Due to its steady winds and clean water quality, Attersee is famous for attracting sailors and swimmers alike.

The Mondsee group stilt houses since 2011 are part of the UNESCO Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps World Heritage Site.

From the Fin de siècle, Attersee became a popular destination for summer guests, apart from the bustle at the emperor's sojourn in nearby Bad Ischl.

Near the village of Litzlberg, part of Seewalchen, there is a small island castle, which Gustav Klimt frequently visited during the summer.

Lake Attersee was a rallying point for several German divisions during World War II which had retreated during the Siege of Budapest.

Among these were several foreign volunteer divisions of the Waffen-SS, which sought to reach Attersee where surrender to the Americans was preferable to capture by the Red Army.