As we continued our journey down the Danube, our final stop before reaching Vienna, was the historic Melk Abbey.
Melk Abbey
Melk Abbey is a Benedictine abbey located above the town of Melk, Austria. The abbey is located on a rocky overlook above the Danube river. The abbey contains the tomb of Saint Coloman of Stockerau and the remains of several members of the House of Babenberg, Austria’s first ruling dynasty.
The entrance to the grounds The abbey

It was a nice walk from the ship to the abbey, through the winding streets of Melk, and then up the many stairs to the abbey. It was not a difficult walk and the amount of stairs was definitely doable.
Once inside the abbey, visitors are able to see an excellent exhibit tracing the history of the abbey and trends in the Catholic Church. There were manuscripts dating back hundreds of years. A real treat, was the library, which held 1000s of books.
The actual abbey was stunning. The photos do not do it justice – it was gorgeous.
The view from the top is also stunning. It was certainly worth the stair climb to see it. You can see the whole town and out toward the river where the ship was docked.
Looking down on the town Family Photo!
Walking through the town of Melk
The walk down back through the town was easy and allowed me to see my favorite little Austrian ducks and two swans swimming on the Danube. Melk was a pretty quick stop compared to the other towns we visited on the cruise. We left early in the day to complete the journey on to Vienna.
More cute decorations The town of Melk Melk Abbey from the ship

Look for my other posts on Christmas Market Cruising: Nuremberg, Regensburg, Passau, Salzburg, and Vienna.
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