10 Days in Austria - Our Top Recommendations
Updated: May 23, 2022
For nature lovers, there are many great areas in Austria that you can easily reach with your camper or van. During our round trip through Austria in September and October 2020, we visited six different locations and tested them for you:
Our top destinations:
Length of our route: ca. 1.119 km
Costs (total., w/oCamper): 723,85€
Number of visited campsites: 6
Tip for campers: especially if you are relatively inexperienced in camping, Austria is a perfect country to gain your first camping experience.
1. Wolfgangsee - a good starting point for your trip!
Our very first stop with the camper was not far away from the German border: the Wolfgangsee in the Austrian Salzkammergut.
Lake Wolfgang is certainly not an insider tip among campers, because on the one hand there is the true beauty of the Salzkammergut and on the other hand there are a lot of activities you can experience.
Therefore, there are plenty of campsites around the Wolfgangsee. Booking in advance certainly makes sense during peak season - but in our case (September & Corona) we had no problems to find a free accommodation.
After we have looked at some camping facilities on site, our choice finally fell on the camping site "Schönblick" (about 30€/night). This one is located directly on the lake (with private lake access) and offers more privacy than many other places due to its terrace-like structure.
On the opposite side of the lake is the city of St. Wolfgang, a beautiful small town with traditional dining and shopping possibilities.
After our arrival, we set up our home for the next few days.
And then our vacation could finally start!
On the first day we explored the area with our bikes - that works great, because there are some bike paths within a nature reserve along the lake. Alternatively, you can of course also go hiking.
We, for example, went by bike to the small city of St. Wolfgang (our absolute recommendation: a totally pretty town with delicious restaurants and some traditional shopping possibilities).
Further we went hiking to the Schwarzensee (here you can find a small hut called "Zur Lore" where you can stop by for lunch, the apple strudel is highly recommended).
The local mountain, which you can find close to the camping site is the Bleckwand. Here you should definitely go for a hike, because at the top you will get a great view of Lake Wolfgang. On the way up, you can find a beautiful alpine hut (our recommendation: the soups are super delicious!).
Click through the gallery below and get a first impression of the hike! :-)
You should of course definitely go for a bath in the Wolfgangsee: whether in the morning to wake up or as refreshment in between - for us an absolute must!
More pictures from this region you can find in the category "Austria" in our gallery.
2. Hallstatt - UNESCO World Heritage
The community of Hallstatt in Austria's Salzkammergut region has more than earned its status as a UNESCO World Heritage, and it's not for nothing that it's one of the most impressive places we've ever seen. Here you can experience a "time journey" to the 16th century: the lovingly restored houses are incredibly well preserved and very impressive.
And it's getting even better!
In the middle of Hallstatt is the "Klausner-Höll" campsite (about 33€ per night). The downside, however, is that you are "dependent" on this place - this is also known by the owner, who is absolutely not the friendliest person.
Nevertheless, we did not let this deter us and spent two beautiful days in this breathtaking city.
One of the top highlights for us was the sunrise in Hallstatt!
We got up extra early for this and were able to watch the sun slowly rise over the mountains, bathing all of Hallstatt in a magical light.
For the photographers among you: you are of course not alone here - so it is best to choose your photo spot the day before and secure it in time. It is also helpful if you have your tripod and an ND filter with you to take beautiful long exposures.
At sunset, it is also a good idea to end the evening with a glass of wine and fresh fish from Lake Hallstatt in one of the restaurants located directly on the shore.
3. Rossatz: a great place for good wine
Off to the Wachau to drink some wine! The villages around the Danube are absolutely picturesque and there are also some camping options here. We have chosen the site of Annemarie Artner (about 12 € / night). This one very is idyllic and located directly on the Danube. By bike you can quickly get through vineyards and orchards to the village center, where you can find a small supermarket and some restaurants.
But the best thing is that you can buy the delicious family wine and homemade jam right at the campsite.
Worth seeing in this area are not only the great nature and the Danube, which meanders through the villages, but also the many castle ruins - some of them are very beautifully lit in the evening. Some camping neighbors of ours were collecting mushrooms nearby and came back with a whole basket of porcini mushrooms. Our personal highlight was the bike tour through the numerous orchards and vineyards.
4. Podersdorf at the Lake Neusiedl
Podersdorf is a small town on Lake Neusiedl. Due to the partly strong wind conditions, the region is very popular especially for water sports like windsurfing and paragliding, but also when it comes to culinary you can really indulge yourself here.
Instead of camping at a large touristy campsite right on the lake shore, you can also camp at some of the wine growers.
Because we like to drink wine (and are not a fan of the large camping facilities), we decided to stay for 2 nights at the campsite of the winery Sloboda. The wine selection is absolutely fabulous and in the associated "Heurigen" (which is a tipical Austrian vine restaurant) you can enjoy delicious snack plates and snacks in a great ambience.
Our wine recommendation: the Blaue Zweigelt is awesome :-)
We explored the area mostly by bike: for example, at one of the many nature reserves along Lake Neusiedl. Here we stumbled by chance upon a food truck - or rather "wine truck". Actually, we only wanted to stay for a wine, but in the end we stayed the whole afternoon, because we made acquaintance with some wine growers from nearby.
Unfortunately, it was too cold and windy for swimming on the days we spent in the area - but a walk by the lake and a pizza to go were great.
Our conclusion: in Podersdorf you can relax really well!
5. Rosental on the Slovenian boarder
In Rosental in the southern Styria of Austira we stayed only for a short stopover, because we wanted to wash our laundry and have a bathroom. At the camper site "Stefan" you have all this. The very rural camping site is located directly next to a tennis court and a restaurant. With your bikes or on foot you can explore the surrounding nature.
By the way, from here you can also reach Slovenia's second largest city Maribor in just under an hour by car. You can read more about this in our article about our Slovenia trip.
6. Visit Austria's hightes waterfalls in Krimml
The Krimml Waterfalls in the Hohe Tauern National Park are Austria's highest waterfalls with a total drop height of 385m and therefore an absolute must-see from our point of view.
To get to the waterfalls quickly on foot, you can either drive to one of the designated parking lots, or use the parking lot of the Hotel Krimmlerfälle.
The entrance fee for 2 persons to the national park area costs 8€ (no student discount) or is free for guests of the hotel "Krimmlerfälle".
The surroundings around the Krimml Waterfalls are absolutely breathtaking and definitely worth a hike. If you only want to see the waterfalls, you can reach them in just a few minutes.
The village of Krimml is very beautiful, here you can go shopping and dining, or just enjoy the quiet ambience.
7. Costs of a trip to Austria
For a vacation in Austria you can expect a similar cost of living as in Germany. The gasoline prices are cheaper, but you have to pay tolls in Austria. For a 2 month vignette you pay for example 27.40 €, which is in our opinion absolutely ok. But keep in mind, that there are also costs for the passage of certain tunnels - which often costs around 10 €.
The prices for campsites in Austria are absolutely humane and are between 15 and 20 € - we recommend you to drive to smaller campsites, as these are in our opinion more idyllic and often cheaper - but of course this is a matter of taste.
We hope we could give you some inspiration for your route through Austria. Feel free to write us in the comments or via the contact form, what your favorite destinations in Austria are, or what experiences you have made!
