Danube Day in Austria has a host of activities to enthuse, enchant and educate everyone! Boating and wildlife adventures, family-fun days, school activities, gourmet fish buffets and the popular Danube Art Master contest will ensure that the Danube captures the imagination of youngsters and adults across Austria. The events include two exciting competitions that will get the next generation of Danube users thinking and acting for their rivers.

Tulln: Family fun days at 'Die Garten Tulln' (27-29 June 2008; 10:00-21:00)

Three days of family fun will be taking place in the newly opened 'Die Garten Tulln' near the Danube in Niederösterreich. Visit the national landscape garden to enter the secretive world of water creatures; come face-to-face with the mysterious, sometimes creepy, creatures that lurk deep in the river; challenge yourself to join the night walks and find out what inhabits our night-time world. You'll also be able to go on boating safaris; feast yourself on a fish buffet; learn cooking tips for using healthy fish oils and enjoy all the family attractions that Die Garten Tulln offers.

The Danube Challenge (7-11 July 2008)

Austrian pupils looking for excitement will take part in the Danube Challenge to celebrate Danube Day 2008. Teams of children aged 13-14 years from schools across Austria will participate in a 5-day Danube safari from Linz to Bratislava. During the trip, the teams of young sailors will compete against each other in a series of mystery watery challenges. The overall winners will be invited to a 3-day trip to the World Fair in Zaragoza, Spain. To be in with a chance of joining the adventure, you will need to think about what water means to you and represent this in a photograph, design, cartoon, film or written text. Closing date is 31 May.

Danube Art Master competition (ongoing until 4 July 2008)

It will also be ‘Ships Ahoi' for the winners of this year's search to find the young Danube Art Master of 2008. This international schools competition, now in its 5^th year, challenges every pupil in the Basin to create a piece of environmental art inspired by their local river. For the latest details contact doris.gfrerer [at] unvienna [dot] org (Doris Gfrerer) and see www.generationblue.at/. The winning class will be invited on an historic cruise of the Danube and will participate in the international contest in the autumn. The closing date is 4 July 2008 so visit your local river and be inspired!

Danube Photo competition (until 15 September 2008)

Enter the basin-wide Danube Photographic Competition, organised by the International Friends of Nature, and your work could be exhibited at the UN Headquarters in Vienna and toured across the Danube countries.

Niederösterreich: Collect the Danube fish bookmarks! (from 27 June)

Whether you live in or are visiting Niederösterreich, you could be lucky enough to get some Danube Day giveaways. To spread the Danube Day message far and wide, the umbrella environmental organisation, the Umwelberatung, will be handing out beautifully illustrated fish bookmarks in town squares, railway stations, shopping malls and schools. Highlighting the plight of endangered fish in the Danube, the bookmarks will be a reminder to people that the Danube and its beautiful environment is close by and needs our help.

Greet the Danube ship blast (29 June 2008; 14:00)

The sound of ship horns will reverberate across the Danube Basin at 14:00 on Danube Day, as Danube workers pay a very special tribute to their river. The annual Greet the Danube horn blast will see ships along the Danube from Germany to Ukraine simultaneously sound their horns in a salute to the rivers.

Further information

Download the fact sheet below for more details about the events and organisers.
Danube Day in Austria fact sheet 46.65 KB

For the latest news on Austria's Danube Day, please contact:
Susanne Brandstetter of the Austrian Lebensministerium. Tel: +43 71100 7123; email: susanne.brandstetter [at] lebensministerium [dot] at

Stephan Bruck of AQA Wassermarketing. Email: bruck [at] aqa [dot] at.

To find out more about the event at 'Die Garten Tulln' and the fish bookmarks campaign, please contact:
Martina Kainz of the Umweltberatung. Tel: +43 2212 29490; email: martina.kainz [at] umweltberatung [dot] at. See also: www.umweltberatung.at/ (available from mid June).

For details of the Danube Art Master schools competition and Danube Challenge, please download the fact sheet below and view www.generationblue.at/. Contact Doris Gfrerer at doris.gfrerer [at] unvienna [dot] org to enter the Danube Art Master contest.

Related links

Umweltberatung: www.umweltberatung.at/ (from mid June 2008)
Generation Blue: www.generationblue.at/

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