Self-drive holiday in Austria: 8 sthings you must experience on your car holiday is written by Cecilie Saustrup Kirk.
Self-drive holiday in Austria: Ultimate relaxation
Imagine this: You are standing halfway up an alpine hill. The wind quietly glides past you and brings life to the flower-covered meadows. In the distance you can see the huge Alps, the peaks of which are still covered in snow.
It is completely quiet except for the rustle of the wind in the treetops or perhaps the purr of a deer.
Everything breathes peace and quiet, and nothing can disturb you from the magnificent sight beyond Austria magnificent nature. Maybe you sit down with your coffee mug, enjoy a cup and breathe deeply into your lungs.
When you have drunk your fill of the clear and clean air of the Alps, you finally put your backpack back on and move back to the car. Time to drive to the next wonderful experience.
Self-drive holiday in Austria from east to west
If you are one of those who like to make the most of your holiday on your own terms, yes self-drive travel a golden opportunity. And Austria is one of the best countries to do it in.
Here you get magnificent nature, delicious food and the opportunity to explore some of the most beautiful places in the world yourself. And with your own car as a companion, you decide where you want to go and how long you want to spend in the various places.
Austria has a lot to offer within wellness, active holidays, beautiful views and unrivaled gourmet experiences. Whatever you are into one or the other - or a bit of everything - read along here.
We give you suggestions on what you can see from east to west in Austria by car.
The start of your self-drive holiday in Austria: Vienna
Whether you have driven here from Denmark in your own car, or whether you rent a car here, so be it Vienna a perfect place to start. The Austrian capital offers a sea of cultural and gastronomic experiences that you must not deceive yourself about.
Visit the impressive Schönbrunn Palace, which is on UNESCO World Heritage List. Or see the Hofburg Palace, which in addition to being the residence of the Federal President of Austria also houses several of Vienna's top museums and galleries as well as the famous Spanish Riding School.
When it's time for afternoon coffee, head to Café Central, which is possibly Vienna's finest café. The café opened in 1876 and was home to many of Austria's celebrities such as Sigmund Freud, Lev Trotsky and Stefan Zweig. The café is every cake lover's dream and a magnificent example of the café culture that prevails in the Austrian capital.
For dinner it must be almost obligatory to try one of Austria's national dishes: Wienerschnitzel. Try it at the Figlmüller restaurant, which is loved by both tourists and locals. The Wienerschnitzlers here are so big that two people can share one - can it get any better?
Vienna has an incredible amount to offer, and you could spend several days in the city. But if you long for the big city instead, then it's time for you to set off for the next destination on your self-drive holiday in Austria: the Neusiedler See National Park.
Visit the Neusiedler See National Park on your driving holiday in Austria
Just an hour's drive from Vienna is one of Austria's eight national parks.
Neusiedler See's landscape probably differs significantly from what you probably normally think of when you think of Austria. Here we are far from mountains, but out in an area of water and reeds with large meadows where wild horses run around.
You can of course move out into the countryside on foot, but the area also offers rental of bicycles and horses, so you can experience the park in a different way. Now that you have the car with you around Austria, you can bring your own bikes or something else travel equipment. This is one of the many advantages of a car holiday in Austria.
Rogner Bad Blumau
After a few hours on horseback, even the best sportsman can be a little bruised. Fortunately, our self-drive holiday in Austria continues right past Rogner Bad Blumau - a somewhat unusual spa hotel.
A visit to Rogner Bad Blumau is an adventurous journey. The place offers no less than 11 different indoor and outdoor pools, hot tubs, wave pools, a salt grotto, the Melchior mineral spring, a sea of different saunas and Lake Vulkania, which has underwater music.
The hotel has a completely unusual architecture, which is like something out of a fairy tale. Surrounded by fields and meadows, Rogner Bad Blumau is the perfect place to relax before your driving holiday in Austria moves on to Graz.
Graz
Austria's second largest city, Graz, contains a sea of experiences. The city is clearly influenced by its central location in the middle of Europe, and it is certainly seen in the city's architecture, which is a beautiful mix of everything from baroque and renaissance houses to science fiction-like buildings.
For example, the art museum Kunsthaus Graz has been given the extremely appropriate nickname 'The Friendly Alien' for the building's peculiar architecture, while the Mausoleum of Ferdinand the Second is a beautiful and well-preserved example of the late-Renaissance architectural style.
Graz is no bigger than aarhus, and therefore it feels as if nature is within reach everywhere in the city. Go up the Schloßberg hill, located in the middle of the city, and enjoy the view of Graz and visit the over 1000-year-old castle at the top.
Hallstatt
After Graz, a slightly longer drive awaits us to one of Austria's perhaps most photogenic cities: Hallstatt. On the major roads, the trip takes a little over two hours. If you are one of those who love to drive along the slightly less well-known roads with more beautiful nature, then take a side road and experience some of Austria's small cozy towns on the road.
When you arrive at Hallstatt, the first stop is a trip along Hallstatt Lake. With a beautiful view of the water, the mountains and the old town, it is no wonder that a million images abound on the web of Hallstatt. You have to look for more beautiful vision for a long time - and yet. Hallstatt also offers another fantastic nature experience.
Take a relaxing hike up the mountain Dachstein with a gondola lift and step into an enchanting winter landscape. The Dachstein Ice Cave, which is open from May to October, is a beautiful sight with waterfalls frozen to ice and ice formations protruding far above the heads of visitors.
Now that you are at the top, you must also experience the '5 Fingers' lookout.
With an unrivaled view of the Alps and more than 1500 meters down to Lake Hallstatt and the village below, the experience should give anyone soft knees. One of the 'viewing fingers' is also made of glass, if you want to challenge your fear of heights further.
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Salzburg
From Hallstatt we now drive 70 km further on our self-drive holiday in Austria, north to the classic Salzburg. If you stick to routes 145 and 158, the road will lead you past beautiful lakes and idyllic alpine country. In Salzburg you will find magnificent castles, cathedrals and Mozart's old house.
If you need to exercise your muscles, then Salzburg is the perfect area to dust off your climbing skills. There are thousands of climbing routes for both professionals and beginners and a sea of guides and courses you can sign up for.
Also remember to visit the city's local market, where you will find many exciting local specialties and ingredients, including 'apple strudel' and the iconic pretzel 'brezel'.
The city also offers several delicious spa hotels such as the H+ Hotel Salzburg and, in general, coziness and relaxation on the large scale.
Zell am See
Back to the south goes our self-drive holiday in Austria and you now end up in Zell am See-Kaprun. Here time stands in the sign of nature and physical activity, so put on your hiking boots or bicycle helmet and prepare for first-class nature.
As you are in the Alps, there are plenty of hiking and cycling routes, all of which offer enchanting views and experiences in the mountains. A hike to Großglockner, Austria's highest mountain, is of course a must. Take the car along route 168 and then turn onto route 108 – that's the closest you'll get before the hiking boots have to show their worth.
You can also take the Großglockner Hochalpenstrasse, which in addition to being a beautiful sight in itself with its winding road and many turns, also offers a fabulous view of the Alps.
If it's a little wilder, then Zell am See also offers river rafting in some of the many rivers and rushing streams that surround the city.
If you feel like combining water and hiking, then an excursion to the Krimmler waterfalls is an obvious activity. The waterfalls are Austria's highest with a height of 380 metres. You can conveniently drive out there early in the morning before the tourist buses arrive, hike up to see the powerful bodies of water and then continue on your Austria road trip to the last stop of the tour: Innsbruck.
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Innsbruck
Innsbruck is the capital of the state Tyrol and is beautifully situated up the impressive Nordkette mountain range. The high peaks reach over 2000 meters, but with the Nordkettenbahn you can get there in just 20 minutes. The city of Innsbruck is located between the two rivers Inn and Sill, which has given the city plenty of recreational green areas and parks.
When hunger strikes, you must set course for Weisses Rössl. The restaurant is the oldest in the city and dates all the way back to 1509. Everything from the waiters' uniforms to the decor and the menu is kept in the classic Tyrolean style; this also applies to the huge portions you are served.
If you rent a car in Vienna, make sure you rent through a company that also has facilities in Innsbruck. Then you can take a flight home from here, as Innsbruck has its own airport. This makes your car holiday in Austria a little easier.
If, on the other hand, you are driving in your own car, then the limit is there Germany just over 30 km away from here, and the journey back to the old motherland can begin - now with the car, the suitcase and the body full of fond memories of the fantastic self-drive holiday country Austria.
See much more about traveling in Austria here
Have a good self-drive holiday in Austria.
Great cities to visit on your self-drive holiday in Austria:
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What does such a trip cost, Approx.?
If one thinks fuel and tolls?
Hi Rolf, that's a good question - we don't have a good idea, as it can depend on many factors, incl. detours, petrol consumption etc., but petrol is cheap in Austria. via the editors
Is it possible to send the google map at the top of the article so that we can click on all the inserted points?
Hi Monica, it's not an active card and we don't have one either - unfortunately.