Wachau Valley Day Trip: Vienna-Melk-Dürnstein-Krems

I biked from Melk to Durnstein to Krems and— yes— you’ve allowed enough time for Melk Abbey, Durnstein ( an iconic, small village with its own abbey and castle ruins) and Krems before returning to Vienna. Be sure to take a look at Krems’ old medieval center as it’s also quite interesting.

Depending on how long your visit of the Melk Abbey and your lunch will be, maybe you could catch the boat departing at 13:50, giving you more time for Dürnstein.

It is an uphill walk of about half an hour to the base of the ruins of the Dürnstein fortress, and then 10 minutes more "climbing" to the very top of the rock, giving you an extraordinary view of the river Danube and the Wachau valley (if weather permits).

A few thoughts:

I would do this trip in the opposite direction. I would arrive first in Krems and then get on the bus immediately to Duernstein. I would hike up to the ruined castle, explore the village and then have lunch at Altes Presshaus or the Richard Lionheart Hotel restaurant. Then I would get on the boat (although my preferred method of transport is a bike) to Melk. Explore the abbey and then get the train back to Vienna. As for dinner, I would still be full from lunch.

If you want to stick with your original itinerary, I would think again about your dining choices and if you really need a lunch and dinner.

I did a very similar excursion last year, the only difference being that I went straight from Melk to Krems on the boat and missed out Dürnstein. Will you be using a Wachau-Ticket? If so, one little tip is that I found it impossible to buy a Wachau-Ticket from one of the machines at the Westbahnhof, so had to go to the info desk and buy it from a person instead (who was very helpful). So don't waste time and get stressed trying to work out how to buy one from a machine; just go straight to a human and they'll help you with it. Enjoy your trip; the Wachau Valley is a gorgeous place! :)

Thank you all for the helpful ideas and tips. As for lunch and dinner, the places I originally listed were just a few names I found on Tripadvisor. After speaking with some locals, I’ve discovered a few spots that I think I’ll like even more.

Regarding tickets—if I can buy them ahead of time, that’s one less thing to worry about. Fortunately, ÖBB (which I’m already using for my Vienna to Melk train) also sells tickets for the bus from Dürnstein to Krems.

We just recently used the Wachau Ticket for a very similar itinerary (omitting the stop in Durnstein).

Some tips based on our experience - first, concur with previous poster about needing to buy the tickets at the info desk. Second, allow extra time for the walk from Melk Abbey / town to the boat dock (it’s deceptively far) and from the boat dock in Krems to the town or train station. Finally, consider arriving early to get a better seat on the boat - we got there about 30 minutes before sailing and found a very long line waiting to board, and by the time we got onboard there were no more seats left topside and we had to sit inside where the view is much less enjoyable (our boat had one topside deck and two interior decks).

Also, it depends what you are looking for on the boat, but we were expecting more of a sightseeing cruise and instead there was relatively little narration as we passed key sights. Most of our fellow passengers seemed more focused on the onboard restaurant / bar… Additionally, because the seating was almost all numbered tables that were then used to order food and drink service, we found people were not eager to share space. It may have just been the particular group of tourists that we ended up with, but we had big groups shoving past others in the boarding line, people lying down on benches even when others were looking for seats, and reserved tables in the restaurant sitting empty for a large portion of the journey (presumably their occupiers were taking up tables topside). If we were to do the trip again, we’d take the bus or bike.

Hope this helps!

Thank you so much for sharing your experience—this was incredibly helpful. Since posting my original itinerary, I’ve actually made a few adjustments based on feedback like yours and some practical considerations. I’m now only taking one boat (Melk to Dürnstein) and then using the bus from Dürnstein to Krems instead of the second boat leg.

Here’s the updated plan:

Morning:
Vienna to Melk by train (08:18–09:21)
Visit Melk Abbey from 10:00 to 12:00
Lunch from 12:00 to 13:30
Extra time to explore and walk to the boat dock

Afternoon:
Boat from Melk to Dürnstein (14:35–15:55)
Explore Dürnstein from 15:55 to 18:15

Evening:
Bus from Dürnstein to Krems (18:23–18:34)
Explore Krems, dinner, and relax until the train back at 21:52
Arrive in Vienna (Wien Heiligenstadt) at 22:56

Your tips on the boat boarding experience and crowd behavior were really eye-opening. I’ll definitely plan to arrive early for boarding and lower my expectations for narration and sightseeing from the boat itself. Thanks again—it’s that kind of detail that makes a big difference when planning!

... lower my expectations for narration and sightseeing from the boat itself.

It is not a sightseeing cruise, it is a regular boat shuttle.