Austria Bike Tour Reviews page 41
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★★★★★ Megan Lunde
Lovely Ride through the Alps
Innsbruck to Salzburg: Through the Alps Along River Cycle Trails
Overall, this was a very good trip. The itinerary is top-notch along well-marked trails, through a variety of landscapes - farmland, ski towns, narrow gorges, along a lake. I recommend the route with the rest day in Zell am See - we had a great day there!
We did have a few concerns with the local tour company. The quality of the bikes rented from the bike shop was not great - my bike was too small for my body but they had run out of bikes, so I was stuck with it for the week. Some of our group had arranged for bikes to be delivered to the starting hotel. It's a good thing others went to pick up in person, because the bike shop had no record of delivery and half our group would have been stuck without bikes for 2 days.
As others have mentioned, the guidebook is hard to follow. However, the general routes are along bike trails that are well marked. We did pretty well by following the path signs to our destination each day.
Our biggest mishaps were with the hotel and luggage transfer. We were a group of 4. About half the time, we had two adjacent rooms in the same hotel - no problem. Other nights, we were split across two different hotels. One night, we had a really strange configuration - 3 of us had a triple in one hotel, while 1 person was assigned to a different hotel across town. Every time we got split up, some luggage went to the wrong hotel. It didn't help that the tour company only provided 1 luggage tag per room. Seems like an easy fix to include an adequate number of luggage tags per traveler. Our final night in Salzburg, our hotel had no record of our reservation. It took awhile to figure out the issue - our reservations had been made against the wrong name.
On the whole, this is a lovely trip. Unbeatable scenery and value for the price.
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2022
- How many tours have you completed?
- 4
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria
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★★★★★ Brenda Teal
Enjoyable trip in most ways...
Innsbruck to Salzburg: Through the Alps Along River Cycle Trails
First, the positives...
The scenery, hotels provided, local emergency/tour representatives and bikes were exceptional. There were interesting and beautiful sights in every town and along the way. The bike shop where we received rental bikes, helmets, etc. was knowledgeable, friendly and Chris in Innsbruck was great to work with and talk to, and he provided great insights toward upcoming routes.
There was useful information about available alternate routes/modes of travel, as well as the scenery we could experience, and the details of our stays at each local inn were seamless, for the most part. I cannot say enough about the friendliness and helpfulness of hotel staff, without exception. The local representative and the transfer drivers were also easy to communicate with, and helpful in every area we needed.
I felt the info given regarding sightseeing was not as detailed or inclusive of all sights, as the last time we worked with BikeTours.
Regarding directions and mapping, the GPS we rented from BT was useless, and we stopped using or even charging it after a couple of days....the routes didn't seem to match those on the map given, and even when we were clearly on the cycle path designated, it constantly said to make a u-turn or offroute; 60 euros we should have kept for other things. The map directions were often unclear, especially entering and leaving cities, and since the GPS wasn't working, we had to constantly stop to take the map out as there was no place to clip it to the bike handlebar. The alternate routes on the Lofer travel day were confusing as well.
Despite these issues, we would have probably used BT again, except for the unexpected hotel expenses after we arrived in Austria. We asked for a final invoice, before booking, to make sure of costs in planning this trip, and was sent one which listed a "total" of all charges and a list of all services covered under our quoted tour cost, including specific hotel stays, with no mention of added costs to be paid when we arrived at each hotel. When we arrived in Innsbruck, the hotel informed us we still owed city taxes (this was the case in almost every town/hotel booked). Though the amounts were not big, the attitude we got from the tour when we called to check was off-putting ("that fact was included in the general description of the tour on the internet," and "a company does not have to put every little detail in an invoice.").
We suggest that BT put an * next to each hotel stay on their invoice/quotes, and then include in small print at the bottom " *some hotels may charge a city tax at checkout, usually from 2-8 euros per night, which is not covered by BikeTours." This is a detail that can be corrected easily, and sure would help travelers budget appropriately as well.
One thing is for sure, however you plan for it, go to Austria and experience the marvelous places on this river tour (we added extra time in Salzburg and Vienna)....you won't regret it. SHOW MORE- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria
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★★★★★ Nancy Voorhees
Idyllic landscape
Innsbruck to Salzburg: Through the Alps Along River Cycle Trails
I have never seen such beauty as along this trail in the Austrian Alps. Our accommodations were comfortable, breakfasts were delicious and our luggage was alway there before we arrived. My suggestion for making the trip more enjoyable is to make sure the Garmin has each day's route. Our's had many routes on it and that made it confusing. It would make more sense if only our routes were on it. Also, everyone should have a Garmin or use their google maps. Using the printed route map was impossible. Our ebikes were very comfortable and our trip was awesome! Thanks.
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria
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★★★★★ Trish Bainbridge
Part of a European transit cycle
Innsbruck to Salzburg: Through the Alps Along River Cycle Trails
The paper guides were difficult to read - we used a Garmin which made it much easier otherwise you were constantly stopping to check turnings- suggest you don’t use survey maps but custom bike maps. Hotel selection was ok but some rooms were noisy and windows facing busy roads. Worst hotels were Innsbruck and Salzburg which spoiled the trip experience.Trish
- What was the date of your tour?
- June 2025
- How many tours have you completed?
- Many European but usually self designed solo travellers with own bikes
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria
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★★★★★ James Hutcherson
Flood of decades
Danube Delights: Biking through Four Countries
Can’t change the weather. Boat crew and food was excellent. Everyone tried their best to make the trip as good as they could. Kudos to all involved. Bikes were excellent and well maintained.
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★★★★★ PAULINE MOENCH
TRIP OF DREAMS THAT FELL FAR SHORT
Danube Delights: Biking through Four Countries
Not much to say here since our boat never left the dock. Our host, Lesley, was a peach and completely competent. If not for him, we would have left on day two. My biggest disappointment was only having bus tours to Budapest and Bratislava. I would have appreciated a little creativity added in to take us to a couple more places. The tour people were awful with their communication, telling us for three days in a row that we might leave when we knew we were going nowhere. The crew was great, the food was not the greatest, but no complaints. I have a special diet that they were over the top accommodating of. You drastically need to improve your beverage packages—not enough provided for the $$$ we paid up front. 498 euros for the two of us when we wound up spending most of our day off the boat was out of line. If we had been cycling every day, I would not have purchased a package, considering you did not include what are everyday cocktails in the USA, like Manhattans.
For the rooms, rather than having that dopey pull-out at the end of the bed, leave that area under the bed open for luggage storage. Also, get rid of the carpet. Beds were very comfortable. We would have liked to have left our sliding door open a bit. Some kind of stop at the base so they can be open six or eight inches would have been appreciated. I’m sure the daily bike routes would have been great if we had been able to utilize them.
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★★★★★ Mary Schmidt
Unable to review as the Vivienne never left port in Vienna - Please contact me. I would have loved to have been able to review.
Danube Delights: Biking through Four Countries
Dear Team at BikeTours.com,
I hope you all are doing well. I am writing regarding my recent river cruise, Danube Delights aboard the Vivienne on September 15, which unfortunately was impacted by flooding, causing the cancellation of several key ports of call and remained docked in Vienna for 7 nights. While I understand that weather conditions are beyond anyone’s control, missing out on many destinations left me disappointed, as I had been looking forward to the full experience. My husband and I had been planning this for over a year and celebrating our 40th Wedding Anniversary.
Our cruise director did his best to keep the passengers entertained and informed but was getting very mixed messages from someone. It started the first day in Passau with the hired transportation did not have a concrete deportation location. It was 2:30pm before we were even contacted to tell us to go to the bus station and we would be transported to Vienna. After boarding the Vivienne we were told that we would be docked in Vienna for a couple of days and for those interested we could take the bus to Budapest and Bratislava on the next two days. It was a very long bus ride but a nice trip to both.
Starting on Wednesday, day 3, we were then told we MAY leave every evening, so we needed to be back on boat at 5 or maybe a different time and were not able to take any extended excursions due to the possibility of debarking. Thursday we were led to believe we may leave later in the night. Then Friday, we were instructed to be back on the boat at 11:00 am because we might leave. It was determined after we came back that we were not going to be able to leave. We would have loved to have taken the train to visit another location Wednesday - Friday. The last day, Saturday, was the worst, we had to sit on the boat because there would be announcements at 9:00 am, then stay on because we might leave at 11:00am, then wait again until after 1:00pm and then there was a decision to let us off. It was obvious the boat wasn’t going anywhere due to the 24 hours it would have taken to cruise back to Passau and there was another cruise scheduled. Also, we were extremely far back in the line of boats that would have moved before us.
Given these unforeseen circumstances, I am inquiring about a future cruise credit (FCC) toward another cruise or a refund. We were so excited to do our first River cruise as a way to travel and have the ability to bicycle and I would love the opportunity to schedule another boat/bike cruise and fully experience the journey.
I appreciate your understanding and consideration of this request, and I look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Mary Schmidt- What was the date of your tour?
- September 15, 2024
- How many tours have you completed?
- This would have been our first but can't count due to not leaving port.
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Hungary, Slovakia
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★★★★★ Joann Schmidt
Not what I was expecting
Danube Delights: Biking through Four Countries
Our river/bike cruise turned into a floating hotel in Vienna. Our boat never left the dock all week because of historical flooding on the Danube. The boat and cruise personnel were all fine but just wish we could of actually seen something of the countries we were hoping to see on the river. Not sure if I would ever sign up for one of these again.
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★★★★★ Linda Cooper
Made the most of being stuck at the dock.
Danube Delights: Biking through Four Countries
An act of nature meant that the boat never left the dock. The company made a point to provide activities and bike routes for 7 days in Vienna. Bike Tours was non existent when it came to communicating the changing conditions before the tour started.
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★★★★★ Larry Cady
Great route but TERRIBLE directions
Innsbruck to Lake Garda Across the Southern Slopes of the Alps
The good things about the Euro Cycle tour were:
1. Very nice route through the Italian Tyrol
2. Generally very nice hotels.
3. Bike were adequate but so-so quality. On other tours I have had better quality bikes.The BAD thing - Directions were very poor. The main problem was there were no turn by turn directions to the hotels. This is standard on other tours. The printed directions routed you into the center of a town and then stopped. You were given the address of the hotel, but not directions on how to get there. Sometimes we were given a map of the town, but not always. We ended up using Google Maps on our phones to get the hotels. In one town (Maran), the hotel was well away from the town center and difficult to find. We spent a lot of time tracking it down.
I would not take a Euro Cycle tour again. Other tour companies you represent are fine and I intend to take more tours - but not with Euro Cycle.
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★★★★★ Cathy Hendrie
Innsbruck to Lake Garda
Innsbruck to Lake Garda Across the Southern Slopes of the Alps
There should be a company representative present when the bikes are delivered
Our 10 person group was divided between 2 hotels …..this should never happen…we travel as a group for a reason….to enjoy our time together…also the notification sent was inadequate -
★★★★★ Anne Temple
Beautiful but given bike with defective wheel and inadequate spares/pump
Innsbruck to Salzburg: Through the Alps Along River Cycle Trails
The ride is beautiful, hotels very comfortable with pleasant employees and great breakfast. Our rating would be higher except for our experience with one bike and the repair kit provided by the operator in Innsbruck. Also, if you are not familiar with Garmin, be sure you have a good alternative.
We had two flats in the same place on the inner seam of the back tire. We understand that tire changes were our responsibility and were prepared to handle them. We were provided with only one spare, no co2 cartridge because the operator was out of the attachment needed to use them, and a small inefficient pump. The advice given to us if we were to get a flat was to change the tire, pump it up as best we could with the inefficient pump and then go to a service station where we could then fill the tire up to its required PSI. This is a rural route with few service stations and much time was wasted.
The morning after the first flat we spent a couple of hours locating a bike shop that was open (tried 3) that had the right size spares. In addition we purchased a better pump which we were very glad to have with the second flat. That second flat occurred on the ride to Lofer. A biker who helped us noted that we didn’t have enough tread (profile) on the tires and we were lucky we hadn’t had rain.
Helmut was unable to provide a different bike for the last leg into Salzburg. Rather than spending the time finding a new back tire to buy and thus getting a much later start that we were comfortable with, we elected to take transport to Salzburg.
A special thanks to Helmut for his responsiveness and assistance.
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2024
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria
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★★★★★ pmr52
Lake Constance Bicycle Path (Upscale Lodging)
- What was the date of your tour?
- 24 june - 1 july
- How many tours have you completed?
- 7
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Do you recommend this tour?
- No
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
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★★★★★ Tom Jones
Memorable bike tour
Dolomites to Trieste via Lake Bled at the Foot of the Julian Alps
Just wrapped up a memorable bike tour from the Dolomites to Trieste — and wanted to share a few highlights and lessons learned.
First, a big shoutout to Taylor at BikeTours.com, who was a fantastic Tour Advisor. When our bikes didn’t show up at the first hotel as expected, we gave her a call — and she jumped in right away. Thanks to her help, the bikes arrived in time for us to start riding the next morning without delay.
What I learned:
• Expect the unexpected. Our first day brought heavy rain — and we got soaked. If you’re doing a similar trip, pack good rain gear!
• Bring biking tools. While the bikes were in excellent shape, having a small tool kit (for tightening loose seats or making minor adjustments) came in handy.
• Stay connected. I recommend buying an eSIM for mobile data before the trip. Just don’t forget to turn on data roaming!
• Be prepared for little expenses. Public WCs often cost 1€, so keep some coins handy. And at hotels, you’ll need to pay a local tax (around 3€) — some places only accept cash for that.
• Illness can happen. I haven’t been sick in years, but picked up a cough midway through the trip. I ended up skipping the last day of riding — and that meant a taxi ride to the next hotel, which cost about $100 USD.
• Extra hotel nights aren’t cheap. If you decide to extend your stay somewhere, budget about $200 USD per night, especially if you want breakfast included.The ride itself:
The scenery was absolutely beautiful (except for the rainy day), and the routes between hotels didn’t have too many steep climbs. That said, for me, it was still a challenging ride — definitely pushed my limits, but in a good way.
All in all, a wonderful trip with a few good reminders: plan ahead, be flexible, and enjoy the ride
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★★★★★ Michael Krivitsky
Vienna bike day tour
Classic Vienna Bike Tour
The tour covered many great sites in Vienna. The bikes were good. It was easy to get to the shop where the tour started. Unfortunately, the tour guide spoke so softly that I couldn’t hear a word she said unless I was standing right next to her. I have no idea if what she said was useful. If she is going to speak that softly, the tour needs a mic and headset system.
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★★★★★ Bryan
Austria Bike Trip
Danube Bike Path 8 Nights (Upscale Lodging)
This was the second bike tour that we have completed; and compared to the first tour, this one felt like the local tour operator was more of a logistics company. The route was spectacular, I feel like we could have maximised the experience if we had more information, particularly when it comes to different options along the route. On several occasions we either ran out of time to see things later in the day, or arrived at the hotel around lunch time because we didn't know where we should be budgeting our time. During our Portugal trip, our local contact, Nuno, was incredible, speaking with us several times a day to ensure that we were getting the most out of the experience - this time we were flying blind on our own.
- What was the date of your tour?
- 25 Sept - 5 Oct
- How many tours have you completed?
- 1 other
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat easier
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, First-time bike tourists, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany
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★★★★★ Ricardo Hein
Nice biking vacation
Danube Cycle Path Passau – Budapest
The Danube is beautiful and the Austrian portion is beautiful. After Vienna it turns flat and less developed. The opportunity to share with people is limited by the places to stay, I didn't like to stay away from the towns in isolated guest houses, when guest homes were available in small towns.
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★★★★★ Scott Jacobson
Swiss crown bike tour
Danube Experience Bike and Boat Passau-Vienna-Budapest-Belgrade-Iron Gates-Passau
Due to captain error, and running the boat onto a sandbar, we weren’t able to see the Iron Gates. Very upsetting since that was the main purpose of paying for this trip. Due to captain error, didn’t dock in Passau, long bus ride to train station. Amwater ways went to Iron Gates same day we were supposed to. Next time, I will go with that boat tour.
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★★★★★ Pedals
Great and not so great
Tauern Bike Path (Krimml-Passau)
Having just come off 2 weeks biking in France we had something to compare this trip with.
The first 3 days or so were magic - lovely views, fantastic track surface and finally cool weather. The accommodation was great,especially after we were upgraded twice, and can be recommended.The bike gear was top class but my bike however was not. Euro Velo bike hires have to realise that the standard puffy commuter seat they supply are not comfortable for guys used to proper bike seats - enough said. Also on the second day when I went to use the smallest front chain ring it turned out that 2 of the mounting bolts were missing and it got wrecked so one third of my gears were gone. Managed to get this repaired after a couple of days but wasn't really satisfactory. This should not happen!
The directions and maps hardly ever match up completely on these type of trips but we were certainly not happy to discover at the end of a long hot day that the instructions for the approach to Salzberg were in fact for someone coming from completely the opposite direction - a victim of cut and past to be sure, as was the odd paragraph still in Austrian, but this should have been edited properly. A shame as the general standard of the material presentation was of a high quality.
Be aware if you want to do this trip that the last few days are along the stop bank beside the river and are boring - very little in the way of scenery and culture. Next time we will detour inland.
Sorry but overall a 3 star effort.
Warning - in case you may be considering a taxi ride from Innsbruck to Krimml to start your trip make sure that the driver is legitimate. Ours was a temporary fill in, had not driven out of town for 4 years and was a thoroughly unsafe driver. Much too fast and I suspect maybe on something. He almost ran off the road a number of times and clipped the inside kerb a couple of times . Haven't been so scared in our lives as passengers apart from jeep trips in Nepal and Pakistan. This should not happen in a first world country and if it had been practical solution we would have got out and walked!!
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★★★★★ Marion Van Kirk
Beautiful Austria and Germany
Tauern Bike Path (Krimml-Passau)
Biking was more difficult than expected. Luckily the women had e-bikes. Most of the hotels were excellent and food was great. Trip started in Neukirchen am Grossvenediger instead of Krimml due to closed hotels. The hotel in vicinity of Burghausen was too far from the town to be able to enjoy the beautiful city and castle and this was a huge disappointment since there were 3 other hotels within the city.
