VIENNA’S AUTOBAHN FOR SWIMMERS

Vienna might not be top of your list when it comes to outdoor swimming destinations, but an 18km stretch of open water in the heart of the city – as well as the chance to swim-commute to work – has convinced Blaise Kelly

Blaise Kelly

Austria’s capital city Vienna sits on the eastern edge of the Austrian Alps and the start of the vast Hungarian Plains. Famous for its cultural heritage and great thinkers, it could well be at the top of people’s list if they wanted to experience a concert, the opera or visit some art galleries. The Blue Danube is more well-known as a waltz in concert halls than somewhere for swimming.

On arriving in Vienna a few years ago I had heard of its typical large eastern European or German open air swimming pool complexes, but it was only on joining the office swimming crowd in the Kaiserwasser, a short walk from the Donau city business district and UN headquarters, that I realised this was but the tip of the Viennese open water scene.

Once a complex collection of islands, the Danube basin was straightened out in the late 1800s in an attempt to tame its flooding and ease shipping. This failed to completely solve the problem and after years of studies, work on a grandiose flood defence scheme began in 1972 and was completed in 1988. Designed to protect the city against a repeat of its most severe flood in 1501, it involved 20km of the Danube being split down the middle: one side devoted to busy shipping lanes and the other a huge basin that can buffer any rising waters, called the Neu Donau. During calm conditions, which is the majority of the year, it provides 40km of recreational shoreline and an 18km stretch of open water of which 11km is uninterrupted. All this is less than 3km from the bustling UNESCO World Heritage city centre and easily accessible by any of three metro lines (U1, U2 and U6) and a plethora of bus, tram and cycle connections.