Road trip in Austria
By Jaimy de Vries
A place to breathe
In October 2020 I had plans to go on a scuba diving trip to Bonaire. At that time there was a corona pandemic. The “corona situation” in the Netherlands was quite stable at that moment, so we were allowed to travel. But just a week before my flight there were several corona reports in Bonaire, so the island decided to go in lockdown. Golly!! And the worst part is that in the end of my three-week-holiday the island reopened again. But, in the context of positive thinking, I’ve changed my plans. Luckily I have a good friend who is so spontaneous that she wanted to go on a road trip with me the next day to Austria and Italy. A very spontaneous trip!
On an early Sunday morning we drove to Austria with our blue roadster. We left at 4 am to arrive at our address before dark. Because in October there is only 12 hour daylight and it was approximately a 14-hour drive. We grabbed ourselves a cup of coffee, play loud music to stay awake and there we went! It took some time getting used from driving a car on flat lands up to driving across mountains. In the long run that doesn’t go well with the car in its fifth clutch. But in a short while you get used to driving in the mountains. After more than 1000 km of driving – singing, sleeping, talking – we arrived in Filzmoos, a small village in the Salzburg region.
Salzburg
Salzburg A beautiful area to drive through. When we came to Salzburg it was a beautiful warm & sunny autumn day. In the autumn you get amazing picturesque views: the warm sun reaching over the big mountains with green-red-yellow trees and the icy snow tops that contrast so well with each other. And I loved the alpine cows gazing on fresh green grass. I was fascinated by them, but too afraid to pet them. A year ago I was chased by an angry cow and I can tell you: that’s terrifying! A 200-pound animal running towards you. But I decided I won’t let my fear ruin this special moment, so I dared to pet an alpine cow… later I found out it was a bull that I petted.
Oops! Glad I wasn’t wearing anything red.
Eisriesenwelt
The next day we visited the largest ice cave in Europe; the Eisriesenwelt. The road to the ice cave was already exciting: an adrenaline filling car-ride up the mountain with steep roads and hairpin bends to reach the main entrance. After that it took us two times 20 minutes to walk and climb up the mountain to get to the ice cave. Then we got the nice surprise that we need to make a 1000 steps stair climb in the cave – with a face mask on!! Our fitness was tested. But it was definitely worth it!
We were not allowed to film or take pictures in the ice cave, but we can share pictures from Eisriesenwelt itself. Fun fact: The tour leaders (are also the biologists and engineers – how cool!) regularly have to renovate the steps, because the ice continues to grow and they let nature take its course. As visitors of this natural wonder we need to keep the ice cave in value. I Respect that, because so many nature get damaged for tourist money.
Hallstatt
Several days of our trip in Austria we visited Hallstatt. A very authentic village next to a large lake between the mountains. It is a small village with less than 1000 inhabitants. With beautiful typical Austrian houses built in soft colors. Very impressive how these houses are built against steep rocks. Hallstatt has been around for a long time and became famous for her salt mine. In fact, scientists estimate that mining here started as far back as the prehistoric Bronze Age! Walking around this village made me feel like I was in a fairy tail. So quiet, peaceful and so unique.
This town is well worth a visit!
Top things to do:
- Just stroll through the town and enjoy its small streets, stairs and beautiful views
- Hike to the waterfalls
- Go up with the funicular and visit the salt mine
- Take the cable car in Obertraun and visit the 5 fingers viewpoint.
- Visit the surrounding villages
A fun fact about Hallstatt!
Hallstatt has also been known for a number of years as the Disney’s Frozen village. The village Hallstatt is such an unbelievably spectacular place that even the Chinese have created a copy of the ancient salt mine village.
The village is a great attraction among tourists, of which 2/3 comes from Asia. One time the tourist situation was so bad; that in January 2020 the Mayor called on tourists to stop visiting the village in order to reduce the recreational pressure. Hallstatt then received 10,000 tourists per day, due to the resemblance to Arendelle in the Disney films Frozen I and II. A few months later, Hallstatt turned into a ghost town because of the corona pandemic. And at that moment we visited Hallstatt! We enjoyed Hallstatt in her peace and quiet. There were just a few visitors we’ve seen and none of them were Asian!
You’re not only trembling due to the cold, but more from the height and depths!
A visit to Dachstein is also something worthwhile to do. I hope you are not afraid of heights, because otherwise – like me – you’ll be standing with trembling legs on the suspension bridge and the bridge to nothingness. To stand there you need to walk down glass stairs and end on a glass platter watching down to a 300 meter depth cliff. I was trying hard not to shit myself. This is a great place for hiking and wintersport, or just enjoying the view from the restaurant. The views are amazing! You can see a lot of ski resorts like Flachau, Zachensee, Obertraun and of course Dachstein itself.
Grossglockner High Alpine Road
This is a beautiful route you can take with your car that starts from the town Fusch and that will get you to the highest point in Austria: the Grossglockner (3798 m). The road itself along the Hohe Tauern national park is already a treat. The scenery’s are amazing. Make sure you take enough stops to make some photo’s/video’s and take the time to enjoy the beautiful views. The road is approximately 48 km long and you make an ascent of 2000 meters! You have to pay a toll for it, but this is well worth it. We turned on our google maps and went! However, there are several roads that lead to: Rome… uh to the top of the Grossglockner…. according to google maps. And well… we found out that we didn’t take THE Grossglockner route but the smaller one, because yes… according to google maps it’s faster. But that didn’t spoil the fun! The second route is also very cool and we were pleasantly surprised with beautiful panoramic views, narrow and steep roads and hairpin bends. We did not arrive at the High Alpine Road with a panoramic view, but we were treated with a beautiful view over the glacier mountains and with a good view of the highest point: the Grossglockner !
But for lovers of the real Grossglockner route, here’s a good tip: leave from the place Fusch and take the Kaiser-Franz-Josefs Hohe visitors center as your final destination. Then you’ll have the right route and you arrive at the parking lot with panoramic view. From there, you can take beautiful hiking trails (for the real hikers). For example, the Alpe-Adria-Trail starts at Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe and you walk about 13 kilometers to Heiligenblut. You can also take the panorama gondola and hike to Heiligenblut from there in 3 hours. In both cases, do not forget that you have to take the bus or hike back to the car. You can also take a glacier walk with a guide.
Pay attention! The route is not open all year round, check their website for the most current information: Grossglockner.at
Aquadome
After our adventurous trip, full fears of big heights with its added bonus: adrenaline – time for some stress relief. We drove on to Tralee, a village near Innsbruck. In the middle of the mountains there is a wellness and sauna resort called Aquadome. At that time it was about 15 degrees outside. We checked-in early in the morning to enjoy a full spa-day. We needed a full day to let our high blood pressure sink after such a road trip. We quickly dived into the water. Submerged and soon shriveled, we lay there alone in a large bath, enjoying the view around us. We had a lifelike canvas around us with beautiful mountains in autumn colors and a layer of snow on the tops. I could just melt away there….
