Schweiklberg Abbey is an ecological abbey in a rural setting in Vilshofen, a town on three rivers, in the beautiful Danube valley. The environmentally aware monks use an eco-friendly hydropower plant for their electricity supply. Very recently the abbey has become completely self-sufficient with renewables, thanks to a brand new wood-chip heating plant. Fresh vegetables and flowers are grown in the abbey's own garden nursery. Schweiklberg Abbey has also made a name for itself overseas, primarily through missionary work in Asia and Africa.
Education, the arts, spiritual guidance, administration, the abbey church, the library, the garden nursery, agriculture and various workshops are just some aspects of the monks' enormously varied work. The abbey's art nouveau church is especially interesting: dedicated to the Holy Trinity in 1925, it has a Klais organ and a Black Africa Museum with valuable masks and cult objects. Currently home to 40 fathers and brothers, Schweiklberg Abbey is part of the Missionary Congregation of St. Ottilia.
Groups and individuals seeking tranquillity and wishing to discover the abbey are very welcome. For those interested in experiencing the abbey more deeply, accommodation is available, with the opportunity of participating in choral prayers, in shared meals or in the various working areas. Through spiritual guidance, visitors gain an insight into the life and the Order of Saint Benedict. There is also a wide-ranging programme of classes and spiritual exercises. St. Bede's House offers accommodation in single or double rooms and several meeting rooms for groups.
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