Alpe-Adria centre based tour

Take a stroll through the pretty old town today and enjoy the southern flair in one of the many terrace cafés.

Passing Warmbad Villach, you leave the town and cycle eastwards at the foot of the Karawanken to the turquoise-blue Faaker See. The backdrop of the lake is dominated by the Mittagskogel, a true rock giant. Extensive, undeveloped meadows and green strips of forest surround the lake and there is a wooded island in the lake. After a relaxing break by the lake, you start the return journey. You cycle along a small ridge and reach the grey-green, shiny Drau. The Drau cycle path takes you back to Villach at a leisurely pace.

In the morning, take the comfortable train to Spittal. The town was already an important transport hub for pilgrims in the Middle Ages and owes its prosperity in part to them. You cycle along the Drau almost by yourself on a gentle downhill section of the Alpe-Adria Cycle Path. Halfway along, you should take a break in the small market town of Paternion with its churches and castles worth seeing. Pedal hard a few more times and you will reach Villach again.

You cycle a few kilometres eastwards along the Drau Cycle Path and then continue through unspoilt Carinthian farmland. The clear, turquoise waters of Lake Wörthersee and the colourful hustle and bustle of Velden invite you to take a break in the celebrity town. You reach the Keutschacher Seental valley through a charming, gently undulating landscape. Sometimes a dreamy wayside shrine catches the eye, sometimes a farmhouse decorated with flowers. The Hafnersee, Keutschacher See, Baßgeigensee and Rauschelesee lakes are grouped around the Keutschach bathing resort. Continue along the Lend Canal to Klagenfurt, the capital of Carinthia.

You leave Villach along the Seebach stream and enjoy the view of the Landskron castle ruins. In the foreground the green of the Gerlitzen, in the background the blue of Lake Ossiach. The huge ‘bathtub’ is eleven kilometres long and has drinking water quality. In Ossiach, the mountains and the clear water of the lake, which is up to 27 degrees in summer, and the 11th-century monastery with its magnificent late Baroque church are a delight. Next up is the lovely seaside resort of Steindorf on Lake Ossiach. A short stop in Bodensdorf before your tour comes full circle in Villach.

The train takes you to Italy in the morning. ‘Servus Austria - Ciao Italia’ is the motto at the border. In Tarvisio you will even be greeted in three languages. This is because Austrians, Slovenians and Italians have lived together here for centuries and all three major European language families - Germanic, Romanic and Slavic - come together here. Treat yourself to a creamy cappuccino before the Alpe-Adria cycle path takes you back to Austria along the wild River Gail, accompanied by magnificent mountain panoramas. 

After breakfast, individual return journey or start of your extension.