From Vienna airport it was a short drive to out hotel in Aspern.
We had booked our hotel in advance, and arranged to hire two cycles to explore the area.
The Vienna tourist information had recommended Asperner Lowe Hotel-Pension as the most suitable.
It is not only about 100 yards from the famous Aspern church, but it also specializes in cycling holidays.
Best of all it was easy to find with its striking yellow and green colour scheme!
Due to some mix up our bikes were not ready when we arrived, and in fact would not be available until the next morning.
So we decided to walk to the nearby Lobau Island.
This was the concentration area for the French army during the battle of Aspern-Essling and also prior to the battle of Wagram.
It took us about an hour to walk to the island.
On the way we passed, and had a look at, Aspern church.
The island itself is a leisure area, very popular with cyclists and ramblers.
We were surprised, and a little shocked, to discover that it also has a nudist area.
We were not aware of this until we went to a bar and found ourselves surrounded by a mass of well bronzed and very naked locals.
As we explored the island we found these stone markers, which seem to be part of a sort of trail.
Unfortunately we were not aware of this before our visit, and did not have any sort of guide to follow.
I am sure that there must be some printed guide and was sorry that the tourist information office had not told us about it.
It took us about two hours to walk around the island.
We took a circular path which followed the stream between the island and Aspern, and eventually reached the river Danube.
The river has changed greatly since 1809, but the island remains quite unspoilt.
From Vienna airport it was a short drive to out hotel in Aspern. We had booked our hotel in advance, and arranged to hire two cycles to explore the area. The Vienna tourist information had recommended Asperner Lowe Hotel-Pension as the most suitable. It is not only about 100 yards from the famous Aspern church, but it also specializes in cycling holidays. Best of all it was easy to find with its striking yellow and green colour scheme!
Due to some mix up our bikes were not ready when we arrived, and in fact would not be available until the next morning. So we decided to walk to the nearby Lobau Island. This was the concentration area for the French army during the battle of Aspern-Essling and also prior to the battle of Wagram.
It took us about an hour to walk to the island. On the way we passed, and had a look at, Aspern church. The island itself is a leisure area, very popular with cyclists and ramblers. We were surprised, and a little shocked, to discover that it also has a nudist area. We were not aware of this until we went to a bar and found ourselves surrounded by a mass of well bronzed and very naked locals. 
As we explored the island we found these stone markers, which seem to be part of a sort of trail. Unfortunately we were not aware of this before our visit, and did not have any sort of guide to follow. I am sure that there must be some printed guide and was sorry that the tourist information office had not told us about it.
It took us about two hours to walk around the island. We took a circular path which followed the stream between the island and Aspern, and eventually reached the river Danube. The river has changed greatly since 1809, but the island remains quite unspoilt. 
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