Church history, historic routes and hikes give Sankt Gotthard im Mühlkreis a range of travel experiences. The parish church offers views across the Alpine foothills; hiking routes lead from Rottenegg into narrow river valleys. The historic buildings reveal distinct phases of construction, while the Via Regia and Krumauer Straße bring the area's earlier transport history into focus.
The Parish Church on the Gad Gebal
The Catholic Parish Church of St Gotthard is a Late Baroque mountain church. Its history dates back to the Gad Gebal (473 m), where a chapel dedicated to St Gotthard stood in the 17th century. Count Gundacker von Starhemberg had it expanded into a Late Baroque church in 1711. The distinctive onion dome took its present form in 1835. This makes it possible to trace the development chronologically, from the chapel to the expanded church and the later tower design. The parish church offers wonderful views across the Alpine foothills and is also a popular wedding church.
Castles and Heritage Sites
Eschelberg Castle and the Rottenegg Castle and Palace Ruins add two other building histories to the picture of the area's church history. Eschelberg Castle was converted into a Renaissance-style palace in 1598 under Johann Christoph von Gera. Rottenegg Castle was converted into a small palace around the turn of the 17th century. Both are among the historic sites in the municipality of Sankt Gotthard. The heritage register dated 23 June 2026 lists Eschelberg Castle, the Rottenegg Castle and Palace Ruins, and the Catholic Parish Church of St Gotthard as protected heritage sites.
Krumauer Straße and the Via Regia
The Krumauer Reichsstraße is another layer of local history; it was a major transport route until the 19th century. The Via Regia includes a roughly 400 m long uphill section of the former Krumauer Straße, paved with rounded stones. The Via Regia was a medieval trade route between the Danube and Bohemia. The names refer to different scales: Krumauer Straße denotes the specific former transport route, while the Via Regia refers to the trade route between the Danube and Bohemia.
River Valleys and Views
Rottenegg lies where the Eschelbach and Kleine Rodl flow into the Große Rodl. Hiking routes lead from Rottenegg into idyllic, narrow river valleys. Between the valleys are higher-altitude places with wonderful viewpoints. The valley trails and the viewpoints at higher elevations thus offer different perspectives on the landscape.
Getting There and Planning Your Trip
From Vienna or Salzburg, Sankt Gotthard can be reached via the Westautobahn motorway, taking the Linz exit and continuing through Ottensheim and Rottenegg. When looking for a holiday apartment, you can first consider whether the stay should focus on architectural history and the Via Regia, hikes in the river valleys, or both.
Discover more destinations: Ottensheim, Eidenberg, Herzogsdorf, Oberneukirchen, Haibach Im Mühlkreis, Kirchschlag Bei Linz, Reichenthal, Bad Leonfelden
For the overview of the wider region: Urfahr-Umgebung.
