The Place
Raffelsberger Hof is a gem, pure and simple. Who would not want to stay in this late-Renaissance house on the edge of the village? Turn off the main street down a little lane towards the Danube and suddenly you are in a flower-filled square. Wistaria and vines climb over this former ship-master’s house, where the stables once housed the horses that pulled the Danube barges upstream.
Outside, a statue of St. John of Nepomuk stands in a small niche; inside, a stern stone face spouts water into a tiny pool and ancient steps lead up to reception. Claudia Anton is the second generation of her family to run this pension. Her antique-dealer father restored the 16thC building, then filled it with eye-catching objects. In the breakfast-room, a Biedermeier cabinet displays gold-embroidered Wachauer Hauben, the traditional bonnets of the region. Even the locks, handles, hinges and light fittings are finely-crafted and worthy of notice. Views from the vaulted rooms and arcades are either into the garden with its walnut and cherry trees or out towards the late-Gothic church and hills. Bedrooms are attractively-furnished with modern bathrooms; two have views of the Danube.