Connoisseur Circle: Austria - Connoisseur Circle Destinationen im Check

11/24/2020 Reading time: 6 Minutes

Summer freshness made in Austria
Austria as a transit country to the Adriatic? That was yesterday. If you're looking for unspoiled nature, sensual relaxation and a modern lifestyle, you'll find it here in almost every province, whether at crystal-clear mountain lakes or in stylish lidos. "As you like it" could also be the motto for hotels by the lake - from charming family-run establishments to luxury lodges.

Summer freshness - for well-heeled city dwellers, this used to be more than just an amusement , it was a matter of prestige. Depending on your position, you had to spend the months from May to September in the healthy, rural air in order to be able to resume your everyday business. Who wouldn't want this relaxed vacation model back - as an antidote to the spontaneous short breaks that usually end in a hectic rush? Austria offers a magnificent portfolio with over 1,000 lakes, preferably in the federal states of Carinthia, Upper Austria, Salzburg and Burgenland. However, the Salzkammergut with the Fuschlsee, Traunsee, Wolfgangsee and last but not least the Ausseerland in Styria has always been predestined for the so-called summer retreat. They all have one thing in common - the drinking water quality of the lakes and their fish, which melt in your mouth whether fresh or smoked. Bishops, emperors and kings have also left their mark here - be it at the prince-archbishop's Renaissance castle in Fuschl, the location for the Sissi films, or at Lake Traunsee, where the Austrian imperial couple Sisi and Franz Joseph liked to host their hunting parties. Schloss Ort in Gmunden, with the picturesque Traunsee as a backdrop, is still a popular film set today. Last but not least, Lake Wolfgang, where nostalgics still revel in operetta glory and foreign guests now also sing the melody from the "Weisses Rössl am Wolfgangsee". "Tu felix austria" would still fit in with this ideal world today. A "Happy Austria" in the truest sense of the word is also offered in Ausseerland, where literary figures and world musicians met at Lake Altaussee. Not by chance. The area around the head of the valley at the lake is said to have special powers that can ground and harmonize even the most stressed holidaymaker.
holidaymakers back to earth and harmonize.

Sun, south, lifestyle - Carinthia
Over the years, the Carinthian border triangle between Austria, Italy and Slovenia has developed its own style of confident southern lightness, which can be found everywhere - albeit in different forms. The 27˚ Celsius water of Lake Wörthersee is reflected in the turquoise green sunlight, reminiscent of the Caribbean at first glance. Here you can combine lifestyle with tradition, trendy zeitgeist with down-to-earth cuisine and relaxation with sporting activities in the great outdoors - whether in glamorous Velden with its casino, nightlife and castle hotel or in the neighboring town of Pörtschach and its famous lakeside promenade, where Johannes Brahms used to stroll. Even if the ravages of time have taken their toll on some of the buildings, the villas with Wörthersee architecture are still there. The main eye-catcher here is Werzer's bathhouse in turn-of-the-century style, which shines in white and can be seen from afar.
However, the "Schloss am Wörthersee", made famous by the movie with Roy Black & Co, is still a hotspot. Nobody really knows that Carinthia has another 160 lakes to offer, but everyone knows the second largest of them, Lake Millstatt. "The water is dark green because the lake is surrounded by many forests and the massive Mirnock rock towers high above the lake. It is also crystal clear and so fresh that you want to drink it. And - it also has something mystical about it," say local residents. That's why they rely on a tourist offer called "Romance in Carinthia". With "Bivouac under the stars", "Dinner for 2", "Path of love" or "Time for two", people are enthusiastic about sensuality, the mysterious and the enchanting. But families and sports enthusiasts will also find their Eldorado here. Especially golfers on the 18-hole course of the same name high above the lake. Here too - pure romance!

Recharge your batteries at Lake Zell
In the middle of the picturesque Pinzgau region, surrounded by numerous 3,000-metre peaks and right next to the idyllic town of Zell am See, lies Lake Zell. Its blue eye reflects the mountains with the gleaming white Kitzsteinhorn as a year-round ski resort. That's why the golf week here is called "Between glacier, mountain and lake". Lying directly on the lakeshore, enjoying culinary delights in the beach restaurant, playing beach volleyball or diving into the heated pool even on cooler days could be your program here. Or take a stroll along the popular lake esplanade and board the "MS Schmittenhöhe" - from April to October, the "Pearl of Lake Zell" invites you on a panoramic round trip and in July and August, the nostalgic "Kaiserin Elisabeth" does the same. This is also when the annual Ironman World Championship takes place.

With train & boat on Lake Achensee
A good 500 years ago, it was mainly crowned heads who came to Tyrol's largest lake to hunt and fish - and had it to themselves. Until the 19th century, when the summer resort was proclaimed and shipping was introduced. Then the steam cog railroad came into play, running seven kilometers from Jenbach to the Seespitz on Lake Achensee and offering guests pure nostalgia. It is still considered to be the oldest in Europe. If you want to get up high and see the lake from above, you can do so from the Rofan cable car and Karwendel mountain railroad. Then you can see the full splendor of Lake Achensee, which lies like a fjord between the Karwendel Alpine Park.

Pure nature in the vastness of Lake Neusiedl
In addition to the idyllic vineyards and the endless expanse around the 315 square kilometer lake, the World Heritage region has much more to offer: Culture at Esterházy Palace in Eisenstadt, a 970-kilometer cycling network and, for water sports enthusiasts of every genre, their very own Eldorado. Bad Tatzmannsdorf in southern Burgenland is regarded as one of the best health resorts in Austria with triple competence in remedies and an outstanding range of sports and fitness facilities. Golfers benefit from this on the 18-hole course of the same name. Surprisingly, Austria's smallest federal state has a lot to offer golfers with a culinary bent: Pike-perch, pike and carp from Lake Neusiedl as well as steppe beef, moor ox and Mangalitza pork provide delicacies that make connoisseurs rave. You will also find world-class wines here, from the unmistakable Blaufränkisch to the delicious Trockenbeerenauslese and ice wines. Yes, and all this with 2,000 hours of sunshine a year. Servus am See - in Austria!

Text: Elsa-Maria Honecker

Fläche

83.878,99 km²

Bevölkerung

8,7 Millionen

Sprache

Deutsch
– regionale Amtssprachen: Kroatisch, Slowenisch, Ungarisch

Anreise

In Österreich gibt es außer dem Wiener Flughafen Schwechat noch mehrere kleinere: in Linz (Oberösterreich), Salzburg, Klagenfurt (Kärnten), Graz (Steiermark) und Innsbruck (Tirol). Schnäppchen-Preise und Pauschal-Angebote von Deutschland gibt es vor allem nach Kärnten oder nach Wien. Salzburg erreicht man am besten über die A8 von Deutschland oder A1 von Wien. Mit dem Zug gibt es Verbindungen mit der DB oder ÖBB in alle großen Städte.