My recent trip to Burgenland (the gently hilly southeastern corner of Austria) involved all kinds of local surprises.
Austria
Austria: in which I master the art of schnaps distillation
One of the destinations on my recent trip to Burgenland, Austria, was the Lagler hotel and distillery. Most of our brief time there involved eating and sleeping, but we did manage to squeeze in a couple of other fun activities, too, such as a morning swim in their adorable fake-grotto pool. But our visit was mostly about the schnaps.
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Austria: Easter eggs in Stinatz
I was off to Austria again this past week. This time around we had only fleeting glimpses of snow; most of the trip was spent in Burgenland, the southeastern part of the country full of gently rolling hills. Our first stop was Stinatz, a tiny village known for its hand-scratched Easter eggs.
The women (there are only four or five of them left) of Stinatz who make these eggs belong to a Croatian minority which settled here long ago. We visited one of the women in her home,
Austria: skiing in St. Anton
Stupid spring, sneaking in and stealing my winter away. I won’t stand for it! I will find snow, and I will participate in winter activities.
Hooray for living near the Alps, where there is snow all year round. This past weekend we found some delicious spring skiing in and around St. Anton, Austria.
Creative Austria: cheese and more in Schlierbach
Recently I had the opportunity to go on a press trip with Creative Tourism Austria. We spent the first day in the lovely little town of Schlierbach. I am pretty familiar with the Alpy part of Austria, and the Viennese part of Austria, but I think this was my first visit to the gently-hilly part of Upper Austria. We were assured that the landscapes and views are lovely in this part of the world, but alas, heavy fog kept us from enjoying them with our own eyes. No matter, as we found plenty to do indoors at Stift Schlierbach, a monastery full of activities that don’t require the least bit of chastity or charity.
FiveFingers Run in Innsbruck
In my recent travels I have been looking for opportunities to go for runs in my FiveFingers “barefoot” shoes. During our trip to Innsbruck I found a great run along the River Inn that runs through the city and provides great views.
The course I followed included the 5-Brücken-Runde (5 Bridge Loop), a ~5km route.
Austria: spa-ing it up in Sölden
Our first stop in the Ötztal was the recently-rebuilt Hotel Bergland in the mountain town of Sölden. Situated as it is in the Alps, it’s the kind of place that is full of skiers in the winter and hikers and bikers in the summer. After being welcomed with lunch in their dining room, we went on a tour of the hotel and then ended up at the top-floor spa for an afternoon of deep relaxation.
Austria: into the Ötz Valley
After Innsbruck, Scott and I split up to try out two different blogger trips that were offered to the conference attendees. How can you not love a conference that comes with free travel at the end?
I went for the Relaxation in the Ötz Valley (Ötztal) trip. We’ve been to this part of Austria before, but always in winter to ski. The Alps feel like a different world in summer.
Getting charmed by Innsbruck
Last week we headed to Innsbruck to attend a travel blogging conference. This little city nestled in the mountains absolutely oozes Austrian charm, so it was nice to have an excuse to go back. The old city center is full of pedestrian streets lined with shops and cafes, perfect for wandering around aimlessly.
Skiing Sheffau
This past weekend we bummed a ride with the Munich International Ski Club for a day of skiing at Sheffau, Austria. Sheffau is just one of many entry points into the irrsinnig gross* ski area which includes 91 lifts and almost 300 km of slopes. There was lots of fresh snow, and a little too much sunshine. Very good conditions.