Carinthia Lakes bike round trip – enjoyment tour
Discover famous lakes by bike
The Carinthia Lakes Roundtrip is a bicycle tour to the most beautiful lakes of Carinthia. It follows the original Great Lakes Loop but longer passages along the route and the challenging uphill to Weissensee are replaced by transfers by train or van. Past blue and turquoise lakes, accompanied by a hilly and mountainous landscape, the route fascinates with a varied landscape. The Mediterranean influence in the south of Austria makes cycling a pleasure from April to October. The cycling tour takes you from Villach, the cycling capital of Carinthia, to Lake Millstatt and Lake Weissensee, then from Lake Pressegg along the Gailtal cycle path past Lake Faak to the emerald green Lake Wörthersee. The well-known Drau cycle path takes you to Lake Klopeiner See and then back to the provincial capital Klagenfurt and further along Lake Wörthersee towards Villach. On the last day of the tour you will cycle around Lake Ossiach before returning to the starting point of your enjoyable bike tour – Villach.
This tour leads mostly on well laid out bicycle routes, often directly along the lakesides. The route is mainly flat inthe eastern section, slightly hilly along the western one.
TRAVEL ITINERARY
8 days / 7 nights
Day 1: Villach
You will arrive at your hotel in Villach. Parking spaces available close to the hotel.
Day 2: Villach – Lake Millstatt round trip – Millstatt/Seeboden
(approx. 30 km)
In the morning you take the train to Lendorf near Spittal a.d. Drau. From there you cycle on secondary roads to Lake Millstatt, which is completely surrounded by a cycle path. You will discover the untouched south shore without any roads where you can enjoy a breathtaking view of the lake in many places. Along the northern shore you cycle, partly directly along the lake, to the capital of the region, Millstatt am See. Already the Austrian emperor spent his holidays here, and many elegant villas from this era are still preserved.
Day 3: Millstatt/Seeboden – Lake Weißensee – Hermagor/Lake Pressegger See/Tröpolach
(approx. 30 km)
In the morning, a shuttle bus takes you up to the lake Weißensee. Once on the top you have time to enjoy the impressive natural surroundings of the lake. Take a boat trip (ticket incl.), a short hike or a swim. You will then continue taking the boat to the starting point of the cycling stage. Here a short climb awaits you first before descending along the dreamy Gitschtal valley to your stage destination.
Day 4: Hermagor/Lake Pressegger/Tröpolach – Gailtal - Lake Faaker See – Mühlbach and Wörthersee
(approx. 60 - 75 km)
Your cycle tour today takes you downhill throughout, along the Gailtal cycle path. The wide valley is unspoilt and the cycle path runs right through the natural landscape along the river. At the beginning of your cycle tour you will pass the Pressegger See lake. Like all Carinthian lakes, it is a bathing lake with warm temperatures. Part of the tour then leads before Villach at the foot of the majestic Dobratsch mountain through a nature reserve that was created in the course of a historic rock fall. Here, too, you cycle directly along the Gail River, which is wide and shallow at this point and used as a bathing spot by many nature lovers. The cycle path continues towards Lake Faak. It is the emerald among the Carinthian lakes, not very big, but very warm and turquoise like the Caribbean. You cycle around the lake from south to east and then continue along the Drau cycle path to your destination for today - Lake Wörthersee.
Day 5: Mühlbach/Wörthersee/Faakersee – Rosegg – Cycle path Drava - Lake Klopeiner See
(approx. 60 - 75 km)
In the morning you start at Lake Wörthersee and cycle along the Drau cycle path (awarded 5 stars by the ADFC). This tour runs via Rosegg and through the beautiful Rosental, along the Ferlach reservoir and mostly often directly on the Drau and through unspoilt nature to Lake Klopein, one of the warmest bathing lakes in Carinthia.
Day 6: Lake Klopeiner See - Völkermarkter Strausse - Grafenstein - Klagenfurt - Pörtschach/ Velden
(ca. 55-65 km)
A lap around Lake Klopeiner See should not be missed before you then cycle along the Völkermarkt reservoir and via Grafenstein back towards Klagenfurt. The route then continues along the northern shore of Lake Wörthersee, through the well-known and popular seaside resorts of Pörtschach and Velden. Along this Wörthersee cycle path, small bathing spots invite you to take a refreshing dip in Lake Wörthersee before you reach today‘s stage destination on Lake Wörthersee. If you want to spend more time in Klagenfurt, you can also shorten your cycling route on Lake Wörthersee by taking a train ride or one of the Wörthersee boats (tickets are not included).
Day 7: Wörthersee – Lake Ossiacher See – Villach
(approx. 50-60 km)
The Seebach leads you out of Villach and soon you will notice the castle ruin of Landskron, dominating the valley below. Surrounded by the idyllic mountain scenery, you will come across inviting bathing resorts and the romantic Ossiach monastery. The dark green colour of the lake water is really inviting to take a last bath before closing the roundtrip in Villach.
Day 8: Villach
Tour end and departure from Villach or possibility of extension.
Prices and dates
| Standard | ||
|---|---|---|
| Package | view calendar | |
It is recommended to purchase an optional travel cancellation policy. Prices valid subject to changes in the offer, omissions, printing errors or arithmetic.
| Price per night in double room with breakfast | Villach | 79 € | |
It is recommended to purchase an optional travel cancellation policy. Prices valid subject to changes in the offer, omissions, printing errors or arithmetic.
| rental 21-gear bicycle (men) | 99 € | |
| rental bike 21-gear (women) | 99 € | |
| rental electric bike | 209 € | |
It is recommended to purchase an optional travel cancellation policy. Prices valid subject to changes in the offer, omissions, printing errors or arithmetic.
Prices:
General information
Discover all the services we offer and book one of our tours now.
By car: Villach is easily accessible on the motorways A2, A10 or A11 (depending on the point of origin).
By train: Good train connections to Villach. Timetable on: www.deutschebahn.de, www.oebb.at, www.trenitalia.com.
By plane: Airport Klagenfurt, Salzburg or Ljubljana. There are good train connections from all these cities to your starting point.
Inns and hotels 3*** and 4**** category.
Please note: Tourist tax – if applicable – has to be paid on spot!
Depending on the hotel at arrival, unattended parking facilities are available, either directly at your hotel or nearby (for the entire duration of the tour). Public parking garage at the cost of approx. € 40.00 per week. No reservation of the parking area/parking garage possible; payable on spot.
• 21-gears women‘s or men‘s bicycle
• E-bike (UNISEX bike, 500 W battery; range up to 100 km)
• Accommodation in inns and hotel 3** and 4*** category
• Breakfast
• On the day of arrival, our service team is available on site for questions and bike handover
• Transfers and train tickets according to the program
• Luggage transfer from hotel to hotel
• Train ticket: Villach - Lendorf near Spittal an der Drau; transfer according to programme: Millstatt - Weißensee and boat trip Weissensee Ostufer-Neusach
• Well planned routes
• Detailed documents (maps, route description, places to visit, important telephone numbers)
• navigation APP
• Telephone service hotline for the entire tour
• Navigation app; GPS data
• Arrival transfer to the starting point of the tour
• Departure transfer at the end of the tour
• Drinks, tourist tax and all extras
• Lunch, Dinner
• Not mentioned entry fees
• Not mentioned train and boat tickets
• Rental bikes and travel insurance
• All not expressly mentioned under the item „Included services“
