In-depth guide · CampingSpirit
From Wiener Neustadt through Blaufränkischland, past the castles of Lockenhaus, Bernstein and Güssing and the thatched cellars of the Uhudler country to the Raab: around 420 kilometres on quiet country roads through the gentle south-east of Austria, with thermal spas as base camps.
The spirit of the route
Burgenland south of Lake Neusiedl is a land of long, rolling hills. Beyond the Rosalia Mountains, red-wine vineyards open up, their rows of Blaufränkisch running right to the Hungarian border; then chestnut and oak forests climb towards the Günser Mountains, where castles stand on rocky spurs. Further south the landscape becomes more small-scale: meadow orchards, pumpkin fields, stream meadows lined with poplars, and Güssing Castle on an extinct volcanic cone. From the sliding door you see thatched cellar cottages, storks on church towers and, in the evening, haze over the Pinka. Nobody rushes here; the roads are narrow, the villages bilingual, and at the Heuriger table the Uhudler tastes of wild strawberries. Come in autumn and you get the harvest and Sturm, the young fermenting wine; come in early summer and you get warm nights on a spa motorhome pitch. A region for arriving rather than ticking off – with the borderland always in sight.
Stage-by-stage plan
1Stage 1: Wiener Neustadt to Horitschon (via Forchtenstein and Deutschkreutz) (approx. 90 km)
- The drive
- Wiener Neustadt is only the starting point: via Mattersburg a well-built provincial road climbs to Forchtenstein in the Rosalia Mountains, then over the saddle near Sieggraben into the Stooberbach valley and via Kobersdorf, Weppersdorf and Lackenbach to Neckenmarkt and Deutschkreutz. Finally back through the vineyards to Horitschon. A few bends and climbs in the Rosalia Mountains, open hill country after that. Pure driving time just under 2 hours.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Forchtenstein Castle: the Esterházy fortress with an armoury and treasury, only as a short stop – from the car park below, a steep footpath leads up to the gate.
- Deutschkreutz Palace, a four-winged Renaissance palace on the edge of town, and the surrounding vineyards, which stretch to the Hungarian border.
- Blaufränkischland between Neckenmarkt, Horitschon and Deutschkreutz: wine estates selling direct from the cellar and waymarked wine trails through the vineyards.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: There are hardly any campsites in Blaufränkischland; the nearest is Holiday-Fun-Camping west of Horitschon near Neutal (check season and facilities in advance). Otherwise you stay at wine estates that offer their own pitches through networks such as “Schau aufs Land” or in motorhome-pitch apps – usually without electricity or water/waste disposal, but with a tasting. If you need facilities, drive the roughly 30 kilometres on to the spa motorhome pitches in Lutzmannsburg (stage 2) the same evening.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): Burgenland prohibits camping and parking motorhomes in the open countryside outside approved camping or mobile-home sites. The only exception is parking briefly on traffic areas. So a farm track between the vineyards is not a place to spend the night, however secluded it looks.
- Insider tip for campers
- Many wine estates are in narrow cellar lanes and village centres with courtyard entrances built for cars. Ask the estate in advance about access for your vehicle's dimensions, and if in doubt leave larger motorhomes on the edge of the village. Arrive at Forchtenstein Castle before 10 am: the car park is not large, and coaches come later.
2Stage 2: Horitschon to Lutzmannsburg (approx. 35 km)
- The drive
- A short stage via Raiding and south through the Rabnitz valley, on narrow provincial roads between vineyards, maize and small woods. The roads are quiet, but in the villages they are sometimes narrowed by parked cars. Under an hour's driving – time for the spa or a bike ride.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Liszt House in Raiding: Franz Liszt's birthplace with a small exhibition, next to it the modern concert hall of the Liszt Centre.
- Sonnentherme Lutzmannsburg, a large family spa with slides and a separate area for babies and toddlers.
- Cycling loop through the vineyards around Lutzmannsburg and Strebersdorf, flat to gently hilly, with views across the border.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Camping Sonnenland near the Sonnentherme Lutzmannsburg: a campsite with outdoor and indoor pools, explicitly dog-friendly, usually open from about April to early November. There are also motorhome pitches directly at the spa complex. Check season, electricity and water/waste disposal with the operator in advance – the details change.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): Burgenland's ban on camping in the open countryside also applies on the Hungarian border. The spa car parks are meant for day visitors; spend the night on the designated motorhome pitches, not in the general car park.
- Insider tip for campers
- Sopron is only a few kilometres across the border – the town and the western Hungary programme are covered in the CampingSpirit travel guide to western Hungary from Győr via Sopron to the Őrség. Shop and refuel before the stage in Oberpullendorf or Deutschkreutz; Lutzmannsburg itself is a small village.
3Stage 3: Lutzmannsburg to Bad Tatzmannsdorf (via Lockenhaus, Geschriebenstein and Bernstein) (approx. 90 km)
- The drive
- Via Mannersdorf an der Rabnitz into the foothills of the Günser Mountains to Lockenhaus, then on the B 56 provincial road, winding and steep, through beech and chestnut forest up to the Geschriebenstein pass and back again. From Lockenhaus west through the hill country to Bernstein and down to Bad Tatzmannsdorf. The mountain section calls for patience with oncoming traffic and cyclists; the rest is easy driving. Around 2 hours' pure driving time.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Lockenhaus Castle: a medieval castle with a vaulted cult hall surrounded by Templar legends, and a well-known chamber music tradition.
- Geschriebenstein: at 884 m the highest mountain in Burgenland; the lookout tower stands right on the national border – reachable on foot along forest paths from the pass on the B 56 (where there is a forest inn not open all year), with views far across the Hungarian plain.
- Bernstein: rock museum and workshops around the green noble serpentine that is quarried and worked here, above them Bernstein Castle of the Almásy family.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Thermencamping Bad Tatzmannsdorf (address in the municipality of Oberschützen) on the edge of the spa town, right next to the thermal baths: electricity, sanitary facilities, water/waste disposal, pool and playground; the spa is within walking distance. Check opening times and reservations in high season with the site.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): The Geschriebenstein-Írottkő Nature Park is a protected area; hikers' car parks are not overnight spots. In the forest the Forest Act also applies: resting after dark and pitching a tent only with the forest owner's consent.
- Insider tip for campers
- The B 56 to Geschriebenstein is an ordinary provincial road, but winding and steep; check in advance whether there is room for large motorhomes at the pass, and arrive early. If you prefer to hike: from the nature park office in Rechnitz the summit is around two hours away on waymarked paths. Noble serpentine jewellery and souvenirs are best bought directly in Bernstein; the road through the village is narrow, so larger vehicles should use the car park on the edge of the village.
4Stage 4: Bad Tatzmannsdorf to Stegersbach (via Oberwart) (approx. 35 km)
- The drive
- A short hop to Oberwart, the district capital with shopping centres and petrol stations, then south over the district's hills via Rotenturm an der Pinka to Stegersbach. Wide provincial roads, few climbs, about 45 minutes' driving.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Southern Burgenland Open-Air Museum in the spa park of Bad Tatzmannsdorf: thatched farmhouses, barns and a skittle alley, free access.
- Oberwart's Easter Church by Günther Domenig – angular exposed concrete from the late 1960s, a contrast to the Baroque churches around it.
- Thermenresort Stegersbach with its pool complex and golf courses in the hills.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Campingplatz Rauchwart, a small site just south of Stegersbach, as a quiet base between the spa and Güssing; ask about facilities and season in advance. Whether, and on what terms, the spa in Stegersbach lets motorhomes stay overnight on its grounds – ask the spa beforehand.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): Oberwart and Stegersbach are built-up areas; parking briefly in permitted car parks is possible, camping behaviour is not. Table, chairs and awning stay in the vehicle when you are not on a site.
- Insider tip for campers
- Oberwart is the best supply stop on the route: large supermarkets, DIY stores, petrol stations with truck-friendly access. Short-stay parking zones apply in the centre. Oberwart and Unterwart are traditionally bilingual (Hungarian); the town signs show both names.
5Stage 5: Stegersbach to Güssing (via Gerersdorf) (approx. 30 km)
- The drive
- Through the Strem valley and over the hills to Gerersdorf and on to Güssing. Narrow, winding provincial roads between forests and fields, occasional tractor traffic, hardly any climbs. Just under 45 minutes.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Ensemble Gerersdorf open-air museum: historic farmhouses, cellar cottages and barns from southern Burgenland, rebuilt on a hillside.
- Güssing Castle on an extinct volcanic cone, the oldest castle in Burgenland; a steep footpath leads up from the car park (supplemented by an inclined lift – check operating times), at the top views across the Strem valley as far as Hungary.
- Güssing Franciscan Friary with the crypt of the Batthyány family.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Private motorhome pitch on Wiener Straße in Güssing with around ten spaces, electricity, fresh water and grey- and black-water disposal; check current status and fee in the motorhome-pitch apps. Alternatively back to Campingplatz Rauchwart.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): No wild parking on the castle hill or in the forests around Güssing – the castle hill and surroundings are a local recreation area, and outside the built-up area the provincial ban applies.
- Insider tip for campers
- The Raab-Őrség-Goričko Nature Park begins a little further south on the Raab; Güssing, by contrast, is the starting point for signposted cycling loops through the Strem valley. If you are hungry: in southern Burgenland, game from the surrounding forests is on many inn menus.
6Stage 6: Güssing to Csaterberg (via Heiligenbrunn, Moschendorf, the Pinka valley and Eisenberg) (approx. 60 km)
- The drive
- Into the Uhudler country: from Güssing south-east to Heiligenbrunn, then north to Moschendorf in the Pinka valley, upstream through small border villages such as Eberau and Bildein and up to Eisenberg and on to Csaterberg near Kohfidisch. Narrow provincial roads; the cellar quarters themselves can only be reached via narrow sunken lanes and farm roads. A good 1.5 hours' driving, a whole day with breaks.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Heiligenbrunn cellar quarter: around a hundred listed cellar cottages of wood and clay, many thatched, on a hill above the village – explore on foot.
- Moschendorf Wine Museum: a historic ensemble of cellars, press houses and farmhouses on the history of winegrowing in southern Burgenland, with a wine trail and an Uhudler cellar with tastings; opening times vary, ask in advance.
- Eisenberg: a red-wine hill with cellar cottages between the rows and views across the Pinka valley to Hungary; on Csaterberg another cellar quarter in the In der Weinidylle Nature Park.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: The “Stellplatz Naturpark Eisenberg” near Kohfidisch listed in motorhome-pitch apps and OpenStreetMap; check facilities, fee and access in advance. For electricity and disposal, back to Güssing (around 30 kilometres) or Rauchwart. Some Buschenschank wine taverns and wine estates offer pitches to guests – ask.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): The cellar quarters and vineyards lie in open countryside: spending the night among the cellar cottages is prohibited and rightly unpopular with the owners. The farm tracks are also access routes for harvesters and tractors.
- Insider tip for campers
- Do not drive the motorhome into the cellar lanes: the sunken lanes in Heiligenbrunn and on Eisenberg are narrow, have no turning space and are muddy after rain. Park on the edge of the village and walk. Uhudler is made from direct-producer vines such as Isabella and Noah and may only be marketed under that name in certain municipalities of southern Burgenland – best tasted directly at the winegrower's or in the Buschenschank.
7Stage 7: Csaterberg to Jennersdorf (via Heiligenkreuz and Mogersdorf) (approx. 80 km)
- The drive
- Back through the Pinka valley and via Güssing south into the Lafnitz valley near Heiligenkreuz, then along the Raab via Mogersdorf to Jennersdorf; as a detour to St. Martin an der Raab and the tripoint of Austria, Hungary and Slovenia. From the Raab the provincial roads become wider and flatter, narrower again in the hill country around St. Martin. About 1.75 hours without detours.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Schlösslberg near Mogersdorf: memorial to the battle of 1664 against the Ottoman army, with a cross, chapel and wide views over the Raab valley.
- Raab-Őrség-Goričko Nature Park: a three-country nature park with floodplain forests and meadow orchards; the Hungarian Őrség is a topic of its own in the western Hungary travel guide.
- Tripoint (Hármashatár, 387 m) between Tauka (Minihof-Liebau) and Oberdrosen (St. Martin an der Raab): memorial stone, rest area and information boards at the border point, a waymarked border loop through the nature park; the starting car park, Tromejnik, is on the Slovenian side.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Campingplatz Jennersdorf at the leisure centre, about a kilometre from the centre: a manageable site with generous pitches, electricity, sanitary facilities, outdoor pool and water/waste disposal; check season and dog rules with the operator. It is the natural end point of the route and a base for bike tours into the nature park.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): No wild camping on the banks of the Raab or in the nature park; the Burgenland ban applies right up to the border. Overnight stays are not intended in the car parks at memorials and at the tripoint either.
- Insider tip for campers
- From Jennersdorf you are quickly in Styria: Riegersburg, the spas around Bad Radkersburg and the South Styrian Wine Road are covered in the CampingSpirit travel guide through green Styria from Graz to the Gesäuse. If you continue via Hungary, note that the country has its own e-vignette (e-matrica) for motorways.
Camping practice & local rules
Wild camping & overnight parking
- Camping law in Austria is a matter for the provinces. Under its Nature Conservation and Landscape Management Act and its Camping and Mobile Home Site Act, Burgenland prohibits camping and parking caravans and motorhomes in the open countryside outside officially approved sites. Only brief parking on areas for stationary traffic is permitted. Violations are administrative offences punishable by fines.
- Open countryside means everything outside built-up areas and village edges, commercial premises and house gardens. Cellar quarters, vineyards, farm tracks and forest car parks therefore fall under the ban. In built-up areas, parking is governed by the Road Traffic Regulations and the municipalities; camping behaviour is not tolerated there either.
- Forest: under the Forest Act, resting after dark and pitching a tent in the forest are only allowed with the forest owner's consent. In the nature parks (Geschriebenstein-Írottkő, In der Weinidylle, Raab-Őrség-Goričko) stay on the paths and do not light fires.
- You can stay overnight legally at campsites, spa motorhome pitches and at wine estates or farms with designated pitches. Search via park4night, Campercontact, motorhome-pitch guides and the “Schau aufs Land” network. Ask in advance, and do not camp if the business only offers a parking space.
Waste disposal & supplies
- Water and waste disposal is mainly available at the campsites in Lutzmannsburg, Bad Tatzmannsdorf and Jennersdorf and at the motorhome pitch in Güssing. Between Horitschon and Lutzmannsburg and in the Uhudler country, stations are rare – top up fresh water and empty the cassette whenever you can.
- Empty grey water and the cassette only at stations, never in meadows, ditches or by cellar cottages. Tap water is drinking water; at fountains in vineyards watch out for “no drinking water” signs.
- Gas: German exchange cylinders are not swapped everywhere in Austria; Campingaz is widely available at campsites and in shops. LPG filling stations are rare in southern Burgenland – fill refillable cylinders before the trip and bring an adapter set in case you refill in Hungary or Slovenia.
- Stock up in Wiener Neustadt, Oberpullendorf, Oberwart, Güssing and Jennersdorf. The wine villages often have only small local shops, and Heurige and Buschenschank taverns have fixed opening days.
Vehicle size & traffic rules
- Speed limits: motorhomes up to 3.5 t 50 km/h in built-up areas, 100 on open roads, 130 on motorways; over 3.5 t 70 on open roads and 80 km/h on motorways. For car-and-caravan combinations the limit depends on trailer load and registration.
- Tolls: for the approach via the A2 Südautobahn and S31 Burgenland Schnellstraße, vehicles up to 3.5 t need a vignette (1 day digital only; 10 days, 2 months, year). The sticker vignette is being phased out; in future there will only be the digital one. 2-month and annual vignettes bought online as a consumer are only valid after 18 days, those bought at sales outlets immediately. Over 3.5 t, the GO toll with a GO-Box applies on motorways and expressways. The route itself runs on toll-free provincial roads.
- General dimensions: height 4.00 m, width 2.55 m, length 12 m, combination 18.75 m. On municipal and farm roads, in cellar lanes and over small bridges, lower weight and width restrictions often apply – take the signs seriously, as turning is rarely possible there.
- Winter equipment: from 1 November to 15 April, a situational requirement in snow, slush or ice; Geschriebenstein and the Rosalia Mountains see snow and black ice in winter. Vehicles over 3.5 t registered as lorries must have winter tyres on one drive axle and carry snow chains; whether this affects a heavy motorhome depends on its registration.
- Alcohol limit 0.5 per mille (probationary licence 0.1) – after the wine tasting the camper stays parked. Phone calls only hands-free; form an emergency corridor in traffic jams on multi-lane roads. If a bike rack protrudes beyond the rear: up to 1 m a red cloth, beyond that a white 25 × 40 cm board with a red reflective border.
- Cycle routes: the Iron Curtain Trail (EuroVelo 13) runs along the border, plus signposted cycle routes through the vineyards, the Strem valley and the Raab valley. Bringing bikes is worthwhile – you reach many cellar quarters and Buschenschank taverns more easily by bike than by motorhome.
CampingSpirit packing & preparation checklist
- Bikes or e-bikes on a rear rack with the required marking: vineyards, cellar quarters and border cycle routes are more relaxed by bike than by camper.
- A large fresh-water canister and an empty cassette before the Uhudler country – between Güssing and Eisenberg there are hardly any disposal stations.
- Swimwear and bathrobe for the spas in Lutzmannsburg, Bad Tatzmannsdorf and Stegersbach, which double as bases for the night.
- An unbreakable wine crate or bottle box with dividers for Blaufränkisch and Uhudler straight from the winegrower.
- Sturdy shoes with good tread for the clay and sunken lanes in the cellar quarters and the forest path to Geschriebenstein – slippery after rain.
- Insect repellent for warm evenings on the Raab and Pinka, where floodplain forests and streams are close by.
As of 2026-10. Closures, fees and booking rules change: check official sources before you go.
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