The 300-kilometre route includes cultural highlights such as the Roman excavations of Carnuntum, the charming Eisenstadt with the Esterhazy castle and the pottery town of Stoob. If you start along the Danube, you should enjoy the flat sections as far as Lake Neusiedl and on into central Burgenland, after which you will need to be in good physical condition on the longer climbs.
Character:
The R1 anniversary cycle route is 90% tarmac and mostly runs along field and forest paths or quiet country roads. If you are travelling from north to south, you should expect steep climbs between Marz and Steingraben, between Lockenhaus and Geschriebenstein and between Güssing and Heiligenkreuz. The R1 is recommended for children aged twelve and over.
Tour dates:
260 km, approx. 2000 m elevation gain, medium
Route:
Kittsee - Neusiedl am See - Eisenstadt - Mattersburg - Lockenhaus - Schlaining Stegesbach - Heiligenbrunn - Kalch. Easy to complete in 4 to 5 day stages. Connection options: In Neusiedl you can branch off onto the Lake Neusiedl Cycle Path, in Bad Deutsch Altenburg onto the Danube Cycle Path.
Best time to travel:
End of April to beginning of October
Journey:
The starting point in Kittsee is easy to reach by train via Wien-Südbahnhof. Cycling hotline of the railway on 01805/99 66 33 (14 ct/min. from landlines, max. 42 ct/min. from mobile phones).
Bike service:
Bike hire and repair facilities can be found in Neusiedl am See, Oberpullendorf and Kittsee.
Cycling hotels:
Bicycle-friendly hosts include Hotel-Pension Leiner in Neusiedl am See, http://www.hotelleiner.com
Schnepfenhof winery in Jois, http://www.schnepfenhof.at
Sebastiankeller country inn in Oggau, http://www.sebastiankeller.at
Further addresses under http://www.burgenland.info
Maps/literature:
Bikeline cycle atlas "Burgenland" 1:100,000, 180 p., 12.90 euros. Bikeline cycle maps 1:100,000 "Burgenland North" (3.49 euros) and "Burgenland South" (4.90 euros). Kompass digital cycling and hiking map "Burgenland" for 29.95 euros.
Information (general):
Burgenland Tourismus, Johann Permayer-Straße 13, A-7000 Eisenstadt, Tel. 0043-2682/63384-0, Fax 0043- 2682/63384-20.
Internet:
http://www.burgenland.at (Basic information on the R1 anniversary cycle route)
