Donnersbachwald: Trails, Peaks and Family Experiences

Donnersbachwald combines sporting experiences on the Riesneralm with marked trails, a distinctive high-mountain chapel and activities that also offer interesting points of connection when travelling with children. If you are looking for a holiday apartment or holiday home, it is worth deciding in advance how you want to structure your trip: Should the focus be on the slopes, a hike, a family-oriented discovery or a cultural sight?

Riesneralm: Slopes and experiences for different kinds of days

The Riesneralm ski area has 32 varied kilometres of slopes, ranging from easy-going to sporty. The children’s ski carousel is a special feature: It is also accessible outside ski lessons and offers more than 5 ha of ski area, 5 lift facilities and 5 descents. This makes it possible to incorporate different focal points into your travel planning without limiting your stay to a single activity.

There are also specific destinations on the Riesneralm beyond skiing. The barefoot summit trail offers different surfaces and experience stations. The mountain station of the chairlift for the summit experience on the Riesneralm is located at an altitude of 1,900 m. Those who choose their accommodation in Donnersbachwald according to their planned activities can therefore distinguish between experiences on the slopes, a trail with changing surfaces and a stay at a higher altitude.

Puzzle Trail, Church and High-Mountain Chapel

For a shared discovery experience with children, the KRISPINI children’s treasure hunt offers a clearly described route: It follows the hiking trail from Hotel Berghof *** to the hunting stand and includes nine puzzle stations. The trail combines exercise with individual tasks that can be incorporated step by step into planning a day trip.

A cultural point of reference in the village is the Parish Church of St. Leonhard (and Patritius) in Donnersbachwald. It is dedicated to Saint Leonhard and Patritius. Another destination lies considerably higher: At 1,988 m, the Glattjoch Chapel is the highest-altitude sacred building in Styria. Both places offer different perspectives on the region’s religious character, without creating the same kind of excursion experience.

Trails for Pilgrims and Hikers

The third stage of the Hemma Pilgrimage Trail leads from Donnersbachwald over the Glattjoch to Oberwölz. Those who would like to include a stage of a supraregional pilgrimage trail in their stay will find a specifically named route here. In addition, Trail No. 936, marked red-white-red, starts in front of the Lahrerbrücke near the EGG Donnersbachwald power station.

For the Bike & Hike Mörsbachalm – Gstemmerscharte route, take the train to Stainach-Irdning and then the bus to Donnersbachwald, Ortsmitte stop. This travel information may play a role when choosing accommodation if you are planning a stay without travelling by car all the way.

Donnersbachwald as the Starting Point for Planning Your Trip

The activities range from slopes and lift facilities to a barefoot trail and a children’s treasure hunt, as well as pilgrimage trails and sacred buildings. When searching for a suitable holiday apartment in Donnersbachwald, you can therefore first decide which of these experiences will be the focus of your stay.

If you would like to compare other places for planning your trip, you can also find Landl, Zlem, Donnersbach, Gstatterboden, Lassing Bei Liezen, Haus, Trieben and Pürgg-Trautenfels.

For the higher-level travel overview: Liezen.