At first glance, everything here feels like a love letter to summer. Look a little closer, though, and you realise that this house actually wants to collect stories throughout all four seasons.
Follow the Danube, passing little villages, plenty of greenery, open windows and that feeling that the city is slowly disappearing in the rear-view mirror. And then you finally arrive – in the Greifenstein-Altenberg recreational area. With its Danube. Its lido. And its very own summer feeling that somehow just works the moment you get here.
You don't have to travel far to feel far away. Sometimes, a 40-minute drive is all it takes to find your own little retreat.
Once you leave the road behind, you enter a different world. Little houses stand side by side, each owner taking meticulous care of their own little kingdom. Everyone knows everyone, neighbours still greet each other over the fence, and most people probably know exactly who has just fired up the barbecue.
Parking spaces are scarce and cars are hardly ever seen. Here, the emphasis is much more on that holiday feeling and plenty of peaceful outdoor space. All the more convenient, then, that your car can be parked right next to the entrance.
From the outside, the house is almost pleasantly understated. Step inside, however, and the surprise is immediate: suddenly you realise just how much space, light and life are actually hidden within.
And one other thing becomes clear very quickly: this house is far more than a classic summer house. Even though the surroundings, the Danube and the pergola certainly create exactly that impression. Built in 1986 and comprehensively renovated in 2015, the house can be used all year round. In fact, it is less a summer house than a little home that simply happens to be located in the middle of a summer paradise.
A solid masonry double staircase leads up to the house. And there, you find precisely that cosy atmosphere you simply cannot create by decorating alone. The spacious kitchen-living area with exposed wooden beams adds a touch of mountain-lodge charm – without any traditional dress code, of course. Plenty of wood, plenty of light, large windows and exactly the kind of atmosphere that makes you immediately believe that evenings here regularly last longer than planned.
The floor looks like wood but is pleasantly easy to maintain – making it considerably more relaxed for real life. The kitchen fits perfectly into its niche, with a large dining area in front of it for family, friends and everyone who originally intended to stay for only a few minutes. While somewhere outside the garden hums quietly along, you sit here in remarkable comfort and suddenly realise just how quiet a day can actually become.
A fireplace connection could add even more year-round cosiness. Because this house simply does not work only in July and August. You can just as easily imagine autumn mist drifting over the Danube, the first cool mornings or a winter's day when everything outside has fallen silent and warmth awaits inside. Until now, the house has been heated effortlessly with infrared panels.
This level also includes a small bedroom, a bright utility room and a surprisingly stylish bathroom with shower, WC and even two windows.
A wooden staircase then leads to the already converted upper floor. And up there, you suddenly discover a room you would never expect from the outside. Bright, open and welcoming, with a wonderful view across the little houses towards the surrounding meadows and rolling hills. Almost like a treehouse for grown-ups.
Perfect as an additional sleeping area, private retreat, guest accommodation, studio, playroom – or simply as that famous "upstairs" that you suddenly cannot imagine living without.
The garden deserves a chapter of its own. At around 380 m², every step makes you understand a little more about the atmosphere of this place. Raised beds, shrubs, plenty of greenery, beautifully established and alive in that wonderfully natural way that simply cannot be bought and created in a single summer. There is buzzing, fluttering and birdsong all around. Birds, insects and probably the occasional cheeky garden creature clearly feel at home here – and are obviously very welcome.
Even watering the garden won't leave you breaking a sweat. Your own well provides the garden with water free of charge.
The pergola feels almost like a little extension of the house – a small summer living room under the open sky. A place for long evenings, warm nights and conversations that are eventually allowed to become completely unimportant. Chances are, you will sit here quite often saying, "just five more minutes" – only to wonder later why it is suddenly midnight.
And somewhere underneath, the lower level understands summer surprisingly well, too. The well-equipped summer kitchen not only saves you from constantly running up and down the stairs during garden parties – it tends to become the secret centre of the evening pretty quickly.
Right next to it is the owner's small workshop. While cooking, eating and chatting takes place on one side, there is room to tinker and work on the other. One person is slicing tomatoes, another is searching importantly for a tool, and somewhere along the way someone is probably deciding that maybe it would be better to stay for one more day after all.
And if you eventually do feel the pull of the Danube, it is practically right on your doorstep. Swimming, paddling, surfing or simply sitting with your feet in the water and pretending you still have a very busy day ahead of you.
The current monthly ground rent is approximately €238, which, considering the house, the garden and the location, feels almost surprisingly down-to-earth.
I look forward to showing you this very special home in person.
Price: €275,000
The agent acts as a double broker.
