Discover Maria Rain

Maria Rain combines the landscape along the Drau with Baroque church art, pilgrimage traditions and routes for active day trips. Those planning a journey between natural experiences and culture will find various points of interest here: the natural spectacle of “Ewiger Regen”, the Maria Rain/Žihpolje pilgrimage church, designated running and walking routes, and special places along the Drau.

Natural landscape between the Sattnitz conglomerate and the Drau

“Ewiger Regen” is located on the southern escarpment of the Sattnitz conglomerate towards the Drau. The emergence of numerous seepage springs created considerable tufa formations and seepage meadows there. This place illustrates Maria Rain’s distinctive landscape without requiring you to limit yourself to simply visiting historic buildings.

The Drau also shapes the surrounding area. Near Maria Rain, the river is dammed to form the Ferlach reservoir. The Valentinsfähre offers a special way to experience the Drau: following an old tradition, it enables a crossing in a Zille boat from Glainach across the Drau to Maria Rain. This creates a day plan combining paths, landscapes and a traditional experience on the water.

Pilgrimage church, wayside shrines and ecclesiastical history

The Maria Rain/Žihpolje parish church is a Baroque pilgrimage church built in 1729 and is located along the Hemma Pilgrimage Trail. At its core, it contains a late Gothic predecessor built between 1445 and 1456. Its furnishings include a magnificent Baroque high altar dating from 1694. Those interested in church art and regional history can discover different historical periods in one place here.

The religious cultural landscape also includes several wayside shrines. The Plaschkreuz is the fourth of five gable-shaped wayside shrines along the route from Maria Rain railway station to the pilgrimage church and is also a station on the annual Corpus Christi procession. The annual Easter blessing of food takes place at the Ounitschkreuz. The Danielskreuz stands out for its elaborate painting, walk-in niche and half-hipped roof covered with wooden shingles. May devotions are held there repeatedly; on the Wednesday before Ascension Day, a rogation procession leads from there to the parish church in Göltschach.

Other historic destinations complete the picture: a few kilometres east of Maria Rain stands the Gothic branch church of St. Ulrich, which was first documented in 1453 as a branch church of Köttmannsdorf. The parish church of Göltschach in Göltschach/Golšovo is an 18th-century Baroque church built on the site of a Gothic predecessor. According to the inscription, the tower and the northern sacristy of this church were built in 1632.

Routes for active and varied days

The long-distance cycle path between Ferlach and Klagenfurt runs directly through the municipality of Maria Rain. The connections from Maria Rain provide direct access to the Drau Cycle Path. For orientation on foot, there are, among others, the “Hofstätter Wald” walking route and the “Hollenburglauf” running route. The walking route leads from the municipal office via cycle path R7 and Hofstätter Wald to the pilgrimage church and back. The “Hollenburglauf” runs from the municipal office via the pilgrimage church, Untertöllern, Lambichl and the R7/railway line section back to the municipal office.

The Kaiserhüttenweg is a hiking trail in Maria Rain. The Kaiserhütte was built in honour of Emperor Franz Joseph I; from there, it offers views of the Rosental valley and the Karawanks. The “Guntschacher Au” nature reserve is also located in the district of Guntschach and is home to more than 2,000 plant and animal species. Depending on the day of your trip, you can therefore focus on ecclesiastical sights, cycling and running routes, forest paths or nature observation.

Maria Rain as a starting point for finding accommodation

The Maria Rain pilgrimage church at Kirchenstraße 61, 9161 Maria Rain, is a starting point for the excursion described. From the pilgrimage church, you can walk to the Bishop Paulitsch Chapel in less than half an hour. When looking for a holiday apartment or holiday home, you can therefore consider which experiences should define your trip: culture and pilgrimage routes, active routes, the Drau or nature in the district of Guntschach. Accommodation in Maria Rain provides a suitable thematic starting point for selecting your daily destinations according to these different focuses.

If you would like to compare other places for your travel planning, you can find Pörtschach Am Wörther See, Schiefling Am See, Keutschach Am See, Moosburg in Kärnten, Höflein, Poggersdorf, Maria Saal and Plescherken here.

For the higher-level travel overview: Klagenfurt-Land.