Sustainable Cycle Tourism along the Danube Cycle Route in Austria

Abstract

During July and August up to 80,000 cyclists pass by the town of Krems on the Danube cycle route. The high numbers of cycle tourists are encouraging for tourism managers and traffic planners alike. These tourists spend money on lodging, dining and shopping and strengthen the local economy without generating motorised traffic in the region.

We can infer that cycle tourism strongly depends on good tourist infrastructure in combination with regional attractions and a beautiful landscape. Cycle tourism can be assumed to be one of the most sustainable forms of tourism. Surveys reveal that cycle tourists enjoy all the amenities other tourists also favour, without causing environmental pollution as motorised modes of transport do. The Danube cycle route in Austria and the cycle tourism in this area can be models for sustainable tourism and other cycle routes in similarly attractive regions.

Acknowledgements

The author wishes to express his gratitude to both Hermine Zeitlhofer and Michael Aleksa, whose work was substantial for the contents of this paper. Figure 4 by courtesy of Niederösterreich-Werbung (2000).

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