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| AUSTRIA-June 1996 and June 2006 | |||||||||||||||||||||
On our first visit, we travelled through France,Luxembourg and Germany night stopping at
Remich in Luxembourg and on the shores of the Gruntensee in Bavaria before
arriving, on the third day, at Alpen Camping Mark in the village of Weer near Innsbruck .
We stayed two weeks on this flat and level site which did
not have any disabled facilities. However the small resturant and bar were
accessible and the Tirolean village of Weer was a 5 minute stroll from
the site. Austria is a beautiful country but on our first visit we thought it not the most wheelchair
friendly. Toilets for the disabled were difficult to find away from major
tourist spots and even when you find them, their design, very often left
a lot to be desired. We even had difficulty in Innsbruck and the main Tourist
Information bureau could not help ! One place where you can always rely
on finding facilities is at a main line railway station and Innsbruck was
no exception. Parking for the disabled was none existent although we always
managed to find somewhere to park even if it was some distance from where
we wanted to be. Innsbruck is fairly flat but has its fair share of cobbled
streets with few dropped kerbs.
We undertook motoring tours to Krimmler Falls, the ski resorts of Lech and Mayrhofen, Rattenberg (famous for glassware) and Garmisch just across the border in Bavaria. The drive to Krimmler Falls crossed the Grossglockner (toll payable) and was spectacular. The falls are worth a visit but because of the extremely steep nature of the path to the top, very little is wheelchair accessible. There are wheelchair accessible toilets in the Krimmler Falls and Mayrhofen car parks. We left with a feeling that an able bodied helper and your own transport was a definite requirement if visiting the Tirol. We returned to the U.K. via Germany and France stopping off for a few days in Germany 10 years past before our next visit, admittedly a short one whilst on our way in 2006 to and from Croatia. A notable change was the introduction of toll road charges and
we were pleasantly surprised to find good wheelchair disabled facilities at Stadt Camping Graz and in Graz itself. If your vehicle is over 3.5 tons gross weight then you must prepay
Graz - Last visited May 2006 Austria's second largest city and one which is not difficult for the wheelchair visitor to see and it is well worth a days visit. Busses are accessible with a single step up into them. We also noticed a number of accessible trams but did not ride in these. Stadt Camping provided city and area guides and we seleccted our city walk from these and spent a very enjoyable sunny day strolling about and relaxing in cafes watching life go by. For an excellent view of the city take the lift up to the Schlossberg. For further details about Stadt Camping Graz click here |
There is a three stage cable car ride
from near the river in Innsbruck to the top of the mountains 7500ft above.
The views were spectacular. The first stage didn't look wheelchair friendly (it's a funicular)
and because you can drive up to the start of the second stage we did so. Here there is level access
into the cable car but there are a few steps to negotiate on alighting at the top of
this stage. Here you can choose to pause for refreshment and return, or to go on further to the very top.
We went on to the very top and paused for refreshment on the way down.
your tolls by buying a GO-Box. This electronic device sticks to your windscreen and debits toll charges automatically as you pass electronic way points. It can work out very
expensive if you stick to the toll roads. For further information visit