Bear sanctuary Arbesbach, Bear rescue center in Arbesbach, Austria.

Bear Sanctuary Arbesbach is a 24,000-square-metre enclosure in the Waldviertel region, divided into four sectors with several large outdoor areas of several thousand square metres each. It has ponds, digging areas and climbing structures, plus a visitor centre built in 2009. Video cameras allow observation of the bears in their dens without disturbance.

Bear Sanctuary Arbesbach opened in 1998 as the first bear protection project of the animal welfare organisation Four Paws, on leased land in the Waldviertel. Its first residents were Liese, her brother Vinzenz and Brumca, a gift from a Slovak businessman who had kept her on 35 square metres. In 2009 a new enclosure section and a visitor centre were added, and further expansion followed between 2023 and 2025.

The sanctuary serves as a place where visitors learn about bear protection through displays and guided walks that show how these animals need space and care. The focus is on understanding why rescue and lifelong shelter matter for bears that have suffered in captivity.

The facility is open during warmer months when the bears are active and visitors can walk through the grounds. There is ample parking available, and the area can be explored comfortably in a few hours.

The sanctuary has been open to visitors since 28 May 2000, roughly March to early November, so the bears' winter rest falls outside the visiting season rather than closing a year-round site. Four brown bears live on the 24,000 m² grounds as of 2026.