Danube Cycle Path from Passau to Bratislava

7
LEFT BANK
TULLN AN DER DONAU TO VIENNA
// MODEL GARDENS, PIED PIPERS AND RECREATIONAL ISLANDS
E-Bike-rental station at DIE GARTEN TULLN © Steve Haider
Take a history tour of Tulln an der Donau, a town
known for its gardens and art: You will explore,
among other things, the Church of the Friars
Minor in Late Baroque style plus the parts of Tulln
dating to Roman times. At the Roman Museum
you find out even more about this period, when this
town was still called Comagena. Visits to the Egon
Schiele Museum, the Egon Schiele birthplace,
a walk on the Egon Schiele Thematic Trail
or through DIE GARTEN TULLN (show gardens,
tree-top trails, water park) require a little more time.
You then head for Vienna, pedaling by the extensive
Stockerau Au. At the Greifenstein power station,
you may want to take a break to visit nearby
Stockerau, a town known for its summer theater.
Climb the church tower there, for instance. It is Lower
Austria’s highest. You see the two fortresses Greifenstein
and Kreuzenstein on either side of the
Danube initially far off, then looming ever closer. Soon
after passing the Greifenstein power station, you arrive
in the Korneuburg, »Town of the Pied Piper«.
Legend has it that a Pied Piper rid Korneuburg of rats
but was cheated out of his pay. To get revenge, he
enticed the town’s children away. The Pied Piper
Fountain in front of the Neo-Gothic town hall is
a reminder of this tale. The main square (Hauptplatz)
is lined with patrician homes and dominated
by the massive medieval city tower. After a look at
the Augustinian Church with its ceiling fresco by
the 18 c Austrian Rococo master Franz Anton Maulbertsch,
you leave this small town. Before you know
it, Vienna comes into sight.
When you finally cross to the Danube Island, you
know you are on Viennese soil. This 21 km long island
was built between 1972 and 1988 as part of a
flood control system and recreational area for Vienna
and its now nearly two million people. That explains
why you pass inviting beaches, playgrounds and
grilling sites on the last few meters before reaching
the Nordbrücke, the bridge that is your destination
for this stage. Vienna offers a wealth of sights – such
as St. Stephen’s Cathedral, the Art-history
Museum and the »Prater«.
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