3 Best Sights in Vienna Woods, Lake Neusiedler, and the Danube River, Austria

This symbol of Sopron’s endurance—and entranceway to the Inner Town—is 200 feet high, with foundations dating to the days of the Árpád dynasty (9th–13th centuries) and perhaps back to the Romans. The tower is remarkable for its uniquely harmonious blend of architectural styles: it has a Romanesque base rising to a circular balcony of Renaissance loggias topped by an octagonal clock tower that is itself capped by a brass Baroque onion dome and belfry. The upper portions were rebuilt after most of the earlier Fire Tower was, ironically, destroyed by the Great Fire of 1676, started by students roasting chestnuts in a high wind (today a double-headed eagle weathervane helps to predict wind direction; it's said that if the eagles face north and south it's going to rain). On the inside of the gate, you'll find a depiction of "Hungaria" receiving the loyalty of Sopron's kneeling citizens. Climb the 200-step spiral staircase to the top of the tower for lovely views of the town and surrounding countryside. It's from here that tower watchmen warned of approaching enemies and tolled the alarm for fire or the death of a prominent citizen. And occasionally, musicians would serenade the townsfolk from here.

The sole survivor of the original four 15th century city gates—the rest of them were razed in the late 1800s, along with the city wall—Steiner Tor remains one of the most recognizable symbols of Krems. A plaque on one side reveals its three major stages of development—construction in 1480 (on the orders of Holy Roman Emperor Friedrich III), a Baroque refurb in 1754 (under the reign of Maria Theresa), and a significant renovation in the 1950s—while the other side has coats of arms and other decorative adornments. Look out also for the memorial to a catastrophic ice flood in January 1573.