Gastern

The market town of Gastern in the district of Waidhofen an der Thaya was named after the Upper Austrian monastery of Garsten, which was first mentioned in a document in 1177. The municipal area includes the villages of Frühwärts, Garolden, Gastern, Immenschlag, Kleinmotten, Kleinzwettl, Ruders, Weißenbach and Wiesmaden - as well as the villages of Alm, Grünau and Harmes. Not far from Gastern are the Wagnermühle and the Triglasmühle.

Tranquil hiking trails, wide meadows and postcard panoramas characterize the landscape - and promise a vacation close to nature amidst the tranquillity of the northern Waldviertel.

Gastern: sights in the municipality

Sacred buildings characterize the landscape of Gastern. Worth seeing are the Weißenbach branch church, the village chapel in Ruders, the Romanesque fortified church Kleinzwettl - with an earth stable - and the neo-Romanesque hall church directly in Gastern. The latter is dedicated to St. Martin and impresses with a tower made of unplastered granite blocks.

The "sculptor priest" of Gastern

Josef Elter was chaplain in Gastern and Dobersberg from 1954 to 1957. The artistically very accomplished priest would later achieve international renown as a respected sculptor and graphic artist - and was given the esteemed nickname "sculptor priest".