Bicycling through the vineyards of the Wachau Valley in Austria

An honest review of my experience on the Grape Grazing bicycle tour of the Wachau Valley wine region with Discover Vienna

On my second trip to Vienna, I was interested in leaving the city for the day to go explore the UNESCO Heritage listed Wachau Valley wine region and cultural landscape, which is conveniently located only about an hour from the city on the train.

As a solo traveller, I thought it would be fun to join a full day cycling tour and not only get some exercise, but also taste some Austrian wines, learn about the history of the region and enjoy the company of other travellers. I joined the one day “Grape Grazing” tour of the Wachau Valley with Discover Vienna Tours, which promised a leisurely day of cycling with stops at many highlights of the valley including the town of Durnstein, wineries, a BBQ lunch and a beach stop.

I booked the tour in April 2015 and I paid for it myself so this is a completely independent review. 

You can read a detailed summary of the experiences I had on this tour or jump straight to the end where I share my final recommendation for this Grape Grazing day trip to the Wachau Valley in Austria with Discover Vienna.

Go to final recommendation

Quick Overview of the Grape Grazing Bicycle Tour of the Wachau Valley

Destinations: This tour departed Vienna by train, arrived in the town of Krems an der Donau to retrieve rental bicycles and the total cycling distance for the day was about 40 kilometres with very little change in elevation. We stopped by the historic village of Durnstein, the small town of Spitz and several other small settlements and wineries along the banks of the Danube River in the Wachau Valley.

Who was on the tour: This small group bicycling tour from Vienna had about fifteen people when I joined in the middle of the week in April. It was a good size to be social, without having to constantly wait for other travellers.

Who was the guide: This Grape Grazing tour from Vienna had one guide who was very friendly, knowledgeable and outgoing. He was well informed on the region and kept track of everyone on the train and during the bike ride and answered many questions and provided recommendations. The tour was conducted entirely in English, as noted on the booking site, and the guide was easy to understand. 

What to bring: I would recommend suitable footwear for cycling (not flip flop sandals), comfortable pants/trousers that won’t get caught on bicycle wheels, hat and sunscreen or rain jacket depending on weather and swimming costume/bathing suit in the summer. A small day backpack and water bottle will also be useful.

Train from Vienna to Krems and der Donau and bike rental    

The meeting point for this tour was a the train station in central Vienna, and after meeting the guide, we all boarded a direct train to the town of Krems an der Donau, where the bicycle rental shop was located. I got to know some of the other solo travellers on the tour that day, there were a few Amercian and British girls travelling alone along with some couples travelling together. I found it easy to talk to people and get to know everyone. 

 If you want to take this trip yourself without a tour group, it would be very easy, simply depart from Wien Franz-Josefs-Bahnhof  on one of the hourly direct trains operated by OBB (Austrian State Railways) to Krems an der Donau, tickets should be around 20E. The journey is only about 70 kilometres (43 miles) and takes just over an hour. There are also other possibilities to take bus and train combinations from other departure points around Vienna, but the direct train will be easiest and fastest. 

The town of Krems an der Donau is located on the banks of the Danube River at the eastern end of the Wachau Valley and it is the largest population centre in the region. There are about 4 or 5 bicycle rental shops in the centre of town and our tour guide brought us into a shop to get fitted with bicycles and helmets to use for the day, we had little baskets on the bicycles to store a jacket or backpack which was helpful. After that, we were on our way and started the journey towards the first stop. 

Historic castle and village of Dürnstein

The tour leader generally led the group on his bike up front and we all followed behind. There are designated pathways separated from the road which is nice, so you are not right next to vehicle traffic. Our first stop of the morning was the historic town of Durnstein, around a thirty minute bike ride from Krems an der Donau. This village is known for the castle ruins overlooking the town where King Richard the Lionheart was reportedly imprisoned during the Crusades, along with the distinctive blue and white tower of Durnstein Abbey.

There is a stairway to climb up to the castle ruins which gives a great panoramic view over the valley and our group also visited some small souvenir shops that sell chocolate, jams, various wine and grape products and usually offer tastings or samplings. We had just about an hour in Durnstein to explore before continuing our trip west through the valley towards our first vineyard stop. 

Wine and schnapps tasting with lunch 

It was getting close to lunch time at this point, and our next stop was another 6 kilometres or about 30 minutes further at a family run restaurant and vineyard called Weingut und Restaurant Josef Jamek. We learned some information about the way wine grapes are grown in the region, most often Riesling and Grüner Veltliner and the vinyards are built on stone wall terraces on the slopes of the valley. The valley is only about 12 miles long, but the region is actually a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

We were able to taste some wines and for lunch there was potato salad, bread rolls, vegetable cakes for those who don’t eat meat, and I think typical sausages for the meat eaters. We were also able to taste some varieties of homemade schnapps to finish the meal! Overall, I thought this was a fun and social option for lunch and there was no issue with being a single traveller, I sat with other solo women travellers from the UK and New Zealand. 

Bicycling along the Danube River

The Wachau Valley is a really beautiful place to cycle, our entire trip travelled along the banks of the river with view of the dramatic vineyard landscapes on either side. The designated bike path feels safe and it is a relatively flat and easy journey with no major inclines, so you don’t need to be in top athletic condition to enjoy an entire day on a bicycle. You will probably also want to stop quite frequently to take pictures and stop to explore small towns along the way.

Once we left the Jamek winery, it was about 20 minutes more down the path to arrive in the small market town of Spitz, where there is a ferry boat available to cross the Danube to start the journey back towards Krems and der Donau from the other side of the river. This service is called the Spitz-Arnsdorf Cable Ferry and crossings are more limited in the winter so check timetables before you go. I do highly recommend crossing the river to enjoy another perspective.

St. Lorenz, Wachauer Nose, Viewpoint on Dürnstein Abbey and Ferry Boat

From the other side of the valley, we started back towards the train station, with a mid afternoon stop at a tavern style patio, where we sampled some beers and ate pretzels. There was a brief stop in St. Lorenz to see a strange, large stone sculpture called the “Wachauer Nose” next to the ferry point, which is one of several modern art installations scattered throughout the valley. You could cross back to the other side here, but I recommend continuing on to the crossing at Rossatz, across from Durnstein, which is another 4 kilometres away.

Our final activity of the tour was a a stop at the small beach near the ferry point called “Aussichtspunkt auf Stift Dürnstein” which means something like Durnstein Abbey Lookout Viewpoint in German. This is a great place to get photos of Durnstein from across the river and to take your shoes off and walk around in the water for a bit after a full day of cycling. Depending on the season, you can even swim here so bring a bathing suit/swimming costume if you visit in the summer season. 

With the tour, we took the ferry back to Durnstein, cycled back to Krems and der Donau to return our bikes and helmets and took the train back to Vienna. Some of the ferries are seasonal and only operate April to October or November, so be sure to check the schedules if you plan this trip yourself. 

Upon arrival in Vienna, our tour concluded and the guide provided advice and suggestions for other activities people might like to do for the rest of their time in Austria.

Final Recommendation for the Grape Grazing Bicycle Tour of the Wachau Valley

I really enjoyed this one day tour of the Wachau Valley UNESCO Cultural Landscape. While you could certainly visit by car or walk between a few of the villages, bicycling is really the perfect way to explore the region and the designated bike path makes it feel safe as well. There were so many fun stops along the way, with the historic towns and villages, the river ferry, family style lunch stop and beach lookout point and of course the wine tastings!

While you certainly could plan a similar trip by yourself on the train from Vienna, as a solo traveller, I enjoyed the social aspect of a tour and having the guide provide background information and context for the actual wines that are produced here and the history of the region was worthwhile to me. In addition, having the train tickets, ferry rides, bike rentals, wine tastings and lunch all arranged was very convenient and didn't seem much more expensive than if it had been all organised individually.

Overall, this was one of the more memorable experiences I had on my second trip to Vienna and I think it was well worth the effort to leave the city for a day and explore such an interesting and historic part of Austria only an hour from Vienna.

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