A Weekend Trip To The Countryside Near Vienna

In Vienna, rent a car. For ease, we suggest using Sixt, as it’s a very common and popular car rental service with easy locations across Vienna. However, we felt like trying something crazy and new, so we actually rented our car through Drivy. It’s like the European equivalent of the US carsharing service Turo, where you rent cars from individual car owners.

We rented an Airbnb in Krems an der Donau. From there, it’s a short 10 minute drive up to Langenlois. There are a ton of wineries scattered throughout Langenlois—search in Google Maps for the word “Weingut”, which means winery.

The thing we found that was strange was that none of the wineries appeared open. However, when we happened to stumble across an employee, they were more than happy to do a full pour. And by full, I mean like 3-4 full glasses worth (can’t you tell from my face in the picture above?).

The best part? It was all free, other than us willingly buying a bottle or two at the end (and bottles are very reasonable, starting at around €8). The area is mainly known for Grüner Veltliner, a delicious white wine.

Wineries we visited: Rabl, Jurtschitsch, and Weszeli (our favorite).

Heuriger is a German word that is shortened from “Heuriger Wein”, meaning “this year’s wine”. It’s basically an outdoor tavern that usually offers local wine as well as cold food such as cheese and cured meats.

We wandered from our Airbnb over to the village of Stein an der Donau (walking distance but up a hill a bit) and stumbled upon a lovely little heuriger in a winery garden. Their bar was a giant wine barrel and the backdrop was a hillside vineyard.

We ordered a cheese plate and a meat plate along with a side of bread, and two glasses of wine. Total cost was less than €25.

Heuriger we visited: Heuriger am Rebentor Resch (location)

Leave early (if your hangover isn’t too rough) and drive to the mountain village of Mariazell, where you should rent a hotel or Airbnb. It’s about a 2-hour drive, or a bit longer if you turn on the “Avoid highways” option in your Waze app and head for more winding scenery.

Your hike begins in Wienerbruck—it’s about a 20 minute drive from Mariazell. Park at the Ötscher Tormäuer Nature Park center and pay for a 4 hour parking ticket for €2.

Inside the building, purchase a combo ticket for €5. It gets you into the nature park plus a ticket for the train ride back to Wienerbruck at the end of your hike.

There are a few different hike options, but the one we did that was absolutely beautiful was the hike to Erlaufklause. It takes about 3-3.5 hours and is mainly flat or downhill until the very last hour (then it is all uphill).

You should first follow signs to Ötschergräben. A little over halfway, you’ll come across Ötscherhias, a quaint food/drink cabin. You’ll pass the gorgeous Lassingfall waterfall along the way. From the food cabin, follow signs for Erlaufklause. Towards the end you’ll pass a dam and lake—the train back is just beyond there.

ps. There are two portapotties along the way. One outside a cool water power station/museum about an hour in, and one at Ötschergräben. Bring some change to donate for their use.

What we hiked: Here’s a full map of the hike

There are tons of places you can eat in Mariazell, but if you’re interested in the off-the-beaten path and don’t mind spending money, we have just the place. The Lurgbauer farm/restaurant is about 15 minutes drive from Mariazell, and is quite remote—you have to follow a beautiful road through long winding forest trail.

The farm and restaurant are family-owned and run, and all the beef on the menu comes from the herd you can see out across the field. Pricey, but beyond delicious. Also be warned—there is no English menu, so bring a dictionary or download a phone app to help you figure out what is what.

Tip: Book a few days in advance and ask to be in the room with the windows. Visit LurgBauer.at

On Friday nights in the summer, you can also attend the Mariazeller Bergwelle. It’s a unique local concert that takes place on a lake at the top of the mountain. Tickets include a ride up and down on the gondola, a blanket to borrow, the concert, and the laser water show afterwards.

In the venue there’s a drink and food shack with little yummy snacks you can purchase, but we recommend eating your main meal before heading up.

Cost: €55 for reserved seats 

Head back to Vienna! We have no particular recommendations for this day. On our route we found a mini hike up to an abandoned castle and stopped at a couple of cute village coffee shops and a local festival. The journey should take about 2-2.5 hours without any stops.

Your own adventure will depend on your route!