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Austria Bike Trips
A link back to the overview of all of our trips is here. |
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This two-week route is our oldest friend. Our very first itinerary and perhaps still our best. Austria is a relatively “off-the-beaten-track” Discovery destination: a backwater during the Cold War, surrounded on three sides by the Iron Curtain, her capital well to the east of Prague. And today’s nation is only the nucleus of the far larger country that held the name before World War I. But a turbulent past has left behind the rich, multi-layered history; fascinating and sumptuous cultural heritage; and varied cuisine of that far larger nation. Modern Austria is the repository, or at least the hub, of much of Central Europe’s past. Classical music fans will be amazed at the vibrancy of the classical scene. Baroque monasteries and palaces surrounded by French gardens line our route. And the country has found a modern role as commercial and diplomatic crossroads between Eastern and Western Europe. Days of glorious biking complete the picture. Pedal around opal lakes and beneath terraced vineyards on quiet bike paths. Tip your helmet to the Austrian ecology movement, one of Europe’s strongest. And then admire the flowered villages, magnificent mountains, and beautiful rivers which result. |
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Biking Transcontinental (5 weeks) Mozart & the Matterhorn (3+ weeks) Austrian Alps & the Danube follows this itinerary exclusively. |
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Day of the Week
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Description
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Typical distances, in km
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Monday & Tuesday
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SALZBURG If you’re arriving from Italy, things work again, and if from Germany the prices go down by 20%. If from North America, the charm will delight. For help arriving, see our “Access Package.” Here are hints on reaching Salzburg. Strudel at the Glockenspiel cafe, evening Mozart. Claim the bikes, and adjust to their quirks on Salzburg's delightful bike path network. On Tuesday, pretty loops can take you to a water castle, a salt mine, an eagle’s nest (the ambitious can ride all the way to beautiful Berchtesgaden, regretably (in)famous as Hitler’s rural retreat)..., and still get you back into Salzburg in time for more Mozart. Or more strudel. Spend a festive evening in a tree-shaded beer garden (at least until you slip under the shady table). Half Baggage |
20 - 60 k
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Wednesday
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VON TRAPP TRICKERY An early train gets us out of town, and then it’s off to a pair of beautiful lakes, the Mondsee and St. Wolfgangsee. Follow lakeside roads, through fairy-tale landscapes. The yellow onion-domed church in Mondsee is where the marriage took place in “Sound of Guess What.” You'll have to go on the trip if you want to know about the trickery.... Then into the mountains. This evening we take a mountain railway to our hotel on top of the local Alp, the Schafberg. |
45 k
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Thursday
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BAD ISCHL, the HALSTATTERSEE and the DACHSTEIN Down the mountain in the morning, and then from St. Wolfgang to Bad Ischl for Austria's most famous pastry shop. You'll quickly see why. Kaiser Franz Joseph kept his country villa here: a visit allows you to admire the gardens, and also his single-minded persecution of the local deer population. “Bad” in this context is not a qualitative comment, incidentally, but rather the German word for “bath,” or spa. Up the valley to the Hallstätter See, and to Austria's prettiest village. A day of superlatives. Rent an electric boat to glide out onto the glass lake, or have a cherry strudle on the shore and watch the trout in the waters at your feet. Finally, on up the Traun valley to Bad Aussee for a two-night stay in a country gasthof. Half Baggage |
60 k
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Friday
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BAD AUSSEE / GRUNDLESEE LOOP A day in the Bad Aussee land. Cycle back to Hallstätt to visit the salt mines, or to Obertraun for a cable-car ride to the top of the Dachstein. There is an Eishöhle (pronounce carefully) — an ice cave — up here, too. Visit Altaussee to gaze up at the Loser (an Alp, not a person). Play a round of mini-golf on Bad Aussee's charming town square. Sip the local white wine as you gaze at the Grundlesee. Or leave behind the already limited hustle and bustle for a hike to one of Austria's most isolated and beautiful lakes... perhaps a picnic on its shores. Venison is a local specialty, in season. Half Baggage |
0 - 40 k
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Saturday
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ALPINE VISTAS An early start is wise for this long and beautiful day. You're in the heart of Austria now, pedaling through farming villages covered in flowers, and down bucolic river valleys surrounded by soaring mountains. Tourists rarely come this way - you'll see far more farm animals. The abbey at Admont has a spectacular library, and there is the occasional castle... but this is a day for biking. The scenery unfolds before you, and no two kilometers are the same. Marathoners can try to do it all by bike; most of us will train over the last third. |
100 - 150 k
Hang on! |
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Sunday & Monday
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THE ENNSTAL, STEYR LOOP A gorgeous and varied day along a gentle path through soothing country-side. We follow the Enns River to where it joins the Steyr River, in the city of Steyr, the capital of the Steyr district of Austria. There’s a notable dearth of imagination in all that, eh? Visit the entertaining “work museum,” or watch for Shubert’s trout in the rapids. The prettiest location in town happens to be right where our hotel is, overlooking the mingling waters. Lots of interesting loops are available on the morrow, or just enjoy the beauty of the regional capital. Half Baggage |
72 k Sunday
0 - 60 Monday |
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Tuesday
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ENNS and the DANUBE Along a mix of cycle paths and country lanes down to the Danube, which we cross via a ferry dedicated to cyclists. On the far side of the beautiful blue, a surprise: a veritable river of cyclists flowing down a path laid out along the river. The Danube bike route is certainly the greatest, and the most used, of all of Europe’s cycle arteries. Join the fun! The day is marked by some disturbing history, flat terrain with the wind at your back, and the satisfaction that comes from burning kilometers. Not really even a hint of what is to come. |
85 k
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Wednesday
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MELK and the WACHAU We continue our exploration of the river bike path, passing cheerful groups of Austrians riding their clunky uprights and dragging the kids behind. Stop in riverside taverns for an apfelsaft on your way to Melk. A glorious Benedictine abbey greets your arrival. Things heat up in the afternoon: we ride into the fresh and fruity white wine region of the Wachau. Stop often in the heurigen along the way and sample happy local elixirs in cordial backyard settings. A wurst and a bretzel at every stop to make for a delightful all-day lunch. |
55 k
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Thursday
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To VIENNA Pretty much as many k as you want, since you can cycle all the way to Vienna if you choose, or get on the train after a quick, flat, morning ride, and be there for lunch. If your time in Vienna is short, you can even catch a train directly from your hotel’s front door. Richard the Lionheart was held for years in the castle at Durnstein, but by the time you get there, it won’t seem like such a bad fate. Half Baggage |
40 - 95 k
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Friday & Saturday
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VIENNA Now a day or two with the music, the wine, the palaces and their gardens. Vienna is one of our favorite cities. Take in an opera or a concert, visit the beautiful Cathedral or one of the great art museums, hunt down a stallion or two.... And be sure to make time for the delightful cafés in the north end of town, where you can catch a couple of the hundred or so houses Beethoven apparently lived in. Those continuing their trips with us board overnight trains (also available in our “Access Package”), so to make the most of an additional day in Vienna. Sleeping accommodation provided on board. Half Baggage Or out to the airport and home. Sniff, sniff. |
>1,000 k
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departure dates