Purkersdorf sits at the eastern edge of the Wienerwald, where the Vienna Woods roll down into the city, and it is the last stop before the motorway delivers you back to Vienna. The town follows the narrow valley of the Wien river, and the hills around are covered with beech forest, meadows and small villages, a landscape of gentle curves and green shade.
The town has one great building. The Sanatorium Purkersdorf, designed by Josef Hoffmann in 1904, was one of the first buildings of modern architecture, a white, cubic structure with geometric details that broke with the ornament of the past. It was a key work of the Wiener Werkstätte, and it still stands, restored, on the edge of town.
For riders, the Wienerwald offers some of the best roads near Vienna. The Riederberg, on the B1 between Gablitz and Sieghartskirchen, is a long, winding climb through forest, popular with bikers on weekends. Small roads lead to Mauerbach, with its old Carthusian monastery, and over the hills to the Danube. Surfaces are generally good, but watch for cyclists, wildlife and police checks.
The forests are home to deer, boar and a rich variety of birds, and in autumn the beech woods turn gold and copper. The Wienerwald is a UNESCO biosphere reserve, protecting a landscape that has inspired Viennese composers and painters for centuries.
Before the city takes you back, look for a green bush or a wreath hung over a doorway: in this part of Austria it means a Heuriger is open, serving the producer's own young wine with bread, cold meats and cheese. One small glass, a long plate, and the last kilometres into Vienna feel shorter.