Danube Iron Gates Bike & Boat

For fifteen days, a premium river ship is your floating hotel. You sleep in an outward-facing cabin with a private shower and individually adjustable air conditioning, and full board is included: a breakfast buffet, lunch on board or a packed lunch on cycling days, an afternoon coffee break, a dinner with dishes to choose from, and a midnight snack. A tour guide on board and a daily briefing prepare you for each stage, a musician sets the evening mood, and the cruise closes with a gala dinner and farewell cocktail. On any day you can leave the bike and stay aboard, reaching the next stop by ship.

Day 1: Passau
You board the ship in Passau between 4:00 and 5:00 p.m. and cast off as the city slips away behind you. You glide past dark green forests into the sunset and pass through the lock at the Jochenstein power station on the German–Austrian border.

Day 2: Engelhartszell – Aschach (approx. 43 km)
Your first ride follows the classic Schlögen loop, one of the loveliest stretches of the Danube. You pass tiny villages and cosy cider taverns, and at Austria's only Trappist monastery in Engelhartszell you can taste the monks' liqueurs and cheese. The famous Schlögen viewpoint opens onto a sweeping panorama of the countryside.

Day 3: Devín – Bratislava (approx. 15 km)
A narrow cycle path traces the former Iron Curtain from the castle ruins at Devín to the baroque palace of Schloss Hof and its magnificent gardens. A stretch of unspoilt countryside leads you into the lively city of Bratislava, where Hungarian kings were once crowned. An optional miniature-train tour climbs to the hilltop fortress and ends in the restored old town.

Day 4: Budapest – excursion to Szentendre (optional, approx. 45 km)
The approach to Budapest is breathtaking, with the city's most famous buildings lining the river. You can join an optional city tour, ride out to the charming artists' town of Szentendre, or simply rest on board. In the evening, explore the Hungarian capital on your own or watch the floodlit Parliament from the sun deck.

Day 5: Baja – Mohács (approx. 36 km)
From the quiet baroque town of Baja, famous for its fish soup, you cycle along the flood-protection dykes of the Gemenc floodplain, through sleepy river landscapes and past fields of sunflowers. A ferry then carries you to Mohács, Hungary's southernmost town on the Danube.

Day 6: Belgrade (day of rest)
Discover the Serbian capital at the meeting of the Sava and the Danube, by bike or by bus. Trace the rise and fall of Yugoslavia, wander Zemun, the city's oldest district, or the lively Skadarlija quarter, where taverns serve traditional dishes to live folk music. After dark, Belgrade glows in a sea of light.

Day 7: Iron Gates National Park (day of rest)
Today the ship carries you through the fjord-like gorges of the Iron Gates, where the Danube cuts between the Romanian Carpathians and the foothills of the Balkans. From the deck you take in steep cliffs, dark forests and the towering Decebalus rock monument — one of the great highlights of the journey.

Day 8: Novi Sad – Ilok (approx. 47 km)
The mighty Petrovaradin fortress watches over Novi Sad, capital of the Vojvodina. After a flat ride upstream, a ferry takes you to the gentle foothills of the Fruška Gora, with its orchards, vineyards and farming villages. In Ilok, the easternmost town in Croatia, you can visit a 400-year-old wine cellar and taste the celebrated local wines (optional).

Day 9: Batina – Mohács (approx. 48 km)
You ride through the wide-open Batschka in the border triangle where Croatia, Serbia and Hungary meet. Dreamy farming villages, bright yellow rape fields and endless fields line the way. An alternative route crosses the untouched Danube–Drava National Park, where white storks nest on the farmhouse roofs. Near Mohács stands the memorial to the great battle of 1526.

Day 10: Kalocsa – Solt (approx. 52 km)
Kalocsa is Hungary's paprika capital, its houses painted with bright floral patterns and its cathedral towers rising above the plain. You can visit the Paprika Museum, then follow the cycle path along the dyke through the vast Puszta. White sandbanks tempt you to swim, and an optional horse show with the Csikós horsemen awaits in the afternoon.

Day 11: Danube Bend – Esztergom (approx. 50 km)
The Danube winds through the wooded hills of the 'Hungarian Wachau', past the island of Szentendre with its Puszta romance. Idyllic cycle paths lead through picturesque villages to Esztergom, where the dome of Hungary's largest basilica can be seen from afar, with its Tuscan-style high altar and red-marble side chapel.

Day 12: Vienna
After so many days in the saddle, a gentler day awaits. You sail past the floodplain forests of the Donau-Auen National Park to Vienna. Ride out on the Danube Island, the city's favourite green space, cycle to Klosterneuburg Abbey, or wander the vineyards of the Kahlenberg for sweeping views. The day can end with an optional waltz and operetta concert at Schönbrunn.

Day 13: Vienna (day of rest)
A full day to enjoy Vienna at your own pace, from the saddle or aboard the optional hop-on hop-off bus. Ride the historic centre, take in the grand Ringstraße, and let the coffee houses tempt you with Viennese cakes. There is time to stroll the old lanes or visit the Naschmarkt before a relaxed evening at a wine tavern.

Day 14: Krems – Melk (approx. 37 km)
The final stage is magical. The gentle Wachau valley unfolds with vineyards, apricot orchards, castles and palaces, and in Spitz the cycle path is lined with cosy vintners' taverns — the perfect spot for an optional wine tasting. Your journey ends at the magnificent Melk Abbey, one of Europe's finest baroque ensembles.

Day 15: Passau
Enjoy the early-morning calm of the Danube valley one last time and catch a final view of the great Schlögen loop before the ship returns to Passau. Disembarkation is at around 11:00 a.m.; plan any onward journey for after 12:00 noon.