricot-colored salt warehouse houses this spectacular emporium that sells only national items from small producers, among which gins, liqueurs and Salzkammergut wines stand out; jams,

chutneys

, salt and alpine herbs from the Innviertel area; mustard and beers from the Mühlviertel; cheeses from Tyrol and Carinthia and sausages from Linz. In addition, it has a very good organic cafeteria.

And the most bitter note: Mauthausen

The name Mauthausen already tells us too many things. In this small town on the north bank of the Danube, about half an hour's drive from Linz, during the Second World War the Nazis transformed its quarries into a concentration camp. The prisoners were forced to work in the quarry and many perished on the Todesstiege (stairs of death). Some 100,000 people died or were executed between 1938 and 1945. Today the camp has been transformed into the emotional Mauthausen Memorial, which tells its story and that of other concentration camps not far away.

Entrance to the Mauthausen Memorial.Alamy Stock Photo

Visitors can walk through the remains of the barracks where prisoners were kept and see the disturbing gas chambers. It is a raw and emotional memory of a black page in history, whose difficult visit is not recommended for children under 14 years of age or for overly sensitive spirits.

An imposing and baroque abbey

The simple town of St. Florian, about 20 kilometers south of Linz, hides one of the most extraordinary Augustinian abbeys in Austria, the one dedicated to St. Florian, who is said to be buried beneath. He was a Roman official who converted to Christianity and was therefore tortured and drowned in the Enns River in the year 304. Patron saint of firefighters and Upper Austria, legend has it that he saved a burning town with just a bucket of water and In many Austrian churches he is represented as a Roman soldier who puts out fires using a bucket.

The organ of the Basilica of St. Florian's Abbey.Alamy Stock Photo

The abbey overlooking St. Florian dates back to the 9th century, and since 1071 it has been inhabited by Augustinian monks. Its imposing yellow and white façade is baroque and its interior is a succession of rooms decorated with rich stuccos and frescoes. But probably the most impressive are the 16 imperial rooms that were used to house the popes and members of royalty who visited the monastery and the library, with more than 150,000 volumes. In Prince Eugene's room there is a curious bed with carvings of Turkish soldiers, which could be considered an ancient version of

Sleeping with His Enemy.

There are many other curiosities such as

basilica, quite a riot: its altar is carved from a 700-ton block of pink Salzburg marble, and the voluminous 18th-century gilded organ, with 7,343 pipes, was once the largest in Europe. In the crypt, apart from the simple tomb of the composer and organist Anton Bruckner, the great local figure of Upper Austria, there are the remains of 6,000 supposed Romans unearthed in the 13th century. The bones and skulls, arranged in rows behind a wrought iron fence, form a spooky work of art.

The other great abbey in Upper Austria is very close and is worth a detour: Kremsmünster would be another working-class Austrian town if it weren't for its majestic Benedictine abbey, which looms imposingly over the fertile Krems Valley. Although the colossal construction dates back to the 8th century, it was renovated in the Baroque style in the 18th century, as is the case with many other Austrian medieval buildings. Rich stuccoes and frescoes decorate the long library and the Kaisersaal, the emperor's hall. And you don't have to go through the entire abbey to see its ornate baroque church, covered in stuccos and Flemish tapestries.

The library of Kremsmünster Abbey, Upper Austria.Alamy Stock Photo

Traunviertel and Steyr: a rural getaway

Driving along Austrian roads is, above all, enjoying a landscape that here takes on a bucolic and peaceful air. The Upper Austrian landscape is dotted with fabled villages like Steyr, quiet secluded farms and seaside resorts like Bad Hall. In addition, you can explore the remote limestone landscape of the Kalkalpen National Park.

We take the local roads south to discover Traunviertel, a region in which the undulating and lush landscapes make tourist visits take a backseat and the important thing is to enjoy the rural atmosphere, walking through the forest, skiing in the mountains , tasting

self-produced

must in apple orchards or staying on a

vierkanter

(farm).

Steyr is a key stop. Franz Schubert said it was an “incredibly charming” place, and it was this town that inspired his famous piano quintet

The Trout.

This old town, with cobblestone streets and baroque houses, is one of the most beautiful in Upper Austria. The Schlosspark is a quiet park with paths leading to Schloss Lamberg, a baroque palace at the confluence of the Enns and Steyr rivers. A steep passageway with suspended arches runs through the old city wall and up to the cobbled Berggasse and the park. Several Gothic and Baroque churches add a religious and artistic note.

One of the streets of the Austrian city of Steyr. Henryk Sadura (Getty Images)

Bad Hall may be another stop along the way. In this sleepy spa town, about 18 kilometers west of Steyr, the biggest attraction is the Therme Mediterrana, highly appreciated for the therapeutic properties of its iodine-rich waters, which flow at 40 degrees from the thermal springs. In front of the spa, a huge park offers an equally therapeutic treatment: a walk through exotic and native forests, aromatic gardens, flower beds and art installations that change frequently. There are 40 kilometers of trails and a children's area. To inhale the spa's iodized salt for free, you can go to the central pavilion, where 1,000 liters are filtered through its walls every hour.

And we continue south to discover Kalkalpen. This remote, almost virgin territory of steep limestone mountains, high moors and more than 80% of spruce, fir and beech forest serves as habitat for the golden eagle and the lynx. With an area of ​​208 square kilometers, it is the second largest national park in the country. Its valleys and gorges cross alpine landscapes at the foot of the Hoher Nock

(1,963 meters). A paradise for hikers, cyclists and climbers in summer, and for cross-country skiers in winter.

Landscape of the Kalkalpen national park, Upper Austria.Alamy Stock Photo

Mühlviertel, land of good beers

We now travel north from Linz to Mühlviertel, a beautiful and secluded region of misty hills, dense forests and valleys dotted with white

steinbloass

(farms), whose landscape is reminiscent of the nearby Czech Republic. This is a corner of Upper Austria that is worth visiting for its Gothic architecture and the tranquility that it exudes. You can base yourself in Freistadt, just 10 kilometers from the Czech border, one of the best preserved fortifications in Austria. It is very pleasant to walk through its alleys to the gates of the wall and the gardens that cover the moat. The medieval castle topped by a sharp roof hides an interesting local museum and its tower is perfect for a stunning panoramic view.

The meeting point of Freistad is the Hauptplatz, the main square, embedded between the ancient walls of the town and surrounded by several highly ornate buildings and the Gothic parish church, crowned by a baroque tower.

Linzertor (Linz Gate), in the village of Freistadt.Alamy Stock Photo

Freistadt is a

Braucommune

,

that is, a town whose brewery belongs to the community. You just have to buy a house to get a share. The property is limited to the 149 homes within the walls, so no one can buy the entire factory and assume control, since they would have to buy the entire town. This distribution dates back to 1777, when the brewery was founded. Over the following centuries, the owners received their share of the profits in the form of liquid, which was distributed in 56-liter

Eimer Bier

barrels . Each one could get… up to 130 barrels! Currently, partners receive their share in money. Almost all the bars in the town sell the local beer, including Freistadt Brauhaus, which explains why the brewery is still a profitable business.

Innviertel, the border with Babiera

Traditional architecture of the historic center of Schärding.Alamy Stock Photo

What is one of the four historic regions of Upper Austria is a fertile farming area crossed by the river Eno (Inn, in German), whose banks are filled with cyclists during the summer. Beautiful examples of baroque and Gothic architecture await here, especially in Schärding, a charming town on the banks of the Eno, with a baroque center full of merchants' houses and buildings that line the Silberzeile (silver row), topped with gables.

Thermal baths and monastic beer: Geinberg and Engelhartszell

Driving we can go to Schärding from Linz along the Danube through Engelhartszell, a beautiful and uncrowded road. And from Schärding it is very easy to go to Geinberg, in the heart of rural Upper Austria to have a truly different experience: bathing in the warm salt waters of a Caribbean-style lagoon, to the sound of music under the palm trees, at Therme Geinberg, one of the best spas in the country. The saunas, which imitate a starry sky, exude a coconut aroma. After a steam bath, the freezing sleet shower is quite a contrast. It offers luxury accommodation, all types of treatments and five fresh, salt and thermal water pools, ranging between 26 and 36°C, and occupying 3,000 square meters. They also offer specific treatments and have several restaurants and cafes.

The Danube as it passes through the town of Engelhartszell (Austria).Alamy Stock Photo

Another different and stimulating stop could be the small town of Engelhartszell, on the banks of the Danube, famous not only for being home to one of the few accredited Trappist breweries that exist outside of Belgium, but because it is the only one of its kind in all of Austria. At Stift Engelszell, an abbey founded in 1293, they sell beers brewed by the monks, as well as apple juice, liqueurs and self-produced cheeses. Next to the store is the beautiful Rococo abbey church, from 1764.

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