A trip to Weichselbaum can be planned around two specific interests: the architectural and pilgrimage history of the Maria Bild pilgrimage church, or the Water Route and Land Route, each with its own landscape and route characteristics. This lets you decide in advance whether church art and pilgrimage traditions or the character of a route should be the focus of your stay.
Cultural History in Maria Bild
The Parish and Pilgrimage Church of the Visitation of Mary in Maria Bild is a single-nave, three-bay hall church with a semicircular apse, built in the Renaissance style. These terms describe both its architectural form and layout: one nave, three bays and a semicircular end. The church was built in 1793 under Abbot Marian Reuter of Heiligenkreuz and St. Gotthard. Its style, spatial form and year of construction therefore provide different points of reference for understanding its architecture.
The high altar features a devotional image that is a copy of the image of Maria Pötsch in Vienna’s St. Stephen’s Cathedral. This specific connection gives the church an art-historical and religious point of interest alongside its architecture. The Maria Bild pilgrimage church has been a popular pilgrimage destination since its establishment. The Angel Way is part of a historic pilgrimage route. Those interested in culture can therefore explore both a specific altar image and the history of pilgrimage.
The Water Route and Land Route
The Water Route runs mainly along forest and field paths, passing mostly through shady woods and alongside the banks of the Saubach stream. Pilgrimage stations and numerous meditative spots amid nature line the route. Both its surroundings and its points of interest are characteristic: forests, fields and the stream banks shape the landscape, while the pilgrimage stations add a meditative dimension. If you want to consider both nature and pilgrimage stations when choosing a route, these features can help guide you.
The Land Route passes through the entire municipality of Weichselbaum and is 14.2 kilometres long. This gives you a specific distance and a clearly defined course through the municipality for planning purposes. The Water Route, by contrast, stands out for its landscape and stations. You can choose according to what matters most to you: a quantified route through the municipality or a route combining forests, the banks of the Saubach and meditative spots.
Activities and Practical Planning
To arrange a wine tasting or a visit to a direct-marketing farm along the Land Route, make an appointment with the relevant business in advance. If you want to make one of these stops a fixed part of your itinerary, be sure to arrange your visit beforehand.
Erlebnishof Maria Bild offers pony rides and pony hikes. Confirm availability before your trip if you would like to include either activity in your plans.
Discover more destinations: Poppendorf in Burgenland, Eltendorf, Rudersdorf, Jennersdorf, Minihof-Liebau, MĂĽhlgraben, Eisenberg An Der Raab, Heiligenkreuz Im Lafnitztal.
Go to the regional travel overview: Jennersdorf.
