The World’s Biggest Interconnected E-Bike Destination

Mountain destinations all over the world are getting in to E-Biking, offering rentals, guided tours and charging stations so it’s easy to get started.

If you’re not yet fully au-fait with the concept, the idea of e-biking is that you use your bike as a regular bike as much as you like, but when your legs get tired or the hill seems too steep, you switch to e-biking power and the bike powers itself! Genius!

E-bikes have been with us for some years now but as with all technology, newer, better models arrive each year and mountain destinations are getting better and better equipped at meeting every need you might have when holidaying on an e-bike.  Including renting you one to start with – giving you simple instructions on their (easy) use so long as you can ride a regular bike, and providing guidance if you like, charging points, even specialist e-bike holidaymaker overnight accommodation options.

But one region has gone further than any other, and believes it now has no less than the world’s biggest interconnected E-Bike destination!

The e-bike region Kitzbüheler Alpen Kaisergebirge in Tirol, Austria, covers ten adjoining tourist regions with a total of 1,000 km (625 miles) of cycling trails, 310 e-bikes available for guests to rent, a choice of 43 rental shops to hire your e-bike from and even 80 battery replacement stations.  There are even seven specialist e-bike servicing shops, and the region has even created a nice  ‘Kitzbüheler Alpen e-bike-map” complete with touring tips so you can find them all and make the most of them.

The extra good news is that there’s a new BA flight from Heathrow to Innsbruck, capital of the Tirol, meaning you can be enjoying it all after a short flight and a short transfer, from England.

E-Biking Central: St Johann in Tirol

E-Biking makes getting around easy for all and in the wide, gentle valleys in the Kitzbüheler Alpen and Kaiser mountains there is an almost unlimited amount of leisurely riding to enjoy.

But one area within the Kitzbüheler Alpen region has made a particular name for itself as an e-biking centre within the wider area. The town of St. Johann in Tirol, already host to the Cycling World Cup this summer (19^th to the 16^th August, 2017) and its neighbouring villages of Oberndorf, Kirchdorf and Erpfendorf provide a paradise for leisure riders and ambitious mountain bikers alike.

Here you’ll come across a superb blend of fun and adventure as you e-bike past rural villages in Wilder Kaiser – Kalkstein – Kitzbüheler Horn region with its wide, sun-blessed valley.

There are over 200km of cycle trails in this part of Kitzbüheler Alpen Kaisergebirge alone and biking  routes to tempt you to get out there and enjoy being active in the biggest E-Bike region in the world with plenty of e-bike hire points and battery charging stations.

The St Johann area is also home to the final stage, E 4, of the the stunning four-stage TransKitzAlp biking route which crisscrosses its way through the Kitzbühel Alps and is filled with scenery typical of the region, including rolling pastures, high plateaus and wide valleys.

Stage E 4 is perfect for a day of adventure, covering 59 kilometres from Oberndorf to Fieberbrunn, with 2,400 metres worth of climbs over peaks and plateaus (could be the time to turn on thaty electric assistance!).

The route begins with a testing 1,000 metres climb up to Harschbichl, which offers an impressive view of the imposing Kitzbühler Horn. After a long descent down to St Johann, the Mozartradweg takes you through Leukental to Erpfendorf.

Another climb then leads you across the undulating alpine pastures of the Kalkstein, from where you can enjoy an incredible vista over the region. A final downhill section ends in the peaceful valley of Pillerseetal.

As you whizz down the bike trail to the end of the route in Fieberbrunn keep an eye out for Jakobskreuz, a 29.6 metre-high building shaped like a cross that sits atop of the craggy Buchsteinwand.

Bike Hotels

On the huge biking network in the area you can travel between almost 50 towns and villages on the network and stay if you wish at a different destination each evening, with the hotels and accommodation providers geared up to cope with all e-biking needs.

In fact in the wider Tirol region there are over 200 quality inspected specialist bike hotels (many of them specialist in e-bikes and a good proportion located in the Kitzbüheler Alpen region) and all keen to look after both you and your e-bike during your e-bike holiday in Tirol.

To be officially as a specialist bike hotel each must offer an athlete’s breakfast with lots of fruit and cereals give mountain bikers the necessary energy levels for their cycle and mountain bike tour.

They must also be able to provide cycle and mountain bike information for the local area including bike repair workshops, bike rental, bike schools and bike guides and a daily alpine weather forecast to help you plan your e-biking tour in accordance with the prevailing weather conditions.

Finally they must offer a secure and theft-proof store room for bikes and a washing facility for both bikes and your clothing must also be available. If repairs need to be made, your quality tested bike hotel will provide a repair kit, a basic assortment of tools and a pump for all standard valves for your use.

Learn To Ride Your E-Bike

If you haven’t used one before, the good news is that E-Bikes are easy to use, but you can have a training session from some bike rental companies before you venture out on the trails.

Bike Nature in St Johann (0043 660 6206862) organise training every Tuesday (9:30-12am) at the Hochfeldlifte parking area.

The company also offer a 10% reduction on their guided bike tours every Thursday 9 – 12am to holders of the St. Johann in Tirol Guest Card which is provided free-of-charge to everyone staying overnight in the region.

Getting There

It’s very easy to reach from the UK, with new BA flights and holidays from London Heathrow to Innsbruck among the options, and short transfers to wherever you want to start your e-biking adventure.