Passau Things to Do

High up on the Danube side of town is the Veste Oberhaus, where the prince-bishops resided. You can walk the steep way up, or take a bus from the City Hall until October. Once up, you are rewarded with a great view of the city and rivers. Today, the castle houses the Oberhausmuseum which has exhibitions on local life, which interestingly includes life in border country, since Passau has always been in the middle of Germany and Austria, and with the Czech Republic very close by. It also includes info on the salt trade which made Passau rich and gave many of the fine town houses you see today.

Let's face it, the "Three River Corner" is one of the highlights about coming to Passau - it is fascinating to see three rivers merge into one, forming Europe's most fascinating big river, the Danube. There are many ways to see the rivers meet, one is to take the boat trip I recommended under "General tips" and another is to get up one of the hills for a birdseye view. Finally, one is to go and stand at the Dreiflusseck itself, the tip of the Old Town, and see the Danube and the Inn flow past you. The latter option is particularly good if you travel with children as there is a good playground there. :) You can see more of the corner from the river in my travelogue.

Passau has an incredible Dom, which was at one time so important it was the mother church in the region, ruling over such important churches as the Stephan's Dom in Vienna! My northern husband thought it far too over decorated, but even though I too can like plain churches, this one was sheer beauty. Especially the ceiling impressed me. Here you also find the world's biggest church organ, which means there are plenty of organ concerts held here. If you want to experience one, you have to pay a small fee.

In the small square next to the church is the building housing the Dom Treasury and Diocese Museum (closed winter) full of treasures from the church.

Staying in Obernzell you got various options to take a boattour on the Danube.

First possibility is boating to Linz in Austria or one of the stops along the way to Linz. Even all the way to Vienna is possible, but be aware of the costs and the distance.

We took the local bus to Passau, visited Passau for more than half a day and then went back to Obernzell by Boat, which is about one hour and being with small kids that is enough. This part of the river is very beautiful to boat on.

Some specs. of the ship:

MS "Regina Danubia"

Built 1992
Bauwerft Lux, Mondorf
Length 70,00 m
Width 11,24 m
Depth max. 1,38 m
Persons max. 400 persons

Domschatz- und Diözesanmuseum

From the cathedral you can enter the museum and library of the Dom. To enter here you need to pay an admittance fee of € 1,50.

The wall paintings in the library are simply a must see. Further you'll find here different artifacts of religious art and clothings etc.

The Organ at Dom St. Stephan

What a mighty sound! Normally I don't like listening to church or classic music, but coming out of this organ with it's 17774 Pipes and 233 Registers it's marvelous to hear.

Dom St. Stephan

This is the most known and most beautiful church of Passau, with it's beautiful wall paintings and all the religious art.

But the biggest event is the world's biggest pipe organ with 17774 Pipes and 233 Registers.

On several occasions the organ is played normally every working day at 12.00- 12.30 hrs.

The entrance fee is then € 3,00 for Adults. On other hours you can enter the cathedral for free.

Veste Oberhaus

In 1219 they started building this castle. In the years 1250, 1298, 1367 and 1482 the castle was under Siege, but they managed to defend it well and every single time victory was theirs.

Take a look at the spectacular building, view etc. and the ever changing expositions.

Opening Hours
4. April - 2. November 2004
Mon-Fri 9.00-17.00 hrs.
Sat-Sun 9.00-18.00 hrs.

Entrance fee
Adults € 4,00
Children under 6 yrs. F.o.C.
Familycard € 9,50