Arthur Schnitzler in Reichenau, Heimito von Doderer in Prein, Sigmund Freud on the Rax, Franz Werfel at Kreuzberg, Peter Altenberg, Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Karl Kraus, and Stefan Zweig at Semmering: They all sought relaxation and inspiration here - just two hours by train from Vienna. The Semmering area became a place of diversion for them, but also of concentrated work. In novels, poems, or dramas, in diary entries or letters, we find traces of the landscape in their texts. By exploring the biographical connections of the authors with the region, we recognize that their presence gave the places a special aura. Through literary-inspired walks, this volume captures the genius loci of a landscape in the interplay of text and image, making the fascination it held for the celebrities of the past palpable for today's visitors.