Journey into the past

History of the Schopferwirt to the 4-star Hotel Walchseer Hof

Sustainable business practices have long featured here - the hotel has been family-managed since 1934 and was one of the first to install solar facilities on the roof. There was no big song and dance about the small and big initiatives here – until one guest wanted to know why there was no heating in their room. Well there is of course, it's just that it is wall heating, which is efficient and therefore environmentally friendly. From that point it was evident that guests were interested in sustainability, so, starting with providing information in the rooms, then developing the website and other marketing methods, we were then awarded an eco seal of approval in 2015.

The wonderful facade of the Walchseer Hof
Window embellishment with a great deal of attention to detail
We bring together the beautiful, the old and the contemporary
We appreciate our hard-working colleagues
Your host family, the Kaltschmids

How it all began

The Walchseer Hof was originally called the 'Schopferwirt', this name actually probably comes from the early boat builders who were known as 'Schoppern'. The 'Schopferwirt' was built shortly after the death of Emperor Maximilian in 1520 and has been a guesthouse since Maria Theresa's time, welcoming travellers.
Around 1756 the facade of the Walchseer Hof was painted by well-known painter Joseph Adam Richter from Mölk. Mölk's best known works in the local area include the painting of the parish church in Ebbs, also known as the 'Barockdom des Unterlandes', the parish church of Hall in Tirol and Matrei am Brenner. In Styria, among others, Stift Rein, Maria Langegg in Lower Austria, and the altarpieces in Rottenburg am Neckar, various churches in South Tyrol also feature among his works.
On 19th March 1930 a fire destroyed the roof truss and the lower floor. Immediately after that re-building and restoration work of the 'Schopferwirt' was initiated. The same casein colours, also used in the restoration that Mölk, were used and always will be.

The Walchseer Hof is a listed building and was built shortly after the death of Emperor Maximilian and has been a guesthouse since the time of Maria Theresa. In 1934 my grandparents purchased the guesthouse, and since 2005 I have held the reins. In 2009 we refurbished to become a 4-star hotel and with that laid the foundations for environmentally-sound, sustainable building methods and management.Refurbishment work started in 2009 with the aim of offering guests environmentally-sound, sustainable comfort, for a well-being oriented holiday that they could enjoy with peace of mind. Having been awarded the Austrian environmental seal of approval has helped us in this endeavour and continually improve our environmentally-friendly services. We are also delighted to receive suggestions and information from our guests to help us with our efforts.

In May 2026, Rebecca & Marc Kaltschmid, the fourth generation, took over the traditional business and reopened the Gasthaus Schopferwirt as a meeting place for guests and locals.