The Neusiedler See, Fertő in Hungarian, is a strange lake. It is huge, over three hundred square kilometres of water stretching from Austria across the border into Hungary, but almost nowhere is it deeper than a couple of metres, and a vast belt of reeds surrounds much of it, so that from many places you cannot actually see the water. It has no natural outflow, its level depends on rain and evaporation, and in the 1860s it dried out completely for several years, with farmers ploughing the lakebed. The lake and the villages around it were listed by UNESCO in 2001 as a cultural landscape shaped by thousands of years of human life on the border between Alpine and steppe worlds.
On the Austrian shore, Rust is a little town of baroque burghers' houses where storks nest on the chimneys, and Mörbisch hosts operetta festivals on a floating stage. On the Hungarian side, the Esterházy palace at Fertőd, sometimes called the Hungarian Versailles, was where Joseph Haydn served as court composer for decades. Just south of Sopron, in August 1989, the Pan-European Picnic opened a border gate for a few hours, and hundreds of East Germans ran through to the West, a moment that helped bring down the Iron Curtain.
This is flat country, and the riding is about wind, light and space rather than curves. Roads around the lake run through vineyards, villages and reed beds, with views across the water to the Leitha hills. The area is very popular with cyclists, so expect them in large numbers, especially on weekends; the Seewinkel, east of the lake, is an expanse of small salt lakes, pastures and bird reserves where grey cattle and water buffalo graze. Wind can be strong and gusty, and sudden thunderstorms in summer are not unusual. If you use motorways, remember both Austria and Hungary require a vignette.
Sopron, eleven kilometres away, is a lovely old town with everything you need, as are the larger villages on the Austrian side. This is wine country: Blaufränkisch reds, crisp whites and the sweet Ausbruch wines of Rust. Try fish from the lake, goulash on the Hungarian side, and the local apricot specialities in early summer. Spring and autumn, with migrating birds, are the best times.