Summer Sailing in Landlocked Austria

20th August 2024 | Simon Miller, Zell am See, Austria.

Last modified on September 1st, 2024

We’re in Austria for some summer activities. Primarily sailing, but also e-biking, hiking, via ferrata and tobogganing. Who says the mountains are just for winter?

Telling friends that you are embarking on a sailing holiday in Austria will elicit some odd looks – not surprising as the landlocked country is without a coastline.

When you then tell them that the lakes in Austria provide what are arguably some of the best places to learn to sail anywhere in the world, you won’t just get odd looks, but a raised eyebrow.

Formed around the majestic Lake Zell, Zell am See will be best known to PlanetSKI readers as a wonderful family ski resort.

PlanetSKI editor, James Cove, skied in the area last winter:

Zell am See/Kaprun: a superb all-round ski destination

Zell am See/Kaprun. Image © PlanetSKI

The 4km long lake still freezes in places some winters and old pictures of Zell am See show rally cars racing across the ice.

But in August 2024 the lake is a wonderful 23 degrees – no wetsuit required.

Summer in Austria. Image © Simon Miller/PlanetSKI

As a family we have been lucky enough to have been on a few flotilla sailing holidays, but infuriatingly, the teenagers would spend their time sunbathing, snorkeling and capturing Instagram fodder – anything really other than learn to sail.

I check them and my equally landlubber wife in to a beginners sailing class at the local sailing school on the promise that they would be able to sail after just four afternoon lessons.

The first session rolls around and we meet Harry who runs the local sailing school.

He wears a battered Red Bull Extreme Sailing Series hat – the kind that looks like he has taken part rather than just being a fan.

After a few basic safety checks and before the teenagers have a chance to complain, he has them in a Caravelle – a 4m dingy with two sails – and explains how to hoist & lower the sails.

Within a quarter of an hour they are off.

Summer in Austria. Image © Simon Miller/PlanetSKI

The wind is relatively light and therefore perfect for beginners, and I watch as each of them take it in turns to helm the boat through gentle tacks and jibes.

After just one afternoon, they are sailing with confidence – albeit with Harry onboard to provide tuition and encouragement.

With no tides, no ocean waves to contend with, no current and no monsters in the deep, Lake Zell is as controlled a setting for novice sailors as you could wish for.

As any sailor will tell you when things go wrong on a boat they go wrong very quickly, but with only a gentle breeze filling the sails there is never any rush or cause for panic affording the teens plenty of time to enact every manoeuvre.

Summer in Austria. Image © Simon Miller/PlanetSKI

This is idyllic “Swallows and Amazons” sailing at its finest and after just a couple of tutored sessions they are able to take the boat out without Harry on board.

We are blessed with good sailing conditions every day but for those seeking a more thrilling sailing experience other larger lakes such as Wörthersee may be a better bet.

Even with no wind there are plenty of alternative ways to enjoy the clear waters.

With motorboats banned, the lake is a clean and inviting safe space for paddleboards, kayaks, rowboats, pedalos, windsurfers and kitesurfers as well as swimmers.

We were also impressed with the free municipal bathing spaces around the lake, complete with slides, diving platforms and swim out trampolines.

Summer in Austria. Image © Simon Miller/PlanetSKI

Of course the majority of people who come to the mountains in the summer come for hiking, climbing, biking, canyoning, paragliding etc. Zell am See is no exception, so having “cracked” sailing, we decide that it’s time to head up the mountain.

First off eBiking.

The staff at Brundl Sports have our ebikes set up before we arrive and we are soon heading up to meet friends at the Enzian Hütte for the obligatory schnitzel and Kaisersmarren, before continuing up to the HundStein at 2177m.

E-bikes are an absolute revelation.

Summer in Austria. Image © Simon Miller/PlanetSKI

With only a modicum of effort we cover vast distances, gain some serious altitude and enjoy viewpoints that would otherwise not be possible to reach in single day with just manual pedal power.

Last summer PlanetSKI’s James Cove was e-biking, and much else besides, in the Tirol in Austria.

PlanetSKI is e-biking, hiking and summer glacier skiing in Austria

E-biking in the Tirol. Image © PlanetSKI

E-biking in Austria. Image © PlanetSKI

Coming to the Alps without doing a bit of climbing feels like a missed opportunity for me.

The tourist office gives us dozens of options to consider and we settle on the impressive dams above nearby Kaprun, keen to try the spectacular “Via Ferrata” or fixed cable climb.

Getting to the start point is in itself a fascinating adventure involving a cable car, a funicular and 2 short bus rides through a warren of narrow tunnels that burrow through the mountains.

As we approach the end, the sheer scale of the dam reveals itself and the ebullient teenagers become noticeably quieter.

Summer in Austria. Image © Simon Miller/PlanetSKI

We meet our guide who doles out helmets, gloves and most importantly a climbing belt with two carabiners to clip onto the fixed cable for safety.

We zip wire in silence on to the dam from where, despite the obvious vertiginous nature of “walls”, it is a moderately straightforward climb to the top – provided of course that you don’t look down.

Summer in Austria. Image © Simon Miller/PlanetSKI

Whilst being a very average climber – more a scrambler than proper climber, I am always drawn by the prospect of getting to a peak with a cross.

I am never quite sure what determines whether a peak warrants a cross but I take this as a useful guide to worthwhile targets.

At 3203m, the Kitzsteinhorn is the regions highest mountain and with a lift system that takes you to just a few hundred metres short of the top, this must surely be one of the easiest ascents in the Alps.

With a reasonable head for heights and good footwear the scramble to the summit is perfectly doable for reasonably fit scramblers in good weather.

By using lifts, you are denied a sense of achievement but no matter.

You are rewarded with wonderful views of the Grossglockner (Austria’s highest mountain) and an opportunity to toboggan on the glacier.

I’m always amazed at the sheer variety of mountain based summer activities offered by Austrian resorts, but Zell am See with it’s balmy lake, brings a completely new dimension.

It’s a 2-for-1 summer holiday mixing the best elements of a beach holiday with traditional mountain pursuits.

And with unpleasantly high Mediterranean temperatures bordering on the dangerous – summer on a beach of an Austrian lake is a great option.

Fact Box

Getting to Zell am See: British Airways to Salzburg, a short bus to the main station and then a 2 hour train to Zell am See or hire a car to drive the 80kms.
Hotel: www.seevilla-freiberg.at/en

Guide Office: www.alpinskischule.at/home.html

Tourist Office: www.zellamsee-kaprun.com/en or www.austria.info/en

Sailing School: www.segelschule-zellamsee.at

Enzian Hütte: www.berggasthof-zellamsee.at