Long-distance hiking trails in Austria

Signpost on the Central Alpine Trail near the Greizer Hut in September 2006

In Austria there are more than 100 regional and national long-distance hiking trails of different lengths. Ten of them are referred to as the great Austrian long-distance hiking trails 01 to 10. You cross the Austrian Alps and pre-Alps , but also the areas north of the Danube and towards Lake Neusiedl . They all lead at least partially through alpine or high alpine terrain. Some of them are also part of a European long-distance hiking trail .

The 10 major Austrian long-distance hiking trails

Path 01: North Alpine Path

Long-distance hiking trails 01

It leads from Bregenz along the Northern Limestone Alps through the federal states of Vorarlberg , Tyrol (this section is called Adlerweg ), Salzburg , Upper Austria , Styria , Lower Austria and Burgenland to Perchtoldsdorf near Vienna or to Rust on Lake Neusiedl . ^K1 ^S1

Distance: around 1260 km
Lowest point: 123 m (Rust am Neusiedler See)
Highest point: 2941 m ( Hochkönig )

Part or variant of the European long-distance hiking trail E4 .

Path 02: Central Alpine Path

Endstein on the main square in Hainburg

From Feldkirch in Vorarlberg , the route leads along the main Alpine ridge of the Central Alps to Hainburg an der Donau . It crosses Tyrol , Salzburg , Carinthia , Styria , Lower Austria and Burgenland . He also makes a short detour to the Principality of Liechtenstein and Switzerland. It offers a main route and two variants through the Tyrolean Central Alps and the Hohe Tauern . On the high alpine normal route there are also numerous glaciers to be crossed and climbing points up to II to be overcome. ^W2

Distance: around 1270 km
Lowest point: 118 m ( Neusiedl am See )
Highest point: 3407 m (Venice Scharte in the Hohe Tauern ) on the main path.

Path 03: Südalpenweg

This path leads through the Austrian part of the Southern Limestone Alps and the South Styrian wine-growing region. Starting from Sillian in East Tyrol , it goes through the Carinthian Southern Alps ( Karnischer Höhenweg / Karawankenwanderweg ) and southern Styria to Bad Radkersburg . To a large extent, the route is accompanied by the Austrian-Italian or Austrian-Slovenian border.

Distance: around 513 km
Lowest point: 208 m (Bad Radkersburg)
Highest point: 2678 m ( Pfannspitze in the Carnic Alps )

Partly part of the Red Via Alpina .

Path 04: Voralpenweg

ÖTK sign on the Leopoldsberg

The northern Alpine foothills can be crossed between Bregenz and Perchtoldsdorf near Vienna . The federal state of Vorarlberg , the Free State of Bavaria , the federal states of Salzburg , Upper Austria , Lower Austria and Vienna are affected. The actual Voralpenweg leads from Vienna-Rodaun or Perchtoldsdorf to Salzburg or Bad Reichenhall and then continues in the Bavarian Maximiliansweg . ^S4^Ö4

Distance: around 501 km
Lowest point: 265 m (Perchtoldsdorf)
Highest point: 1821 m (Grünalmkogel)

Variant of the European long-distance hiking trail E4 .

Path 05: north-south long-distance hiking trail

The oldest Austrian long-distance hiking trail begins at Nebelstein near the Austrian-Czech border. From there it leads through the federal states of Lower Austria , Upper Austria , Carinthia and Styria across the eastern foothills of the Alps to Eibiswald near the Slovenian border. The path goes back to an idea of the Austrian sculptor Carl Hermann , founder of the long-distance hikers section of the Austrian Alpine Association. ^S5 ^Ö5

Distance: around 500 km
Lowest point: 200 m ( Spitz an der Donau )
Highest point: 2277 m ( Hochschwab )

Part of the European long-distance hiking trail E6 .

Path 06: Mariazeller Ways

The Mariazeller Ways consist of several partial routes. They have a common goal: the pilgrimage site of Mariazell in northern Upper Styria. This network of paths was created by the many pilgrims on foot (today pilgrims) who searched their way to the Mariazell pilgrimage church in various ways. The following places serve as starting points: Klagenfurt ( Carinthia ), Linz - Pöstlingberg ( Upper Austria ), Nebelstein and Perchtoldsdorf ( Lower Austria ), Eisenstadt ( Burgenland ), Salzburg ( Salzburg ), Eibiswald ( Styria ) and Vienna (East branch, Vienna Pilgrim Trail ). ^S6

Distance: around 1000 km
Lowest point: 175 m ( Großhöflein in Burgenland)
Highest point: approx. 1540 m (near Grundbauernhütte, Mürzsteg Alps )

The western branch of Salzburg corresponds over long stretches to route 04: Voralpenweg .

Path 07: Eastern Austrian border path

The starting point is the Nebelstein in Lower Austria , then along the Austrian northern and eastern borders (Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia) the path leads through the hilly granite and gneiss highlands of the Bohemian Massif and the Weinviertel , after crossing Vienna through Burgenland Lowlands and through the Styrian hill country , the route ends in Bad Radkersburg in Styria . ^S7 ^Ö7

Distance: around 697 km
Lowest point: 117 m ( Illmitz am Neusiedler See )
Highest point: 1017 m (Nebelstein)

Path 08: Eisenwurzenweg

This path crosses Austria from the northernmost to the southernmost point. It begins in Rottal on the Czech border and leads across Lower Austria , Styria and Carinthia to the Slovenian border crossing at the Carinthian Seebergsattel . It is named after the " Eisenwurzengebiet ", the area around the lower Ennstal , in which numerous small iron processing companies settled in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. ^S7

Distance: around 580 km
Lowest point: 240 m ( Persenbeug on the Danube )
Highest point: 2376 m ( Zirbitzkogel refuge in the Seetal Alps )

Path 09: Salzsteigweg

Hiking trail signs on a linden tree next to the parish church in Oberneukirchen (Mühlviertel, Upper Austria).

The Salzsteigweg follows old paths through the Dead Mountains and the Niedere Tauern , on which salt was transported back in Roman times. It begins at the Sternstein in Upper Austria , crosses western Upper Styria and leads through Carinthia to the border crossing at the Wurzenpass . ^S9 ^Ö9

Distance: around 437 km
Lowest point: 270 m ( Linz )
Highest point: 2320 m (board height in the Nock Mountains )

Path 10: Rupertiweg

Long-distance hiking trail 10, Bohemian Forest, Stone Sea, Carnic Alps

The Rupertiweg also leads from north to south. It begins at Bärenstein near the Czech border, leads through Upper Austria , Salzburg (with a short detour to Bavaria in the Berchtesgadener Land area ) and Carinthia to Nassfeld . ^S10 ^Ö10

Distance: around 563 km
Lowest point: 290 m on the Danube (near Niederranna )
Highest point: 2720 m ( Zwernberger Törl in the Reisseck group )

Part of the European long-distance hiking trail E10

Proven inspections

Hiking badges can be acquired for the complete inspection of the individual trails. To do this, it is necessary to obtain control stamps from the locations indicated in the hiking guides. There is no time limit, the inspections can be interrupted as often as you like.

In 1994, Fritz Peterka from Langenzersdorfer hiked all ten large Austrian long-distance hiking trails totaling around 7300 km in one piece in 143 days. This achievement was entered in the Guinness Book of Records in 1998.

From mid-June to mid-October 2016, Matthias Kodym (33) chained long-distance hiking trails 03, 02 and 01. 3000 km route and 150,000 meters in altitude in 119 days; with a backpack weighing no more than 5 kg, mostly as a self-catering with an overnight stay in a bivouac or in a hut, documenting with the camera. He used up 6 pairs of shoes that his mother forwarded to him through post offices.

Other noteworthy ways

Arnoweg

The Arnoweg circles the state of Salzburg . It is dedicated to Archbishop Arno von Salzburg († 821) ^RA

Distance: 1000 km (with the access routes a total of 1200 km)
Lowest point: 400 m ( Oberndorf near Salzburg )
Highest point: 3105 m ( Zittelhaus , Hoher Sonnblick)

Eagle Walk

The Adlerweg is a long-distance hiking trail through the whole of Tyrol . The main route runs from St. Johann in Tirol along the Wilder Kaiser , through the Brandenberg Alps , the Rofan and Karwendel Mountains and the Lechtal Alps to St. Christoph a. Arlberg ; it is part of the Nordalpenweg 01 and the E4.

In addition to the North Tyrolean Eagle Walk, there is also an Eagle Walk in East Tyrol between Austria's highest mountains, the Großvenediger and the Großglockner.

Path length:
- North Tyrol: 320 km, 24 daily stages
- East Tyrol: 93 km, 9 daily stages

Alpe Adria Trail

The Alpe Adria Trail is a 650-kilometer long-distance hiking trail (with an additional 3-country short variant, 140 km) that runs from Franz-Josefs-Höhe in Carinthia via Kranjska Gora in Slovenia to Muggia in Friuli-Venezia Giulia on the Italian Adriatic coast leads.

Total distance: around 790 km
Lowest point: 0 m (Muggia, Friuli-Venezia Giulia)
Highest point: 2370 m (Franz-Josefs-Höhe, Carinthia)

Donausteig

The Donausteig is an Upper Austrian - Bavarian long-distance hiking trail and leads largely on both sides of the Danube from Passau via Linz to St. Nikola an der Donau near Grein and was officially opened on July 3, 2010. The length of the path is 440 kilometers, and there is also a corresponding circular hiking trail (Danube circuit) in each of the communities along the way.

Hemma Pilgrimage

The Hemma Pilgrimage Route consists of eight routes, all of which have the grave of Saint Hemma , the patroness of Carinthia, in Gurk as their destination. In total, the route network of the Hemmapilgerweg covers a distance of around 850 kilometers. The starting points are Sveta Ana and Črna in Slovenia, Admont and St. Hemma bei Edelschrott in Styria and Turrach , Millstatt , Ossiach and Karnburg in Carinthia. The Hemmapilgerweg was initiated in 2002 and continues the tradition of the Krainerwallfahrt.

Karwendel Höhenweg

The Karwendel Höhenweg leads in six daily stages through the southern part of the Karwendel Nature Park in Tyrol . The path starts on the Seefeld plateau and leads through forest and alpine pastures over the high mountains to Scharnitz . This multi-day hike covers more than 60 kilometers and over 7000 meters in altitude. You can spend the night in five huts.

Carinthian Marienpilgerweg

The Carinthian Marienpilgerweg leads in ten daily stages over 266 kilometers through Austria's southernmost state. The Marienpilgerweg begins in Maria Rojach in the Lavanttal and goes through the state capital Klagenfurt , Villach and through the Gailtal until it finally ends in Maria Luggau in the Lesachtal . Hikers and pilgrims can experience the whole diversity of the Carinthian landscape, from the hills and lakes in Lower and Central Carinthia to the impressive mountain regions in western Carinthia. This path, which was only opened in 2011, is one of the most beautiful pilgrimage routes in the Alps.

Distance: 266 km
Lowest point: 393 m
Highest point: 1053 m

Lechweg

The Lechweg has been accompanying the upper reaches of the Lech from Vorarlberg to Bavaria for around 125 km since 2012.

Leonhardsweg

The Leonhardsweg was opened in 2008 and leads 130 kilometers from the cathedral in Salzburg to the pilgrimage church of St. Leonhard near Tamsweg , which is consecrated to St. Leonhard . The Leonhardsweg also leads to the Hemmapilgerweg via a junction.

Nordwaldkammweg

The Nordwaldkammweg leads from the Czech-Austrian border area Dreisesselberg in the Bohemian Forest through the north of the Mühlviertel to Nebelstein in the Waldviertel.

Way of the book

The Way of the Book is an old Bible smuggler route and follows in the footsteps of book smugglers and secret Protestants over a distance of 529 kilometers. The “Way of the Book” begins in Schärding in western Upper Austria on the Bavarian border and leads over the Salzkammergut , the Dachstein, over Styria, the Carinthian Nockberge to Agoritschach near Arnoldstein near the Slovenian border. Thanks to its north-south course, this Protestant pilgrimage route passes numerous other routes, such as the Wolfgangweg, the two main routes of the Austrian Jakobsweg, the variant of the Mariazellerweg coming from Salzburg, the Hemmapilgerweg, the Alpen-Adria-Trail and the Carinthian Marienpilgerweg, so one Combination with other routes is easily possible.

Wachau World Heritage Trail

The Wachau World Heritage Trail was opened like the Donausteig in 2010. It is a 180 km long circular hiking trail that connects the most beautiful places and the most important sights of the Wachau on both banks of the Danube.

Nibelungengau long-distance hiking trail

The 110 km long Nibelungengau hiking trail connects the Upper Austrian Donausteig in the west with the Wachau World Heritage Trail in the east and runs in eight stages from Sarmingstein to Persenbeug .

Viennese Alpine Arch Path

This approx. 300 km long hiking trail leads through typical alpine landscapes along the Viennese Alpine arc. The path leads in 19 stages from the Bucklige Welt , over the ridge of the Wechsel Mountains , over the Semmering , up to the Rax and through the Höllental , on the Schneeberg to the foot of the Hohe Wand in the Wiener Neustädter Becken.

Way of St. James

The Way of St. James , a European network of pilgrimage routes that leads to Santiago de Compostela in northern Spain, comprises two main routes in Austria:

East-West Route Jakobsweg Austria from Wolfsthal (near Hainburg) via Schwechat , Purkersdorf , Maria Langegg , Ybbs , Linz , Lambach , Salzburg , St. Johann in Tirol , Strass im Zillertal , Innsbruck , Zams and St. Christoph to Feldkirch . The connection route to the Obere Straß to Maria Einsiedeln is about 100 km long.

Individual sections of this route have been signposted and named regionally, e.g. B. Jakobsweg Purkersdorf – Göttweig , Wachau Jakobsweg , Jakobsweg Melk – Persenbeug , Jakobsweg Persenbeug – Sankt Pantaleon , Jakobsweg Salzburg , Jakobsweg Tirol , Jakobsweg Landeck – Einsiedeln .

South-west route from Thal near Graz via Ehrenhausen to Marburg , on to Vuzenica , Lavamünd , Glainach , St. Jakob im Rosental , Villach , St. Jakob ob Ferndorf , Spittal an der Drau , Berg im Drautal , Lienz , Toblach , Bruneck , Sterzing , Brenner to Innsbruck to the Jakobsdom .
There are also connections to the main routes: B. on the north-west route South Moravia - Weinviertel, Brno - Mikulov - Krems / Mautern the Jakobsweg Weinviertel and with the Jakobsweg Upper Mühlviertel , the Jakobsweg Innviertel and the Jakobsweg Bohemia – Bavaria – Tyrol connecting routes from Bohemia and from the Upper Mühlviertel . The Jakobsweg West Styria, on the other hand, joins the south-west route at Lavamünd . A Jakobsweg from Hungary joins the east-west route of the Jakobsweg Austria at Wolfsthal , while an alternative route initially joins the Jakobsweg Burgenland at Halbturn and only joins the east-west route mentioned at Haslau-Maria Ellend .

Via Alpina

Dia Via Alpina is a project by eight Alpine countries. Three routes run through Austria, namely parts of the Red Route, the Yellow Route and the Violet Route. They do not represent independent paths, but run along some of the great Austrian long-distance hiking trails.

Burgenland Extreme Trail

The route follows the classic route around Lake Neusiedl and leads through Hungary and northern Burgenland and historically emerged from the Burgenland Extreme Tour. The route leads through the unique UNESCO World Heritage Site Fertő-Neusiedler See and the National Park Neusiedler See - Seewinkel (Austria / Hungary).

Distance: around 120 km
Lowest point: 114 m long Lacke (lowest point Austria)
Highest point: 174 m

literature

Styria series:

Robert Wurst: On Europe's great roads. Hiking & culture . Styria, Graz, ISBN 3-222-12346-2 .

Hans Hödl , Werner Rachoy, Robert Wurst: On Austria's great roads. Long-distance hiking trail 01 - 10 . Styria, Graz.

^S1Alois Messeritsch, Werner Rachoy, Robert Wurst: 01 North Alpine long-distance hiking trail from Lake Neusiedl to Lake Constance . 5th edition. Styria, Graz 2001, ISBN 978-3-222-11798-5 (out of print).

^S4Herwig Baumgartner, Eduard Dattler, Robert Wurst: 04 Pre- Alpine long-distance hiking trail. Vienna Woods Salzkammergut Berchtesgaden . 2nd Edition. Styria, Graz 1995, ISBN 978-3-222-12329-0 .

^S5Eduard Dattler, Carl Hermann, Fritz Käfer: 05 Long- distance hiking trail. North south . 5th edition. Styria, Graz 1998, ISBN 978-3-222-12571-3 .

^S6Erika Käfer, Fritz Käfer: Pilgrimage routes to Mariazell. Mariazellerweg 06 . 4th edition. Styria, Graz 2003, ISBN 978-3-222-13109-7 .

^S7Herwig Baumgartner, Ernst Kreutzer, Josef Wallner: 07 Eastern Austrian border path. Nebelstein Rust Bad Radkersburg . Styria, Graz 1996, ISBN 978-3-222-12394-8 .

^S9Franz Kossina, Werner Rachoy, Robert Wurst: 09 Salzsteig long-distance hiking trail. Mühlviertel Dead Mountains Nock Area . Styria, Graz 1983.

^S8Werner Rachoy, Josef Steffan, Robert Wurst: 08 Eisenwurzen long-distance hiking trail. Waldviertel Gesäuse Karawanken . Styria, Graz 1980.

^S10Feix, Werner Rachoy, Robert Wurst: 10 Ruperti long-distance hiking trail. Bohemian Forest Gastein Valley Carnic Alps . Styria, Graz 1981.

PES series

^Ö4Günther Eigenhaler, Erika Käfer, Fritz Käfer, Karl Mor: 04 Pre-Alpine long-distance hiking trail. Vienna Woods - Berchtesgaden - Lake Constance . Ed .: OEAV, long-distance hikers section. Wienerland, November 2019.
^Ö5Erika Käfer, Fritz Käfer: 05 long-distance hiking trail. From the Waldviertel highlands to the Windischen Büheln . Ed .: ÖAV, section long-distance hikers. November 2018.
^Ö7Günther Eigenhaler, Erika Käfer, Fritz Käfer: 07 Eastern Austrian border path. Nordland - Nebelstein - Bad Radkersburg . Ed .: OEAV, long-distance hikers section. November 2018.
^Ö9Erika Käfer, Fritz Käfer: 09 Salzsteig long-distance hiking trail. From the Sternstein in the Mühlviertel to the western Karawanken . Ed .: ÖAV, section long-distance hikers. February 2018.
^Ö10Erika Käfer, Fritz Käfer: 10 Ruperti long-distance hiking trail. From the Bohemian Forest to the Carnic Alps . Ed .: ÖAV, section long-distance hikers. April 2018.

Such as:

^K1Gerald Radinger: Northern Alpine Trail - From Vienna to Bregenz in 50 days . Kral Verlag, Berndorf 2016, ISBN 978-3-99024-319-0 .
^Ö1Wienerland (Ed.): 02 long-distance hiking trail. Central Alpine long-distance hiking trail . Wienerland, 1978.
Christian K. Rupp: Austria: Adlerweg, Conrad Stein Verlag Welver, ISBN 978-3-86686-469-6
^W2Fritz Peterka: Zentralalpenweg 02: Danube Valley - Main Alpine Ridge - Rhine Valley . 5th edition. Wienerland, Langenzersdorf 2006, ISBN 978-3-900451-39-4 .
^W2Fritz Peterka: Jacob's and Marian pilgrimage route Moravia - Weinviertel. Brno - Krems / Mautern . 1st edition. Wienerland, Langenzersdorf 2010, ISBN 978-3-900451-46-2 (or ISBN 978-3-900451-47-9 (Czech)).
^RA Clemens Hutter : Arnoweg. The Salzburg circular hiking trail . 2nd Edition. Bergverlag Rother, Munich 2008, ISBN 978-3-7633-4293-8 ( rother.de - 1st edition 1999, new edition planned for 2011).
Erika and Fritz Käfer "Pilgrimage routes to Mariazell north-east", "Pilgrimage routes to Mariazell west-south" 2015.

See also: Library of the Alpine Association in Vienna ( Memento from January 7, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) → Area: Long-distance hiking / circular hiking trails - Bibliography for the topic of long-distance hiking in Austria, individual route