History

That's how the Seefischer got its name

‘Laxn for the Emperor’

Fishing has always played an important role in Döbriach. On 14 August 1457, Emperor Frederick III, as the lord of the County of Ortenburg and the Vogt (magistrate) of Millstatt, granted the fishing rights in the lower part of Lake Millstatt and in the Döbriach stream in a document. He stipulated that the monastery had to deliver ‘59 salmon trout’ (spotted lake trout) that were larger than the ’ common customs salmon” (brown trout), and instructed his captains, stewards, burgraves, vice-mayors, district judges, judges and officials to leave the monastery undisturbed in its fishing rights. On 17 November 1465, Emperor Frederick III ordered Abbot Christoph II of Millstatt to leave the fisherman Enz in Döbriach on the estate where he was living – a rather unusual step at the time. This estate was the foundation stone and namesake of today's Hotel Seefischer.

From a barn to a four-star hotel

The present-day Hotel Seefischer on Lake Millstatt was once a so-called ‘Bauernhuab'n’. The associated meadows extended at that time to the vicinity of the present-day Hotel Zanker and to the Waldbauer in Dellach.

Originally, the Seefischer was owned by Johann Oberzaucher, whose son received a licence to run an inn on the property – the first for this house! The son signed over his property to his foster son Johann Gatternig. In 1946, Gatternig swapped the Seefischer with the property of Daniel Untermoser – the area on which the ‘Laggerhof’ is located today.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the first guests from Vienna and Graz discovered the beautiful beaches in Döbriach. The first bathing establishment was built by the Seevilla Cerny. There, men and women had to bathe separately. Shortly afterwards, the Seefischer opened its own bathing facilities. One of the first guests at the Seefischer was Karl Seitz, the first Federal President of the Republic of Austria and later Mayor of Vienna. He first came to Döbriach around 1910 and spent many summers holidaying at the Seefischer.

The Untermoser family ran the Seefischer for 15 years. In 1961, the family of the current owners acquired the property and expanded the catering business into a guesthouse. In 1973, Sissy Florian took over the guesthouse from her aunt. After extensive renovations, expansions and land purchases, the Seefischer became one of the leading hotels on Lake Millstätter See.