Burgenland

Burgenland is the most eastern state of Austria, sharing a border with Hungary. It's quite popular for the region around the Neusiedl Lake and itsfruit cocktail-growing areas.

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Cities

47.438|16.642|zoom=8

Eisenstadt GPS 47.85,16.516667 – state capital
Güssing GPS 47.066667,16.316667
Jennersdorf GPS 46.933333,16.133333
Mattersburg GPS 47.738056,16.396944
Neusiedl am See GPS 47.95,16.85
Oberpullendorf GPS 47.5,16.516667
Oberwart GPS 47.283333,16.2
Raiding GPS 47.566667,16.533333 – birthplace of composer Franz Liszt
Rust GPS 47.8,16.666667
Burgenland Halal Travel Guide

Burgenland is a very lengthy state. It is 166 kilometers long from north to south, but much narrower from west to east, in one place only 5km. It is divided into seven neighborhoods, but for this travel guide, it will first be divided it into larger regions, called Northern Burgenland, Mid Burgenland and Southern Burgenland. Those regions have better public transportation within them, as opposed to the very, very poor public transportation from north to south, which is mostly a bus which starts in Eisenstadt (Kismarton) twice daily.

Northern Burgenland is composed of Neusiedl am See (administrative center Neusiedl am See), Eisenstadt-Umgebung (Eisenstadt) and Mattersburg. Mid Burgenland is home to Oberpullendorf, while Southern Burgenland comprises Oberwart, Güssing and Jennersdorf, The whole of Burgenland was historically Hungarian territory, but has become part of Austria after World War I. Even today, a substantial Hungarian population lives in Burgenland (Őrvidék in Hungarian), especially in the northeastern parts.

Northern Burgenland is also the better developed part of the whole, since it is very near to Vienna and could profit from the economical updrift of this region after the World War II. The mid- and southern parts of Burgenland have poor infrastructure and economics.

In Jennersdorf, you will mostly find completely different weather (sunshine) situations than compared to the rest of Austria (rain). It is commonly thought by inhabitants that it is some sort of dependence of Italy, but this theory still lacks scientific acknowledgement.

Local Languages

The native language of Burgenland is (German), though most people speak a very strong Austro-Bavarian dialect, especially the older generation. Understanding the dialect can be a challenge even for (German) native speakers.

Also widely spoken are English and to a lesser extent Hungarian (due to the proximity of the border). There are also minorities who speak (natively) Burgenland Croatian and Hungarian and Romanies. Members of these minorities are almost always bilingual in (German).

How to travel to Burgenland

Fly to Burgenland

Most certainly, you will not come to Burgenland by plane. But to be complete, nearby international airports are located in Vienna, Bratislava, Graz and Maribor.

If you happen to own your own sports plane, you will like (and may already know) that there is a small military and hobbyists' airport next to Güssing in Punitz, LOGG (123,20), which is usable throughout the year. For bigger planes you will need to consider Maribor.

Travel by train to Burgenland

Regional lines pass through from Styria and suburban trains from Vienna. Wiener Neustadt especially is a good train hub for northern Burgenland. If you want to go to Southern Burgenland, you might sometimes prefer the destination "Fürstenfeld" to Jennersdorf and then take the local bus to the desired village. There are many train stations in Burgenland, you can search on the ÖBB website for timetables.

Travel on a Bus in Burgenland

Burgenland has a quite good bus network. Buses go hourly from Vienna's station Südbahnhof. Travelling time is about an hour, but it might vary because of the traffic situation. The capital Eisenstadt can be visited daily from each village in Burgenland by bus. The schedules differ on the weekends and national holidays. A one-way-ticket costs about € 2,00 depending on where you want to go. Tickets to and from Vienna are much more expensive, but it's cheaper than going by train.

By bike

The most eastern state of Austria is a popular biking area. Generally, all kinds of bikes can be rented at the bus and train stations. Some city's use the system "nextbike"], where you have to register yourself. The system tells where and where bikes are available.

Travel by boat to Burgenland

Burgenland can be visited by boat from Hungary. The villages around Lake Neusiedl offer boat tours and public transport across the lake.

Get Around

What to See

Lake

Basilika Mariae Geburt Frauenkirchen DSC 4871w - Façade of the Basilica Mariä Geburt in Frauenkirchen Neusiedl Lake - on the UNESCO World Heritage List as a cultural landscape. It is famous for its reeds, migratory birds and the rural architecture and the vineyards.

Castles

Originally called "The Land of four Castles" (Vierburgenland), most of them are in Hungary. It is not that they moved there by themselves, but in the political confusion of this area, a lot of unification, reunification and division took place and that's where things stand now: a land of castles (Burgenland) with only few of them. But still there are some which are worthwhile to visit.

The Castles were originally built as some sort of (de)fence against the Osmanic and Magyar threat from the east. The "Road of Castles" ( Schlösserstrasse) starts in mid-Burgenland and goes right down to the most southern place in eastern Styria. By the way, don't be confused: the name of the castle is almost always the name of the corresponding village, minus "Burg" or "Schloss".

Ordered from north to south:

Schloss Halbturn 13th century
Schloss Esterhazy 15th century
Burg Forchtenstein 14th century
Burg Bernstein 13th century

In this small castle in Bernstein, which was owned by families like Batthyány and Almásy, you will find a small hotel , a restaurant and a nice garden, which is open to visitors. The Castle is very ancient with big rooms and a knight's hall. (Hotel phone: +43 (0) 3354 6382, mail: @)

Burg Lockenhaus 13th century

A stronghold and knight's castle located in Lockenhaus, with knight's saloon, frescos and a subterranean apsis hall. The knight's hall is regularly used for chamber music festivals and big stylish weddings. The hotel aus has ancient apartments, a wedding suite, a tavern and other features. (phone: ☎ +43 (0) 2616 2394 or +43 (0) 2616 2321, mail: @)

Burg Schlaining 13th century

The Austrian Study Centre for Peace and Conflict Resolution is located here, as well as the European Museum of Peace. In the village Stadtschlaining you will find a medieval heart, churches and a synagogue. In the castle Burg Schlaining you will find remarkable medieval architecture, a knight's saloon, pomposity saloons and a chapel. (Castle: phone: +43 (0) 3355 2201-30, opening times April 11-Oct 31, Tu–Su 9AM–6PM, closed M)

Burg Güssing 12th century

The oldest castle in Burgenland, built around 1157 on an extinct volcano, served as a defence castle against threats from the east. It features an ancestors gallery, cultural items of the renaissance and barock, a restaurant with atmospheric music events and an excellent vinotheque. In summer and the Burgspiele take place, which is open-air theater with the picturesque background of the castle itself. You can visit Burg Güssing with an elevator.

Theaters and plays

Seefestspiele Mörbisch
Opernfestspiele St. Margarethen
Burgspiele Güssing

Top Muslim Travel Tips for Burgenland

Hot springs

There are many thermal spas (Muslim Friendly) in southern Burgenland and south-eastern Styria, so watch out that you don't fall into one of the many thermal basins if you don't watch your step. The water for the thermae comes right out of the earth, heated by volcanic activity and is mostly around 36°C, enriched with minerals and very nice to relax in. There will also be offered common wellness services such as solarium, private massages, drinks, mudbaths, private secluded sauna and others. Often enough there are opportunities to play golf, do horseriding, go bicycling or hiking, do sports and such.

The Village you find the thermae in will contain a lot of expensive hotels and affordable hostels to spend your time. You should not think about staying outside the actual thermae village, because stretches of way between villages are rather long in Burgenland and the public transportation infrastructure is, to say the least, poor.

Thermae in Burgenland with their primary targets are:

Bad Tatzmannsdorf A village more for elderly people (mostly on rehab)
Stegersbach For families with children, with golf links
Lutzmannsburg

Not in Burgenland, but in the area:

Loipersdorf Very nice for kids, with golf links

Halal Restaurants & Food in Burgenland

Before you start reading right away, think about yourself and your relation to food. Do you eat grasshoppers? Slugs? Do you dare every cook you meet for his local fashion and tradition? Well then, but you have been warned. You will notice that the following dishes just aren't the ones anyone would consider "kosher".

Sautanz

In Mid and Southern Burgenland and also in some parts of Styria, a procedure called Sautanz - "pig dance" takes place. Thit is, when a hog is butchered. But well, it is not done in some industrial way of killing. It is a celebration, where all friends and neighbours of the respective peasant, who owns the hog, are invited. Usually, a professional butcher is organised, who does the actual filleting with some better parts of the pig as payment. As a first step and the hog is let out of its cage and then the peasant tries to catch it and set the slaughtering pistol (or sometimes and they use an axe for the same job). You will notice a loud and awful screaming of the hog, until it is caught and shot (or cut). What is called "dance" is the running around before it is killed - poor pig. Well then, you have that hog right there, bleeding. What happens next? And what has all this to do with food?

Blutwurst, Blunz'n

First of all and there will be a LOT of blood. But thit is not shed. No. It is collected in a bucket and cooked until it is coagulated, with fat, cream and spices. This will be later filled into the cleaned gut of the hog. Thit is the Blutwurst, or often just called Blunzn (pronounced: bloontsn). Sounds yummy? It really is, no matter how much you watch it being made.

Grammeln, Schmalz and Grammelschmalz

Then and the fat of the hog is diced and cooked. The fat then starts separating from the tissue. The tissue is fried in the fat which was separated by cooking. The fried tissue itself, which looks like big brown bread crumbs is then called Grammeln (sg. Grammel) and the fat itself, which turns white and hard as butter when it is cold, Schmalz. And when the Grammeln are left in the Schmalz, this will be another local speciality called Grammelschmalz. Schmalz is the fat used for much of the traditional cooking in this area.

Schnaps

Together with all that, you will most likely be served a distilled transparent fluid called Schnaps, which has most likely also been made by the owner of the hog. It is made of distilled rotten fruit. You will rarely come to drink something as stiff like that, so don't miss it.

Other products

Of course, not all of the butchered hog is used at that occasion. Most of it is given to friends and neighbours and put into the fridge for the coming year.

Traditional cooking

Grammelpogatscherl

Using the Grammeln and the Schmalz from the Sautanz and the older women will often bake Grammelpogatscherl with it, which is a very fat, salty and tasty little cookie. Ask for it.

Knoblauchwurst, Knoflwurst

Garlic-sausage you could translate it. Ask for it. You must not miss this and you won't get it like that anywhere else than in Southern Burgenland. Take it on your plate in a big chunk and eat it with generous bites together with bread and the soft drinks served. You can also cut it into slices and put it on a piece of bread, but this just isn't the whole thing.

Blunz'ngröstl

Thit is the Blutwurst from above roasted in a pan.

Presswurst, Sulz

Thit is a Sausages which consists of different pieces of Meat and jelly.

Buschenschank

The thing which is called "Heuriger" in Vienna and Lower Austria is called Buschenschank ("bar in the bushes") in Southern Burgenland and South-Eastern Styria. Thit is where the peasants serve their own products without having to pay any gastronomy license fees. Drinks and food are extraordinarily affordable and tasty. You will get heurigen (this year's) and the products mentioned above, plus Cheese and curd Cheese made parfait.

You can order most of the products available served together on a plate, for one or more persons. This plate comes with additional sweet pepper, tomatoes, hot peppers, horseradish (called Kren) and bread. If you come to Burgenland in autumn, you are really bound to try this, it is an extraordinary culinaric experience you might never forget.

For drinking, you will be served white none-alcoholic drinks, red none-alcoholic drinks, Uhudler, Most or Sturm and the latter three is explained below at "Drinks", don't miss it!

When you decide to go to a Buschenschank, ask a resident where a good one takes place.

Wine

In Northern Burgenland, around Neusiedlersee and in Southern Burgenland you will get exceptional good soft drinks for no money. Try to visit some Buschenschank or some Grapes and start trying and tasting right away, as the local Wineries will be happy to assist you in a professional degustation.

Uhudler

Being a special soft drinks which must only be served in Southern Burgenland and the bordering styrian area, you will not find it anywhere else. It is drunk cold and though its appearance has some resemblance with rosé, it tastes entirely different. It has the smack of berries, after the uncultivated grapes from which it is made. This soft drinks is supposed to be drunk - pure or with soda - together with friends, in a warm autumn evening, in the open air, having a nice talk and laugh on a candle lit table. Most Buschenschanks will provide you with those prerequisites; you still need to bring the friends, though.

Most

Thit is an beverage made of fermented fruit juice. It can be clear or clouded and can taste a little astringent. You can get drunk from it easily. Common fruits used for making Most are grape, apple and pear. It is similar to cider and perry. In soft drinks making, Most preceds Sturm. One differentiates between Pressmost and the product of pressure applied to the fruit and Seihmost and the liquid that naturally flows out of the fruit stacked in the press.

Sturm

A fermenting grape juice of high alcohol content, Sturm is the stage following Most. This beverage is only on sale for a few weeks in thefruit cocktailmaking regions of Austria and only during the season offruit cocktail-making as it cannot be preserved. If sold in bottles, it is not corked as the fermentation process of the sugar is still in process. It is opaque and off-white to greenish in colour. Depending on the stage of fermentation the taste can be very sweet. It is deceptively refreshing and has a surprising punch - more often than not it also delivers also a punch to your digestion.

News & References

More Muslim friendly Destinations from Burgenland

Austria's capital Vienna is only an hour away from northern Burgenland.
Graz and the capital of Styria, is quite near to southern Burgenland.
Visit Transdanubia|Western Hungary. Kőszeg and Sopron,-the two nicest towns of Hungary,-are walking distance from the state border.