Why this ride
329 km from Baden to Baden, about 5 h 35 of riding. On the way it passes Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus, Zwentendorf - Kastell, Windstallgraben - Wachtturm and Pöchlarn - Vicus und Kastellbad. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Baden bei Wien and Pöchlarn - Vicus und Kastellbad
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 329 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 5 h 35
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Scenic road chapters
Baden bei Wien → Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus
46 km through ground somebody thought worth listing. The road passes it rather than bypassing it — speed drops and stays down. Park rather than crawl through.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 54 km
Wachau Danube Road
For about 33 km this is Wachau Danube Road, a road with a name of its own and a reason for it. Expect company on a summer weekend. Early is better than fast.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 33 km
- Named road
- Wachau Danube Road
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Baden bei Wien
The Romans already knew about the hot sulphur springs at Baden, just south of Vienna, but it was in the early nineteenth century that the town became the summer playground of the Habsburg court. Emperor Franz I spent his summers here, and the aristocracy and the wealthy bourgeoisie followed, building elegant villas, parks and bathhouses in the Biedermeier style. Beethoven came to take the waters too, staying many times and working on his Ninth Symphony in a house that is now a museum. In 2021, Baden was listed by UNESCO as one of the Great Spa Towns of Europe, alongside Bath, Baden-Baden, Karlovy Vary and others.
Read the complete Baden bei Wien write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Baden bei Wien is where the day begins. Next is Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus.
2. Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus
Klosterneuburg Abbey rises on a terrace above the Danube just north of Vienna, its baroque domes topped with an imperial crown and an archducal hat, and few visitors realise that beneath its walls lie the remains of a Roman fort. The Romans guarded this stretch of the Danube frontier, the Limes, with a chain of forts, and Klosterneuburg's position on a hill overlooking the river made it an obvious choice. The fort and the civil settlement around it are part of the UNESCO site of the Danube Limes, inscribed in 2021.
Read the complete Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus comes up about 54 km into the recorded legs. Next is Zwentendorf - Kastell.
3. Zwentendorf - Kastell
The Danube flows broad and brown past Zwentendorf, a quiet village on the Tullnerfeld plain west of Vienna, and for once the most famous building in the area is not the oldest one. Zwentendorf is where Austria built a nuclear power station in the 1970s and then, after a national referendum in 1978, decided never to switch it on. The plant still stands by the river, complete and unused, now a training site and a curiosity.
Read the complete Zwentendorf - Kastell write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 93 km into the recorded legs you reach Zwentendorf - Kastell. Next is Windstallgraben - Wachtturm.
4. Windstallgraben - Wachtturm
Between Dürnstein and Mautern, a small gully called the Windstallgraben cuts down toward the Danube, and somewhere along its edge stood a Roman watchtower. The Wachau valley was once the frontier of the empire, and the Danube was the line. The Romans built a chain of forts and watchtowers along the south bank, and Mautern, ancient Favianis, was one of the strongest. The Danube Limes in Austria and Germany is now part of a UNESCO World Heritage listing, and these modest remains are part of that long, thin story.
Read the complete Windstallgraben - Wachtturm write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Windstallgraben - Wachtturm, about halfway. Next is Pöchlarn - Vicus und Kastellbad.
5. Pöchlarn - Vicus und Kastellbad
Pöchlarn is a small town on the south bank of the Danube, a few kilometres upstream from Melk, where the river is broad and slow and the Wachau valley is about to begin. The Romans called it Arelape and kept a fort here on the frontier of the empire, with a civilian settlement, the vicus, and a bathhouse for the garrison. Not much is visible above ground, but the town is part of the Danube Limes World Heritage site, which traces that long line of forts and watchtowers through Austria.
Read the complete Pöchlarn - Vicus und Kastellbad write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Pöchlarn - Vicus und Kastellbad sits at 167 km, about halfway. Next is back through Windstallgraben - Wachtturm.
6. back through Windstallgraben - Wachtturm
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Windstallgraben - Wachtturm write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Windstallgraben - Wachtturm comes up about 206 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Zwentendorf - Kastell.
7. back through Zwentendorf - Kastell
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Zwentendorf - Kastell write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 239 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Zwentendorf - Kastell. Next is back through Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus.
8. back through Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus, late in the day. Next is Baden bei Wien.
9. Baden bei Wien
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Baden bei Wien write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 329 km.
Leg by leg
Baden bei Wien to Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus
Baden bei Wien → Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus is 54 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus to Zwentendorf - Kastell
Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus → Zwentendorf - Kastell is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Zwentendorf - Kastell to Windstallgraben - Wachtturm
Zwentendorf - Kastell → Windstallgraben - Wachtturm is 33 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Windstallgraben - Wachtturm to Pöchlarn - Vicus und Kastellbad
Windstallgraben - Wachtturm → Pöchlarn - Vicus und Kastellbad is 42 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Pöchlarn - Vicus und Kastellbad to back through Windstallgraben - Wachtturm
Pöchlarn - Vicus und Kastellbad → back through Windstallgraben - Wachtturm is 38 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Windstallgraben - Wachtturm to back through Zwentendorf - Kastell
back through Windstallgraben - Wachtturm → back through Zwentendorf - Kastell is 33 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Zwentendorf - Kastell to back through Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus
back through Zwentendorf - Kastell → back through Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus to Baden bei Wien
back through Klosterneuburg - Kastell und Vicus → Baden bei Wien is 52 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.