Wörthersee, Lake in Carinthia, Austria

Wörthersee is Carinthia's largest lake, an elongated body of water about 16.5 km long and 1.5 km wide, running from Klagenfurt in the east to the bay of Velden in the west. Islands, peninsulas and underwater ridges divide it into three basins, the deepest point lying at 85.2 m. Its water is blue-green and transparent, and the photograph shows small white sailboats near the wooded shore.

Glaciers shaped the lake basin at the end of the last ice age, leaving behind a hollow that slowly filled with meltwater. From the late 19th century onward, wealthy visitors from Vienna discovered the shores and built grand summer villas that still stand today.

The shore in Velden draws both locals and visitors with a promenade lined with small harbors, cafes, and boathouses that stay active from spring through early autumn. Sailing is a visible part of daily life here, and the sight of small boats crossing the open water is common on summer mornings.

The most accessible swimming areas are found along the northern and eastern shores, where marked beach zones make it easy to enter the water. Visiting early in the morning or later in the afternoon on busy summer days helps avoid the larger crowds near the shore.

The lake's name comes from Maria Wörth, first recorded as Uueride in 875–883; the Old High German word weride meant island or peninsula. The Slovene name Vrbsko jezero and the Italian Lago di Velden both point to Velden. A bronze fountain in Klagenfurt's Kramergasse shows the Wörthersee-Mandl with a running barrel, recalling the legend of a sunken town.