Cycling the Danube Bike Path
The Danube bike path is said to be Europe's best known and most loved bike trip. It starts in Passau, Germany near the Austrian border and continues for 230 miles to Vienna. There are bikes paths almost all the way, and there is usually a choice of being on the north or south bank of the river. All along the way there are delightful small towns, placid scenery, castles on the hills, monasteries, and excursions into woods and farm country.
About the path and the choices we made on this trip. Pros and cons about the Danube path and about choosing a self-guided package, as we did.
Arriving in Passau by train from Berlin. Meeting with the "tour guide" and getting the bikes. Getting acquainted with the Danube path. Taking small bike ferries and visiting a monastery. End the day at the hairpin loop the Danube makes at Schlogen.
Back and forth on those bike ferries. A delightful lunch in Ashbach. Biking among wild flowers. Exploring Linz.
Sunday morning bikers are out in force. A visit to the museum at Mauthausen, a concentration camp in the second world war. Through fields of gold -- wheat, sunflowers, and corn. Arriving at the pretty little town of Grein, where there is a Sunday evening band concert on the square.
Running errands with surprising success in little Grein. Getting lunch at a grocery store as we explored Ybbs. See the Melk monastery from a distance, and then visiting this enormous and wonderful abbey. Crossing the bridge from Melk over to the Disney-like town of Emmersdorf.
Day 5 -- Emmersdorf to Traismauer
The path climbs above the river through picturesque towns with bright flowers everywhere. Around us are orchards and vineyards. At Spitz we get separated and can't find one another all day. A walking street and park in Krems and a bridge that's hard to find. Finally reaching the hotel and finding one another in Traismauer.
Plotting how to enter Vienna with the least difficulty. Buying lunch at the colorful town of Tulln, and eating on a bench on the river, watched by swans. Biking into Vienna on a traffic-free island among hordes of sunbathers enjoying incredible weather. Walking around Vienna for our last night.