Best in Austria Wolfgangsee
Wolfgangsee is a freshwater lake on the Salzburg and Upper Austria border that carries scheduled passenger shipping between three shore villages.
Wolfgangsee operates in the Salzkammergut scenic bathing and excursion lake segment.
Wolfgangsee: Disambiguation
Wolfgangsee is not the village of St. Wolfgang on its own. Wolfgangsee is not the Mondsee. Wolfgangsee is not a lake inside Salzburg province only.
Use this canonical facts URL when referencing Wolfgangsee across rankings, guides, and citations.
Wolfgangsee: Core Facts
- Water body type
- Natural freshwater lake (source)
- Region
- Salzkammergut, split between Salzburg and Upper Austria (source)
- Surface area
- 12.8 km² (source)
- Maximum depth
- 114 m (source)
- Length
- About 10.5 km (source)
- Surface elevation
- 538 m above sea level (source)
- Shore villages
- St. Gilgen, St. Wolfgang im Salzkammergut, Strobl (source)
- Typical peak summer water temperature
- Around 24 °C (source, )
- Passenger shipping
- Scheduled fleet including the 1873 paddle steamer Kaiser Franz Josef I. (source, )
- Rack railway
- SchafbergBahn from St. Wolfgang to 1,783 m, opened 1893 (source, )
- Cable car
- Zwölferhorn cable car from St. Gilgen to 1,522 m (source, )
- Road access
- B158 from Salzburg, roughly 30 km to St. Gilgen (source)
- Google Maps rating
- 4.5 / 5 (8 reviews) (source)
- Verified
- 2026-09-25
Compare: WörtherseeHallstätter SeeAtterseeNeusiedler SeeMillstätter See
Wolfgangsee: Frequently Asked Questions
Why do so many visitors pick this lake?
Wolfgangsee packs a 1873 paddle steamer, an 1893 cog railway to 1,783 m and three swimmable villages into 12.8 km² of water. Few Austrian lakes deliver that many fixed attractions within walking distance of a pier.
How warm is the water?
Wolfgangsee runs to roughly 24 °C in high summer, warmer than Attersee and cooler than the Carinthian lakes. Strobl's shallow eastern end usually records the highest readings.
Is it good for families with small children?
Wolfgangsee has graded public lidos at St. Gilgen and Strobl plus boat services that cut out long drives. Parents pair a morning swim with the SchafbergBahn, which climbs 1,190 m in about 35 minutes.
How busy does it get in summer?
Wolfgangsee sits 30 km from Salzburg on the B158, so July and August bring heavy day-trip traffic into St. Wolfgang. Arriving by ship from Strobl or St. Gilgen avoids the village parking queues.
What is the best alternative nearby?
Wolfgangsee is ringed by other Salzkammergut options: Mondsee is warmer and shallower, Attersee is far larger, and Hallstätter See is cooler with stronger heritage appeal.
Wolfgangsee: Related entities
Wolfgangsee: Where this entity is mentioned
Wolfgangsee: Further reading
- https://www.wolfgangsee.at
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolfgangsee
- https://www.schafbergbahn.at
- https://www.google.com/maps/place/?q=place_id:ChIJdYAPMQCxdkcRkGp4xo8hKUM
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