Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The skinny island provides a natural wonderland. All along the pedestrianized, grassy
park, you'll find locals—both Viennese and especially immigrants and those who can't af-
ford their own cabin or fancy vacation—at play. The swimming comes tough, though, with
rocky entries rather than sand. The best activity here is a bike ride. If you venture far from
the crowds, you're likely to encounter nudists on inline skates.
Biking Danube Island: For a simple, breezy joyride, bike up and down the traffic-free
andpeople-filledisland.Weatherpermitting,youcanrentabikefromtheshopatthe Reichs-
brücke , the bridge spanning the island (€6/hour, €25/day, March-Oct daily 9:00-21:00,
closedoff-season,70yardsfromU-1:Donauinsel,tel.01/263-5242, www.fahrradverleih.at ) .
Donau City (Danaustadt)
This modern part of town, just beyond Danube Island, is the skyscraping “Manhattan” of
Austria. It was laid out as a potential Vienna-Budapest expo site in the 1990s. But Austrians
voteddownthefairidea,andeventually therealestate became today'smodernplannedcity:
It'squietandtraffic-free,withinvitingplazasandasmallchurchdwarfedbytoweringplaces
of business. The high-rise DC Towers are the tallest office buildings in Austria. With busi-
ness, residential, and shopping zones surrounded by inviting parkland, this corner of the city
is likely to grow as Vienna expands. Its centerpiece is the futuristic UNO City, one of four
United Nations headquarters worldwide. While it lacks the Old World character, charm, and
elegance of the rest of Vienna, Donau City may interest travelers who are into contemporary
glass-and-steel architecture (U-1: Kaisermühlen VIC).
Biking to Donau City and Beyond: Sightseers on bike can cross the Danube to Donau
City. From the Opera, it's pretty much a straight pedal around the center via the Ringstrasse,
pastPraterPark,andacrosstheriver.Thewayiseasyenoughtofindwiththehelpoftheba-
sic tourist map from the TI. (Recommended local guide Wolfgang Höfler leads tours along
this route, which he shared with me; see here . )
The route will take you over four stretches of water: the Danube Canal, the actual
Danube, the New Danube, and the Old Danube. Along the way, you'll gain a better under-
standing of the massive engineering done over the years to contain and tame the river.
Asyouleavethecitycenter,you'llfirstpedalovertheDanubeCanal,anarmoftheriver
that brings river traffic into the city; then you hit the main part of the river and the man-
made Danube Island (itself a part of the city's flood barriers). From the Reichsbrücke bridge
over the island, survey the river's traffic. The cruise industry is booming, and Vienna's river
cruise port is hosting more boats than ever. Many of them sail from here all the way to Ro-
mania and the Black Sea coast. You may also be inspired by the entire Austrian navy: Look
for the two tiny camouflaged gunboats moored in the shade of the bridge.
In the distance, across the river, are the skyscrapers of Donau City. To reach it, continue
acrossthebridgeoverDanubeIslandandcrosstheNewDanube.FromDonauCity,thebike
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