Bad Aussee

Bad Aussee is marked as the geographical centre of Austria - a plaque records the calculation - and it sits in a bowl of the Styrian Salzkammergut where the Traun's headwaters meet, surrounded by the Dachstein, the Totes Gebirge and the Loser. Salt built it: the mines at Altaussee and the brine pipelines made the town, and the Kammerhof, once the salt administration building, now holds the town museum. Brine baths still operate. The Ausseerland keeps its regional dress more visibly than most of Austria, and the Narzissenfest at the end of May is built around the wild narcissi that flower in the meadows - floats and boats covered in hundreds of thousands of hand-set blooms, paraded through the town and on the Grundlsee. Archduke Johann married the local postmaster's daughter here in 1829.

History

Prehistoric finds come from the nearby Salzofenhöhle cave, but the town grew in the Middle Ages, when salt works began in the late 13th century, and it became a market town in 1295. The Kammerhof, built before 1200, housed the salt administration of the region until 1926, the parish church of St. Paul dates from the 13th century, with a Gothic Madonna of 1420, and the hospital church on Meranplatz was built before 1395; Anna Plochl, the postmaster's daughter who became the wife of Archduke Johann, was born here (Wikipedia, Bad Aussee).

What's there

• The centre of Austria - the marked geographical midpoint of the country.
• A salt town - the Kammerhof administration building, now the museum, and brine baths.
• The Narzissenfest - floats covered in hand-set wild narcissi in late May.
• Living regional dress - the Ausseer tracht still worn as ordinary clothing.

When to go

Late May for the daffodil festival; May to October otherwise. A day.

Practical notes

The Narzissenfest fills the whole Ausseerland and accommodation books out a year ahead. Flowering dates shift with the season. This is one of the wettest corners of Austria.

Nearby

Altaussee, the Grundlsee and Toplitzsee are minutes away; Hallstatt is over the pass.

Key facts