Carinthia

Carinthia is Austria’s southernmost federal state and combines Alpine landscapes, warm lakes, historic places, and a distinctly southern sense of life. Between the Hohe Tauern, the Karawanks, gentle valleys, and turquoise waters, a region emerges that feels Austrian, Alpine, and influenced by the south at the same time. For guided tours, Carinthia is especially fascinating because nature, history, language, religion, tourism, and regional identity are closely intertwined.

Klagenfurt, legends and city history

The capital Klagenfurt am Wörthersee is an ideal starting point for understanding Carinthia. The Lindwurm Fountain recalls the city’s founding legend, while the Renaissance old town, with its squares, arcaded courtyards, and palaces, tells of trade, administration, and urban representation. A tour through Klagenfurt can show how myths, architecture, and city history interweave.

Lakes, summer retreats and southern ease

The Wörthersee is especially defining. Places such as Velden, Pörtschach, and Maria Wörth stand for summer retreats, villa culture, tourism history, and the longing for the south. Yet the lake is much more than a beautiful backdrop. It tells of the development of travel, the importance of the railway, lakeside architecture, and the transformation of villages into elegant holiday resorts.

Roman traces, valleys and bilingual culture

Historically significant is the area around Maria Saal, the Zollfeld, and ancient Virunum. Here, Roman history, early Christianity, and the development of the Duchy of Carinthia become tangible. The Cathedral of Maria Saal is not only a religious building, but a place where power, faith, and regional history come together.

Carinthia is also a land of valleys, mountains, and quiet cultural landscapes. The Lavanttal, the Gailtal, the Lesachtal, and the region around Lake Millstatt reveal rural culture, monasteries, crafts, mining history, and regional cuisine. Particularly important is the bilingual culture in southern Carinthia, where the Slovenian language, place names, songs, customs, and family histories are part of the region’s identity.