Wachau Valley Map: Villages, Piers and Tour Start Points

The Wachau is not one place but a stretch of river with villages on both banks, and a day out links several of them. Find where your stops sit, which bank they are on and where your day starts. If you would rather be driven between them, look at Wachau Valley private tours with hotel pickup.

The valley from Melk to Krems

The Wachau is the Danube valley between Melk in the west and Krems in the east: 33 km of river between the abbeys of Melk and Göttweig. The World Heritage area covers 15 municipalities and a core zone of 18,461 hectares. The river flows east, so going downstream means travelling from Melk towards Krems and Vienna.

The map loads from Google only when you press the button. Zoom in on the river between Melk and Krems to see the villages below.

Left bank and right bank

Which bank you are on decides how you get around. The Wachaubahn and the villages most tours stop at are on the left bank. Melk and the Aggstein ruin are on the right bank, with quieter villages opposite Spitz and Dürnstein.

Upstream of Melk, the river runs on through the Nibelungengau, which holds its own midsummer fires a week after the Wachau. Downstream of Krems the Danube leaves the valley and flows on towards Vienna. When you plan a day, think of the Wachau as two strips of villages facing each other, joined by the boat along its length and by the ferries across it.

The boat piers from Melk to Krems

DDSG Blue Danube calls at these piers between Melk and Krems. If you are sailing one way and walking or taking the train back, pick the pier nearest the village you want.

Low water closed the Weißenkirchen and Emmersdorf piers in September 2026, so check the shipping line's notices before you plan around either of them.

Three ferries across the Danube

There is no need to go back to a bridge to change banks. Three ferries cross inside the Wachau: a cable ferry between Spitz and Arnsdorf, a cable ferry between Weißenkirchen and St. Lorenz, and a ferry between Dürnstein and Rossatz. The bike day uses one of these crossings to reach the wineries of Rossatz-Arnsdorf.

Where each tour starts

Most days begin in Vienna, not in the valley. The coach days meet at Operngasse 8 by the State Opera, and the Vienna Explorer days at Franz-Josefs-Kai 45. The private days collect you from your hotel, and the wooden boat trip starts in Spitz.

Two starts sit outside that pattern. The kayak day meets you at your hotel or at the main entrance of Westbahnhof, Europaplatz 2, at 8:00. The private Hallstatt and Salzburg day can also collect you in Bratislava. If your hotel is outside central Vienna, a private tour with pickup saves you the trip to a meeting point.

Distances a day tour covers

Distances in the Wachau are short, but the river and the stops make the day long. These are the figures that matter when you plan.

If you are travelling on your own, the boat is the slow way up and the quick way down. Take the train to Melk, see Melk Abbey, then sail downstream to Krems.

Map questions

What there is to see in each village is on things to do in the Wachau Valley, and the trains, boats and roads are on getting to the Wachau Valley.