Media Information 10 | 03 | 2021
Vorarlberg Nature Picnics invite you to delightful outdoor and cultural tours from April onwards Between Lake Constance and the high mountains, Vorarlberg has a variety of experiences to offer all year round
Beautiful scenery, regional cuisine, genuine hospitality – there are many good reasons for holidaymakers and day trippers to come to Vorarlberg, including the varied cultural programme, even this year. The Vorarlberg Nature Picnics are a new, coronavirus-friendly outdoor activity designed in cooperation with inatura Dornbirn, austriaguides and Vorarlberg nature guides. For now, twelve picnics will take place on weekends from 10 April 2021, whatever the weather. Further dates are under consideration; meeting places are tourist establishments.
Nestled between the shores of Lake Constance and the high mountains, Vorarlberg offers plenty of variety for holidays and leisure pursuits all year round. There are six holiday regions in the state, each with its own character. Especially now, at the beginning of spring, they offer a wide variety of activities. While snow-covered slopes in the mountains of the Montafon, the Arlberg, the Kleinwalsertal and the Brandnertal are still tempting for skiing and ski tours, locals and guests are already taking advantage of the lower, already green locations in the Bregenzerwald and the Rhine Valley for hiking, cycling and city trips.
“Vorarlberg is a small state that is prized for its scenic and cultural diversity. It is a destination that is full of surprises. Nature lovers will find scenic oases of calm in the town. Art and culture are not only to be found in urban areas, but also in unexpected places, for example in the middle of the mountains,” says Christian Schützinger, Managing Director of Vorarlberg State Tourist Board.
Attractive excursion destinations include Skyspace Lech – a lightroom installation by the artist James Turrell. A jewel of Vorarlberg’s architectural culture can be found on the 1,700-metre high Niedere in the Bregenzerwald: the Theodul Chapel by the Bregenz architectural firm Cukrowicz Nachbaur. On the Bielerhöhe in Montafon, you can trace the Earth Light, a work of art by Miriam Prantl.
Discover the Rhine Valley Special places in the Vorarlberg Rhine Valley can be discovered by nature and culture lovers, Covid-19–permitting, from 10 April. The Vorarlberg Nature Picnics in the Bodensee-Vorarlberg region are a new form of outdoor activity that is also pandemic-compliant. These are organised in cooperation with inatura Dornbirn, austriaguides and Vorarlberg nature guides, and are limited to 12 people. The nature picnics, which last two to three hours, cost €10 per person. A dozen dates have already been set.
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“Through this activity, we want to encourage special encounters with nature and culture, with city and country. After the challenging past year, we want to offer people the opportunity to clear their heads and find inspiration in the chosen locations between Lake Constance and Walgau,” emphasises Urs Treuthardt, Managing Director of Bodensee-Vorarlberg Tourist Board. The meeting place or destination of the picnics is restaurants or hotels that provide their delicacies.
City and country, culture and nature The Vorarlberg Nature Picnics programme ranges from historical city tours to herb walks. In Feldkirch, participants follow in the footsteps of the emperor, while in Dornbirn, they discover the rural structures that the industrialised city has preserved. Another walk takes you through the provincial capital of Bregenz, which is characterised by culture and nature.
Nature lovers will get their money’s worth during excursions to Bangser Ried, bird watching at Lake Constance and a visit to the beavers on the Old Rhine river. Exciting insights into the history of the earth and various habitats of rare animal and plant species are also on the agenda: among other places, the tour takes you to the Fohramoos high moor, where healing wild plants grow, and to the Badaila Natura 2000 area near Nenzing, which is home to a rich variety of flora and fauna.
An innovative concept The nature picnics are the follow-up to the successful Vorarlberg Culture Picnics, which were held for the first time in summer 2020 and will be continued this coming summer. These provide a stage for artists from the Lake Constance region and an opportunity for tourist establishments and event organisers to offer a small but exquisite cultural programme. This concept won one of the top prizes at the Vorarlberg tourism innovation awards in October 2020.
Factsheet: Vorarlberg Nature Picnics
Creator: Bodensee-Vorarlberg Tourismus Cost: €10 per person Participation: maximum 12 people each time Register at www.bodensee-vorarlberg.com/naturpicknicks
DATES:
Due to the current Covid-19 Emergency Measures Ordinance and planned extension of the stay- at-home order, which is expected to last until Easter (as of 10 March 2021), the following dates are provisional. Date changes are currently being considered for some events. The dates will be updated on www.bodensee-vorarlberg.com/naturpicknicks.
Birdwatching at Lake Constance 10 April 2021, 9 a.m. to around noon Accompanied by nature guide Johanna Kronberger Meeting place: Hotel am See, Uferstrasse 1, 6971 Hard
Beavers on the Old Rhine river 17 April 2021, 2 p.m. to around 5 p.m. Accompanied by nature guide Agnes Steininger Starting at Gasthaus am Rohr, Forststrasse 111, 6890 Lustenau
Medieval history tour through Feldkirch 24 April 2021, 2 p.m. to around 4 p.m. Accompanied by austriaguide Angelika Tschug Starting point and drinks in the courtyard of the Schattenburg, Burggasse 1, 6800 Feldkirch
Glaciers and geology in Eichenberg 2 May 2021, 9 a.m. to around noon Accompanied by nature guide Johannes Zambanini Meeting place: Hotel Schönblick, Dorf 6, 6911 Eichenberg
Culture and nature at Lake Constance 9 May 2021, 10 a.m. to around noon Accompanied by austriaguide Michael Dürr Meeting place: Hotel Lamm, Mehrerauerstrasse 51, 6900 Bregenz
Herb walk at Bödele 16 May 2021, 9 a.m. to around noon Accompanied by nature guide Katharina Moosbrugger Meeting place: Ski shop at the Berghof Fetz, Bödele 574, 6867 Schwarzenberg
Fens in Nenzing Badaila 22 May 2021, 2 p.m. to around 5 p.m. Accompanied by nature guide Iris Lerch Starting point and drinks at Gasthaus Rössle, Andreas-Gassner-Strasse 1, 6710 Nenzing
On imperial paths in Feldkirch 29 May 2021, 2 p.m. to around 4 p.m. Accompanied by austriaguide Gerlinde Sauermann Meeting place: Braugaststätte Rössle Park, Rösslepark 1, 6800 Feldkirch
Nature and technology on the Dornbirner Ach river 5 June 2021, 2 p.m. to around 5 p.m. Accompanied by nature guide Thomas Diem Starting point and drinks at Camping Dornbirn, Gütlestrasse 15, 6850 Dornbirn
Art hike to the Gebhardsberg 12 June 2021, 9 a.m. to around 11.30 a.m. Accompanied by austriaguide Karl Dörler Starting at the Künstlerhaus, Gallusstrasse 10, 6900 Bregenz Ending at the Gebhardsberg Castle Restaurant
City walk through rural Dornbirn 20 June 2021, 9.30 a.m. to around 12 p.m. Accompanied by austriaguide Sabine Spiegel Starting at the Hatler Brunnen, Adlergasse 1, 6850 Dornbirn Ending at the Gasthaus Schiffle restaurant
Spring awakening in the Bangser Ried 26 June 2021, 2 p.m. to around 5 p.m. Accompanied by nature guide Iris Lerch Starting at Gasthaus Stern, Sternenweg 1, 6800 Feldkirch
Further information at www.bodensee-vorarlberg.com/naturpicknicks Printable image material can be found via the following download link: vorarlberg.eyebase.com/view/pinGDNNQC
Current information on the holiday destination Vorarlberg: www.vorarlberg.travel Subscribe to the travel press newsletter at www.vorarlberg.travel/en/activity/newsletter
Further media enquiries: Vorarlberg State Tourist Board, Travel Media Relations Katrin Preuss, Tel. +43 377033 13, [email protected]