Austria walking holidays

Walking trips take place from spring to autumn. You can also do winter walking in the East Tyrol from December, January, February, to the end of March. Depending on the snow, you’ll use a combination of snow shoes and walking boots – with spikes attached if you like.

If you’re walking in the Danube area, walks start as early as March and April. Most walking holidays in the Alps run from May to September, but sometimes the highest routes aren’t snow-free until June. In spring, there will be flowers everywhere – though spring gets to the alpine meadows relatively late and you’ll see beautiful flowers all through summer.

High summer: July and August is really busy. Austria is so lovely, that everyone visits for the summer – especially Austrians. In the school holidays, popular resorts will be busy and bustling.

Autumn is cooler, but the beautiful birch forests of Kawendel national park turn the trails yellow with fallen leaves. It’s very unusual for early autumn to get any snow, but it does happen; the first snow of 2019 came in mid-September in the Hohe Taurn National Park. October and November are off season for walking.

Because of the nature of the hiking, you may not want to do Alpine walking if you suffer from vertigo – instead opt for a Danube walk. Not all paths are well marked up in the hills, but your walking company will provide detailed maps and directions. The weather changes fast in the mountains, so be flexible – if the summit is covered in cloud, there’s no loss doing a lovely lake walk instead. On long distance walks you may well cross into other countries. Austria has open borders, so you won’t even need your passport as you dip into Germany.