Styria & Graz
Styria, Austria's lush green southeast, is the country's culinary heart and a region still off most visitors' radar. Its capital, Graz, is a delight: a UNESCO-listed old town of red rooftops and Renaissance courtyards crowned by the Schlossberg hill with its iconic clock tower, balanced by bold modern landmarks like the bubble-shaped Kunsthaus and the island in the river Mur.
South of the city unfold the rolling Styrian Wine Roads, a serene landscape of vineyard-striped hills, perched wine taverns and chestnut woods that locals call the Styrian Tuscany. This is the home of crisp Sauvignon Blanc and Schilcher, of nutty dark pumpkin seed oil drizzled over everything, and of a slow, delicious way of life that rewards an unhurried visit.
We love giving Styria the time it asks for, pairing a day or two in Graz with a slow loop through the wine country to the south. Whether you tour the taverns by car, settle in for a long vineyard lunch or simply linger over a glass on a sunny terrace, this is the gentle, generous side of Austria, an easy counterpoint to grand Vienna or the Wachau.
