Murau District

Murau District lies in the upper Mur valley in the Austrian province of Styria. The land rises from the river’s broad meadows to forested slopes and alpine ridges. Small villages dot the valley floor and the lower hillsides, each with its own church spire and cluster of farm buildings. The district stretches south-east from the border with Salzburg province towards the Neumarkt basin. Winter sports resorts sit on the higher ground, while summer meadows and woodlands cover the middle slopes. The area is worth visiting for its quiet roads and well-marked walking paths. The 26 898 inhabitants include a growing number of visitors who come for the clean air and the slower pace of life. Almost one in six residents is under fifteen, and more than one in four is over sixty-five, giving the villages a balanced, family-centred feel. Fewer than one in twenty people were born outside Austria, so the culture remains strongly Styrian. A visitor finds a patchwork of hamlets linked by minor roads that climb through beech and spruce woods. In summer the meadows are bright with wild flowers and dotted with grazing cattle. In winter the same slopes carry skiers to lifts that start close to the villages. Old stone farmhouses stand beside newer guesthouses, their balconies facing south to catch the sun. The Mur winds through the valley, its banks lined with willows and alders, offering quiet spots for a picnic or a short stroll.