Tag Archives: cycling in Austria

Austria, Blois, Closerie Falaiseau, Croatia, Cycling, Eastern Europe, Health, Home exchange, Retirement, Sightseeing, Slovenia, Travelling

Happy New Year for 2026

January 20, 2026 Rosemary Kneipp Leave a comment

I see that I have not published a New Year post since 2021! Life has kept getting in the way.

This, my first full year of retirement was very much focused on grandparenting with a 5-week visit in February/March from my baby Lucas and his mum, 3 weeks in Boston in April to visit my son, his Amercan wife and two children Eric (now 4) and Sophie (nearly 2). I was joined by Lucas and his parents for a week. Lucas and his mum came back to Blois at the end of July and stayed for 6 wonderful weeks! We then went back to Boston in October and looked after Eric in Cape Cod during his school holidays. We stayed a total of three weeks, during which time Lucas and his parents joined us for a week.

We still did some real travelling, starting with a week in Crete in February, where we took up from where we left off in February 2020, when we had to cut short our visit due to Covid. It was great to have a change of scenery and some sun but apart from the visit to Knossos, it seems that we had already seen the best of Crete the first time.

The end of June saw us heading off on our annual cycling holiday, with Lake Bled in Slovenia as the ultimate destination. We started in the Jura, followed by Lake Iseo in Italy and on to the Slovenian side of the peninsula of Istria (we had already been to Porec and Pula in Croatia on a previous trip). The weather was very very hot and we continued to have high temperatures throughout our stay. We restricted our cycling hours to the morning whenever possible. Fortunately we had air-conditioning in all the apartments we rented. We no longer stay in hotels, preferring this option with a 3 to 4 night stay each time. As we don’t like riding in the rain, we usually book the next accommodation on the second day of each stay. This may limit our choice, but we always suitable accommodation.

We had fond memories of Slovenia from our past trip fifteen years ago but it has now become a favourite tourist destination for Europeans and we were disappointed with the over-exploitation of the Lake Bled region. The lake itself, however, was picture-perfect and we had an apartment at the top end of the lake with a mountain and garden view. After visiting the Tomin Gorges, where we accidentally found ourselves in the middle of a marathon, we headed for Radece in the south east, on the Sava River, touted as having the country’s best cycling paths. Apart from the fact that we made the acquaintance of cvicek, a unique Slovenian red wine, which has a maximum alcohol content of 10 degrees and is always served chilled – perfect for the hot summer – and the best folk museum I have ever been to in Brezice, there was not much to see and the bike paths were way below German or Austrian standards, let alone Dutch!

We left Slovenia and moved onto the Tyrol area of Austria. These were our best cycling days, drinking in the beautiful mountain vistas, painted houses and baroque churches. Even the many climbs did not diminish our appreciation of the region. Our last stop was near Selestat in Alsace, where we cycled through vineyards and visited the amazing castle of Haut-Koenigsbourg.

After the constant heat, we were delighted to come home to our beautiful garden!

We have continued to be active members of Home Exchange, mainly so that we can visit the family in the US. We stayed for the sixth time with Matt and Jery in Belmont, near Boston. My son now has a new home with a guest room so we will not be staying with them anyone. We will however be visiting them as they have become good friends. We also took Eric to a wonderful home exchange on Cape Cod for four days. We will be returning there in April.

Healthwise, we spent most of January at the physotherapist’s – JM for a back problem and me for a shoulder problem, but I did manage to avoid surgery thanks to shock waves and physiotherapy. Unfortunately, 2 days before we left Boston in October, I tripped over a root and landed with my shoulder on another root, dislocating it very painfully. It was put back in place in the E&R– a pain far greater than childbirth: – and only now, more than two months later, am I pain-free. At least it didn’t make the existing problem any worse and I do not need surgery as the Boston specialist predicted. As a result, I am making sure that I walk briskly for at least one hour a day and doing senior stabilizing exercises so that this will not happen again!! I do not recommend getting older …

Our plans for the coming year are a week in Athens in February, a month in New York and Boston in April/May, a cycling holiday somewhere in Europe in the summer (Ireland or Portugal perhaps), and another visit to the US in October. The summer choice is very restricted theses days as we have now cycled extensively in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia and Romania. I don’t know how much longer we will be able to have this type of holiday, but we will keep going as long as our energy and health permit. We no longer cycle all day, every day, and our e-bikes definitely help but we still find this is the best way to get to know a country and its people outside the main tourist areas.

I would like to wish everyone a healthy, happy and fulfilling 2026.

Austria, Cycling, Paris, Travelling

A safe travel guide for solo woman travellers – Scenery, sunshine and saddle bags on the Austrian Lakes – Paris-Orly train transfer tips

September 3, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 6 Comments

Another all-Australian bloggers round-up this Wednesday, with advice from the ever-practical Jo Karnaghan from Frugal First Class Travel on safe travel for solo women travellers; a report from Carolyn from Holidays to Europe on her recent cycling tour in a different part of Austria from us; and tips on transferring from Orly airport to various train stations in Paris from A House in France, written by an Aussie couple living in the south of France. Enjoy!

Travelling safely – A guide for solo woman travellers

by Jo Karnaghan from Frugal First Class Travel, an Australian who loves to travel – especially in Europe – and who has gradually learned how to have a First Class trip on an economy budget, without missing out on anything!

One of my lovely readers, Linda, recently contacted me about hotels in Paris that would be safe for her as a solo traveller. Now, most of the time I travel in Europe I also travel alone. It therefore got me thinking about the things I do to make sure I keep myself safe when I’m travelling solo. Travelling safely is an important travel skill to master, so here are my top tips for safe and confident solo travel:

1. Pack light

I know, I say this all the time, but packing light is travelling safe. If you pack lightly you have less stuff to worry about. On the train, it is easier to keep track of your luggage. Read more

Scenery, sunshine and saddle bags: My Austrian Lakes cycling tour

by Carolyn from Holidays to Europe, an Australian based business passionate about sharing their European travel expertise and helping travellers to experience the holiday in Europe they have always dreamed of

There are some countries that hold a special place in a traveller’s heart and to me, Austria is one of those places. So what better way to get a closer look at a part of Austria I hadn’t visited before than on a cycling tour? I spent nine fantastic days in July doing just that, discovering some wonderful scenery and an appreciation for ‘slow travel’ along the way.

After comparing a few different itineraries offered by various companies I selected the 9 day Austrian Lakes Hike and Bike tour sold through UTracks in Australia. One of the big sellers for me was the fact that this tour spends two nights at Hallstatt, a town I had long wanted to visit. As the itinerary featured both walking days and cycling days, it also gave me the opportunity to have a ‘rest’ day on the walking days should I decide to. Read more

Paris-Orly train transfer tips

by A House in France – 2 Aussies living part-time in France who share their experiences

We had always flown in and out of Paris from Charles de Gaulle (CDG) airport until recently.

Our regional train down to our house in central France departs from Gare d’Austerlitz, and on one of our many jaunts through that train station we noticed that there were signs indicating the way to catch a train to Orly airport.

So when we found some cheap flights departing from Orly we thought it would be a good chance to check it out and compare it with the ease of getting to and from CDG. Read more

Austria, Cycling

Cycling along the Danube – the Aussie Cyclists

July 4, 2013 Rosemary Kneipp 5 Comments

Due to our change of plans because of bad weather near Linz a couple of weeks ago and our accommodation problems in Budapest, we have an extra two days after Wachau without any planned accommodation. The weather is looking much more promising and we’re planning to cycle around the S-bend or loop in the Danube between Passau and Linz.

We’ve narrowed down the possibilities to a couple of villages. I rule out the large hotel/camping complex in Schlogen and the first gasthaus in Wesenufer is closed no doubt as a result of the flooding. The next gasthof can only accommodate us for one night due to a seminar. So we cross the river to Niederranna where we come across Gasthof Dexler which advertises itself as a radler (cyclists) stop.

The young woman who seems to be looking after the restaurant as well says there’s a room vacant for 32 euro per person and I ask to see it. It’s spacious and has two armchairs and a low table. We later discover it has a terrace. We take it and ask if we can have lunch. As it’s already 2.30 pm, she says there is a small menu only. That’s fine by us.

As we walk out onto the terrace along the Danube, a man with an Aussie accent who’s with a group of 8 other cyclists asks me if I speak English. I say that I do. He explains that he has won his bet as the others were remarking on the absence of English speakers in this neck of the woods. “Not only do I speak English, but I’m also an Aussie”, I reply which is greeted with a round of surprised laughter.

River traffic from the restaurant terrace at Gasthof Draxler

I explain that Jean Michel is French and that we live in Paris and that I have been living in France for 37 years. It turns out they all belong to a cycling club near Geelong and are either retired or semi-retired. They’ve just spent two weeks cycling in the Cotswolds in England and have started their Danube trip at Passau that morning. They’re going to Vienna.

They’ve organised their trip with an agency that does the hotel bookings, transports their luggage from one stop to the next and plans their route. After lunch, they’re off to visit the Donaublick (lookout over the Danube) which, unfortunately, they don’t find.

Freewheelling from the Atlantic to the Black Sea

Next day, we learn that though they are all Aussies, one comes from the Netherlands, another from Greece and another from the UK. Jean Michel shows them our Eurovelo 6 book so they can see where we’ve been and where we’re going. We highly recommended the Wachau Heritage site we’ve just left.

Jean Michel on the scenic ferry down the loop

They are off to Linz via the S-bend and tell us about a ferry that their agency has recommended, that offers a very scenic ride through one part of the bend. We decide to include it on our way back.

Perfect weather for cycling around the S-bend

The weather is perfect – about 22 or 23°C with bright sun. So much better than the first time we were here. I think of the Aussie cyclists. That is the only problem with a pre-arranged trip – what do you do if it’s cold and rainy?

Aussie in France