Vienna to Bratislava

 Ride day 11: 48.5 miles, 712’ elevation gain

Lodging:  Hotel Skaritz

After a light breakfast at the Henry grocery store (think of the counter at Whole Foods), we retrieved our bikes from storage and headed to the Danube. The hotelier who helped us with the bike wished us well and gave us Austrian chocolates in case we needed energy on the ride. He didn’t seem thrilled when we first showed up and needed a place for our bikes, but his attitude changed over 2 days and some tipping. He has recommended restaurants for us, and enthusiastically told us that he has 3 bikes. A lot of the hotel employees on our trip have been really great to us.

We left the grand center of Vienna, fairly quiet in the morning, on the separated bike paths, full of bike commuters in a hurry. The infrastructure for bikes is extensive with separated lanes and traffic lights, but it’s a little intimidating to figure out when and where to go in the midst of all the people. We funneled onto the canal bike path, a bit more peaceful, then across the Danube and onto the Eurovelo 6 route, one of the European long distance cycling routes. 

The full EV6 route goes from the Atlantic coast of France to the Black Sea in Romania. It is much more travelled than the Czech Greenways from Prague to Vienna, both by touring cyclists and day riders, and it’s well signposted and very flat. For about 30 miles we were on straight, smooth pavement or gravel on a green dike that apparently is flood control for the Danube. We had grass and trees on either side. It wasn’t the most interesting scenery, but it was pretty, and we had a good tailwind.

We crossed the Danube to the south side near the town of Hainburg in Austria. A short uphill ride gave us most of our elevation gain for the day. We rode the paved path next to some roads and farms, then stopped for a coke at a small store. Our phones gave us a “Welcome to Slovakia” message, and voila, we were in a new country without seeing a road sign indicating as much. 

From a distance, Slovakia looked busier than the adjacent part of Austria which has farms and wind turbines. (We think they are in Austria — we are also near the border of Hungary). The city south of the Danube looks modern, and the old town and castle are on the south bank. We crossed on a bridge under the peculiar UFO lookout using the cyclist/pedestrian crossing which deposited us into the charming old town. There are lots of cafes, tourists and shops. The shops appear more local than the expensive status brands of Vienna. It’s smaller, quieter, and appealing.

Our hotel was in old town, a very nice suite with a fireplace and small kitchen, a couch and a dining table. From our windows we can hear the babble of voices along with music from buskers. After wandering the streets and going up to the castle (rebuilt in 1953 and not a lot to see), we had a good dinner at a restaurant called Gatto Matto near our hotel, and we called it a day.