The Ghost Town of Ebensee: A Rainy Day Adventure from Bad Ischl

The rain arrived as expected, but the temperature only called for a light jumper, though we made sure to pack our umbrellas just in case. Today, we’re catching the train to Ebensee (pronounced Ebin-Zee), which is only about a 12-minute ride from Bad Ischl. We aren't too sure what's in the town, as I really couldn't find too much about it; however, while the weather is crap, it’s worth a train ride just to see.

The local grocer in Ebensee putting his fruit and veg out for the day

Ebensee: The Austrian Town Where Time Stood Still

It was very misty, with low clouds hanging over the mountains, and as the train took us through lush forests and the greenest fields I’ve ever seen, you could see stockpiles of covered wood the locals had been gathering for winter. The temperature around here usually hits a high of 0°C and a low of -4°C in the winter months—a bit like living in Australia's capital city in winter.

Lake Traunsee at Ebensee

As we jumped off the train in Ebensee, everything looked closed. I checked the time and saw it was 9:30 AM, yet there wasn't a soul to be seen. We continued walking up a lovely little street lined with amazing shops, but they didn’t even look like they were opening—except for one fruit and veg store, which I managed to snap a photo of.

We kept walking until we hit the lake. Unfortunately, with the weather the way it was, the lake wasn't giving us its best performance. It was now after 10:15 AM, so we thought there must be something open for a coffee and pastry. We searched high and low. Nothing! What’s wrong with this town? You’d think, being a weekday, it would at least show some form of human life, unless they just couldn't be bothered getting out of bed on a miserable day.

In the end, we gave up. It was like a ghost town, so we headed to the town's second train station by the lake and caught the next one back to Bad Ischl.

Back to Bad Ischl For Some Shopping

Arriving back in Bad Ischl, Leanne wanted to go shopping, but first, I had to eat. We stopped at the same bar as yesterday and had some lovely penne with basil pesto, followed by a shared mushroom pizza. It was delicious! The bar and restaurant's name is “k.u.k. Hofbeisl”—I’d highly recommend it if you're ever in Bad Ischl and reasonably priced.

The weather wasn't improving, but we persevered and had a look around at what we could. After lunch, Leanne was in a shopping mood; I was not. We walked around for a bit and took a few more photos, but the rain was starting to become a pain. It kept starting and stopping, which created the perfect opportunity for Leanne to do her thing while I headed back to do some reading.

So, this really concludes our day. It wasn’t exactly exciting, but it was a great way to recharge the batteries and get ready for tomorrow.