“So where exactly are you travelling to now? Which farm is that?”, my mum wants to know once again, given I’ve already taken so many trips this year. The Lungau region in Salzburgerland, she tells me, is one of the coldest places in Austria, -20°C and below is not uncommon in winter. Wow – that sounds like my experience of winter in Canada! Lungau, here I come: I LOVE snow and winter!
Equipped with lots of wool (like the ponies, sheep and cows that await me), I travel comfortably by train and bus from Vienna to Salzburg and on via Radstadt to St. Margarethen in Lungau, near the Katschberg on the border with Carinthia. A short trip around the world (in Austrian terms;) but it’s an easy travel day thanks to excellent public transport connections. At the end of the day, arriving at Tina & Leo’s historic Löckerwirt farm makes it all worthwhile!
Their farm holiday business has recently received the coveted fifth flower award of excellence for providing “exceptional service, comfort and warmth to its guests“: Congratulations, dear Löcker family!
I can confirm that this accolade is truly deserved. The stories and pictures that follow will take you on a journey – to a true oasis for the senses, a perfect winter wonderland, a farm with so much warmth and love that I decide on the spot: I have to return here soon, with “all my boys” from home!
Welcome to the Löckerwirt, and Tina & Leo here as a young host couple. The fact that they are parents of two little boys, just like me, has us bond immediately. THANK YOU for now proudly displaying my children’s books, too!
Löckerwirt travel tips: Wine and dine in style at this beautiful farmstay in Salzburg.
What I can’t share with you either on the blog or on social media is HOW GOOD it smells at the Löckerwirt farm. The rooms, the wellness area, even the stables (in their own way) are wonderfully fragrant. Both Flora, Tina’s mother-in-law, and Tina herself like to used dried herbs and plants for incense around the house and farm. Even your nose goes on holiday here!
The furnishings in the completely refurbished rooms are tasteful and simple, which is perhaps precisely why it feels so cosy. The same applies to the wellness area, which even tempts me to a mini-workcation (although I’m usually down there to relax).
As for the cuisine – wow. During my stay, I watch a few suppliers come and go, themselves on first-name terms with everyone, laughing and joking: it’s a natural feeling of joy that I can also taste on my plate. Thank you very much, dear team at Löckerwirt, for the fantastic surprise menu based on sourcing only the freshest homegrown, farm ingredients. Check this out.
Greetings from my beautiful guest room “Dorfleben” (village life) …
… it’s a great idea to display QR codes and inscriptions on this wooden cube for further information, and also provide some regional Lungau books for guests …
… this greeting is something else, too! As a guest, you get “five flower seeds” to take home with you, basically as a Thank you for receiving the five flowers award of excellence!
I really like the small, yet tastefully furnished wellness area in the basement of the farm building …
… and as for being a foodie, I’m in paradise here, really.
Enjoy Tina’s freshly baked apple bread in the morning …
… as well as their selection of homemade jams …
… or what about collecting your very own breakfast egg from the nearby chicken, delivering it at the kitchen door with your name written on it and instructions for how to prepare it in the morning!
The Löckerwirt also delivers in the evening, as the choice and quality of food is in no way inferior to that of many a four-star hotel!
Looking for the farm’s “Big Five”, a fun quest initiated by the Austrian Farm Holiday Association.
Here goes my actual mission of staying at the Löckerwirt farm: searching for the farm’s “Big Five”! So who or what is that?
Well, you may recognise the term “Big Five” from the African safari world. However, unlike lion, elephant, rhino, buffalo or leopard, Austrian farms will offer you the following Big Five: pig, cow, horse, chicken and sheep! If you now think that’s a little common, even boring, think about it from the perspective of the many city-dwelling children and families. To them, a farm, what with all its births, slaughtering and animal care taking place, might seem just as exotic as going on a real Big Five African safari!
When Hannes, Tina’s father-in-law, shows me the farm’s slaughter room with the two halves of cattle right next to the barn, I do a double take. Yes, I recognise the sight, but admittedly, it has become really rare in our modern everyday, mostly city life. What I also notice, is that the 60 or so sheep, 25 Angus cattle, 25 chickens, two donkeys, ponies and rabbits are doing really well here at the Löckerwirt farm. And so, as a natural consequence, do the people.
A view into the home of the Löckerwirt animals; “go check it out Elena” – the barn is always open for visitors.
Aren’t they cute? Three little new born lambs with their mother.
A sign post explains about the farm efforts of caring for its animals, all the way from (local) birth and slaughter.
We are part of the “game” : Chickens as part of the Big Five!
I’m stepping in for my big cousins, the horses … and wondering whether the little ponies next door also count? 😀
Creative farm activities: Hay meditation, incense burning & baking workshops.
Another Löckerwirt farm offer again brings me closer to the animals in the barn: hay meditation! Tina Löcker tells me how her fragrant hay bed meditation came about: thanks to a water damage in the wellness area! It was there where the actual meditation sessions once took place, becoming so popular that all guests wished for them to continue: “Why don’t we just go and meditate inside the barn instead?” The barn is where all the fragrant hay for feeding the animals during wintertime is stored; hay that is mown from the surrounding meadows during the summer months, given as food during wintertime.
Right now, at the beginning of winter, it still smells really fresh and wonderful! Lying in my hay bed for just under an hour’s worth of meditation, wrapped up in thick clothes and blankets because of the sub-zero temperatures, is something I’ve never experienced before. Thank you so much, dear Tina! What an experience. Trust me, you’ll love it too, as nothing will happen to you given the semi-outdoor coldness of winter – it’s being packed up warmly and lying in the fragrant hay that will make sure of that.
Opposite the newly built guest rooms are the Löckerwirt stables and barn with their wonderful hay.
On my way there, I watch icicles hanging from the roofs: Yes folks, it’s really really cold here!
But the cold doesn’t bother me right now: A hay meditation that I would do again and again, and can absolutely recommend. You get extra blankets and clothes from the family at any time, like the smart stable jacket you see me wearing here.
My day at the farm continues with good fragrances: Baking and burning incense with the farms’ dried herbs are on the agenda for the afternoon! “We always do this quite spontaneously, depending on demand from our guests”, Tina tells me, as she encourages her two boys Lorenz and Luis to join in the baking with her funny Pippilotta doll!
We get right into it. Thanks to the baking molds, dough, salt and grains already prepared by Tina, our pastry rolls are ready to go into the oven in no time at all. Later that day, at dinner, I find two crispy rolls are waiting for me with my salad. Mmmh! Homemade pastry tastes just so good.
Baking bread with Tina’s kids Luis and Lorenz is fun!
Thanks to the great setup of the workshop …
… we are finished with our fun baking activity in no time at all …
… ready to enjoy!
Last but not least, I have the pleasure of burning incense with Flora, Tina’s mum-in-law. In the ancient tradition of incense burning, Flora explains, “you always need five plants, two resins, a tree, i.e. a tree bark and a root. You can burn incense for ancestors, for love, for blessing, for purification and, if you’re really clever, for oracles,” she tells me with a wink.
Flora has completed training in TEH, Traditional European Healing: The knowledge she has speaks volumes, both in practice and theory. No wonder we have a wonderful chat for almost two hours. “Incense, like everything in life, is about perception. And not forgetting the four elements: The fire, the power, the air, our breath, the water, the flow of energy, as well as the earth and our roots in it.”
This little mascot is part of all sessions.
We need … women herbs!
What a wonderful fragrance!
Dear Flora, what a wonderful workshop that was! I would love to come and do another one, really!
Tina and her family have herbal incense all over the house, as seen at the breakfast table, for instance.
Let me tell you about why the Löckerwirt really excels at service quality.
As you can see, the Löcker family and their team go to great lengths to ensure the well-being of all their guests. Here are a few more, lovely little details that caught my eye.
Stepping inside: A sign encourages you to share kisses (“Neidln”, in the Lungau dialect) under the mistletoe!
Another sign informs about the arrivals of the day, the season, the menu, and many more fun details.
Very cute, simple idea: To put up well wishes around the house for take-away among the guests!
I love the play room – my boys would not leave from here, I’m sure. Except to see the real animals, that is!
Walking through the winter wonderland of Sankt Margarethen in the Lungau region of Salzburg.
Last but not least, I would like to share some beautiful, classic winter pictures with you. During my visit just ahead of the winter solstice, the sun only wanders over the nearby mountain peaks for a few hours. This time in the middle of the day is beautiful: glistening icicles, sparkling branches and twigs covered in frost, snow crunching under your boots and a far-reaching view across the valley floor with cross-country ski trails and snow-covered mountain peaks all around. When words fail to capture all the magic, a picture is needed. Or two. Or three …!
Winter wonderland magic for you!
A view of the Löckerwirt farm in Sankt Margarethen …
… and as you leave the house, the view around lunchtime is this …
… a modern bus stop against an old church is a really nice idea!
The village of Sankt Margarethen …
… is part of the Lungau valley floor, a perfect terrain to practice cross-country skiing. Next time, I hope I can too!
Thank you so much, dear Löckerwirt, for this wonderful visit. I am sure we will meet again.
Check out even more Löckerwirt, and Big Five farm travel photos from Salzburg:
Dislcaimer: I have been invited by the Austrian Farm Holiday Association, as well as the Löckerwirt on this trip to Salzburg. All opinions are my own.