Page 176 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Austria

174  A USTRIA REGION B Y REGION

9 Schloss
Herberstein
Road map F4. * 300. @ Tel (03176)
88250. Open Mar–Apr: 10am–4pm
daily; May–Sep: 9am–5pm daily;
Oct–Mar: 10am–4pm daily. &
∑ herberstein.co.at
Schloss Herberstein, perched on a
steep rock amid wild countryside,
has remained in the hands of the
same family since 1290. Since the
Herbersteins still live in the castle,
a visit feels a bit like peeping
through a keyhole at history.
The medieval fortress, rebuilt
numerous times, achieved its Bad Blumau resort, designed by Friedensreich Hundertwasser
present form in the late 16th
century. Its most magnificent Y Tierwelt Herberstein avenue lined with trees and
part is the Florence Courtyard, Open mid-Mar–Apr & Oct: 10am–4pm shrubs that represent the
a lovely arcaded enclosure more daily; May–Sep: 9am–5pm daily; Nov– Chinese horoscope, you
reminiscent of Renaissance mid-Mar: 10am–3:30pm Thu–Sun & suddenly realize that the grass
Italian palaces than of northern hols. & ∑ tierwelt-herberstein.at you are walking on grows on
European fortresses. At one the roof of a building below.
time the castle was a venue The outside of the complex
for knightly tournaments. 0 Bad Blumau can be seen with a guided tour
The rooms that are open to Road map F4. * 1,600. £ @ but the main reason for a visit
visitors today display many items n Rogner–Bad Blumau, (03383) to the spa is, of course, taking
relating to the Herberstein family, 51000.8 ∑ blumau.com the waters. Admission to the
and an exhibition that gives a complex is available for half
unique insight into aristocratic life In eastern Styria, in an area and full days, and will prove
in the 18th and 19th centuries. that has long been famed for both an artistic experience
There is even an original kitchen its crystal-clear mineral waters, and a pleasant way to while
from the 16th century. there are is a spa resort that is certainly away some time.
temporary exhibitions in summer. worth a detour. The entire resort
One of the most interesting of Bad Blumau was designed q Schloss
places within the castle grounds by the painter and architect
is the nature reserve, Tierwelt Friedensreich Hundertwasser, Riegersburg
Herberstein, which is home to in a style similar to his building Road map F5. * 5,000. @
wild plants and animals. Its in Vienna (see pp108–9). The Tel (03153) 8670. Open Apr & Oct:
origins can be traced back to rounded façades, rippling 10am–6pm daily; May–Sep:
the 16th century, when the roofs, colourful walls and 9am–6pm daily. ∑ riegersburg.com
castle was inhabited by Count irregularly shaped terraces
Sigmund von Herberstein, the and balconies transport On a steep basaltic rock high
author of pioneering works on you into a strange and surreal above the Grazbach stream
the agriculture and geography fairyland. As you stands Riegersburg Castle, a
of Eastern Europe. stroll along an mighty medieval fortress that
was once Styria’s most easterly
outpost against raiders from
Hungary, then Turkey,
and, more recently,

The medieval fortress of Riegersburg, rebuilt in the 17th century
For hotels and restaurants in this region see pp295–6 and pp318–20

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