Austria / Carinthia / Villach – Lake Faak – Lake Ossiach Region / Cycling & Mountain Biking

Superb cycling in holiday paradise!

Mountain biking, road cycling on World Championship courses or leisurely riding round the lakes: the Villach – Lake Faak – Lake Ossiach Region offers endless opportunities in scenic settings.

Cycling is definitely a growing trend. And if you want to keep in training while you are away or see the sights by bike, you will find the perfect ingredients for a dream holiday here in the heart of Carinthia. Whether three-country tours by mountain or racing bike, exciting single trails with the fun factor thrown in or trips with the kids to a lake for a swim: few holiday regions have as much to offer in the great outdoors – and as many ways of exploring on two wheels!

Pedalling between lakes and mountains. A network of cycle paths and trails along gurgling streams and rivers takes you from one lake to the next. The landscape is almost too beautiful to be true. You can stop off for refreshments at lakeside cafés or a dip in the water that reaches up to 28 degrees in summer. Another unforgettable experience is a trip south into the neighbouring countries, such as the tour from the Italian border town of Tarvisio to Lake Ossiach or from Kranjska Gora in Slovenia to Lake Faak. First you can take the bus across the border to Kranjska Gora and then cycle from there via Tarvisio along the former Pontebbana railway line back to Austria. On the bus to Slovenia you may also meet many walkers intending to do stage 22 of the Alpe Adria Trail from Kranjska Gora back to Lake Faak. An alternative is the bike bus from Lake Ossiach to Spittal an der Drau, from where you can ride along the River Drau cycle path – it is slightly downhill and therefore not too strenuous – back to Villach and Lake Ossiach. And while you have a break in Villach, the lively town on the Drau, your bicycle will be safe with the bike butler – a service (like the bike buses) that is free of charge with the Region’s Experience CARD.

Incidentally, the 366 km Drau trail is one of only four European cycle paths to be given a five star rating by the German Cyclists Association (ADFC). Also highly commended (with the 2016 Italian Green Road Award): the Ciclovia Alpe Adria, a bike trail that runs from Salzburg to the Adriatic in Italy. The sections from Villach across the border into the picturesque Val Canale are also very popular as half or full-day tours. Many locals ride to the little town of Venzone at the entrance to the Canale del Ferro. Once you have managed the short hill up to Tarvisio, the most tiring part of the route is behind you. Then it’s downhill almost all the way – through impressive countryside and fought over border areas with many front line defences still visible today. After a well-earned rest in Venzone, officially one of Italy’s most attractive villages, you can then board the Micotra train (with a waggon for bikes) and enjoy the leisurely return trip to Villach.

Forest tracks and single trails. You can also have endless fun exploring the mountain bike routes in the Villach – Lake Faak – Lake Ossiach Region. Nowhere can you see the changing scenery and get a taste of three countries more quickly and intensely than on the MTB Tour 3. If you want, you can have your breakfast on Lake Faak, lunch in Kranjska Gora and an afternoon espresso in Tarvisio. Just under 90 kilometres long, the tour only has one significant climb (right at the start). You will however be rewarded with spectacular panoramic views of the mountains and unforgettable impressions of three cultures. Shorter, but none the less recommendable are the intermediate Prefelnig mountain bike tour on the south side of the Ossiach Tauern range, with breath-taking views of Lake Ossiach, and the route round Oswaldiberg near Villach (both between 11 and 12 kilometres long).

Beside it, on Kumitzberg, you will find Villach’s brand-new Areaone Mountain Bike Skill Centre. Professional guides at the first centre of its kind in the Alps-Adriatic region will give both beginners and experts (and even the very young on balance bikes) tips and tricks to perfect their techniques. Six short practice trails at different levels of difficulty are available. Their features range from simple balancing exercises to challenging switchbacks and jumps over a five metre gap catering for all kinds of riders.

The courses at areaonewill be held from June on. Starting in May, there will be weekly workshops with guided tours on the new Kopein Trail on Lake Faak. The mountain bike enduro trail (intermediate level) is about 6 kilometres long. Two other shorter single tracks, the Samonig Trail and Shorty Trail near Latschach, are currently being planned in the vicinity. Many local bike enthusiasts will therefore soon be able to combine these three courses into one varied MTB enduro tour with a high percentage of trails.

Road cycling on World Championship courses. “Nowhere is as good for road biking as the Villach Region,” says someone who should be in the know: Paco Wrolich, one of Austria’s most successful professional cyclists, comes from the village of Latschach on Lake Faak. Among his personal favourites is the three-country tour from Lake Faak via Tarvisio in Italy and the Predil Pass to Bovec in Slovenia and from there over the Vršič Pass (Slovenia’s highest) to Kranjska Gora and back to Austria. It is a round trip with quite a few climbs but well worth the effort. Like on the MTB Tour 3 described above, the truly remarkable route gives you a unique insight into three different countries and cultures on one single day.

A none the less amazing experience for road cyclists is the Dobratsch nature park. Gruelling at times, the 16.5 kilometre long climb up the Villach Alpine Road has often been used as the mountain stage for the Tour of Austria race. There is even an app where you can time yourself and compare your results with the professionals’ best times. If you want to see where top cyclists ride on not quite such steep routes, you can head for the short, but demanding 1987 World Cycling Championship circuit. Located on Lake Faak, it will take you along good, varied roads where traffic tends to be light and up quite a long hill (from St. Niklas to the lake) that the athletes taking part in the Ironman Austria Triathlon also have to tackle every year. The former World Championship course is also used for the Lake Faak Triathlon over the Olympic distance in late August.

At the end of May, Austria’s largest stage race for everyone is held on Lake Ossiach: the six-day Tour de Kärnten. Covering a total of 430 kilometres with an elevation gain of 8,000 metres, it provides perfect training under race conditions for both amateurs and professionals.

The pace is much more leisurely round the region’s largest lake on 21 May. Held for the 14th time this year, the traffic-free day on Lake Ossiach makes Sunday cycling or inline skating with the children safer and much more fun. A tip: if you prefer to watch all the action from above, you can take the Gerlitzen cable car from the lake up the mountain and then ride your bike down the toll road. Bike tickets for the cable car and also for the Lake Ossiach boats are available throughout the season, e.g. with the Kärnten Card. The Kärnten Card (costing from €38 for adults and €18 for children) is available for one, two or five weeks.

Guided bike tours with the Experience CARD. And the Villach Region’s Experience CARD even entitles you to complimentary services such as the bike butler, many guided tours, trail workshops and the bike buses to Italy, Slovenia and Spittal an der Drau. The Experience CARD for visitors is available free of charge from all participating hotels.

Information and bookings:

Region Villach Tourismus GmbH

Töbringer Str. 1 • 9523 Villach-Landskron • Austria

Tel: +43 4242 42000–0 • Fax ext: 42

E-mail:

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2017Cycling & Mountain Biking

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