A shrug, or a click of the heels?

Wild, rugged and unspoilt - the Pyrenees

Probably not the obvious place to go for a holiday for someone living here, high in the Alps, is to another range of mountains. But a long-planned visit to the Pyrenees to ride a bike up some of the famous Tour de France passes, made comparisons between these two areas inevitable.

The differences are not just in the appearance of the mountains, but deeper seated: the characteristic difference between the Austrian attitude to the demands of the tourism business: a click of the heels, and the french: a shrug.

The french Pyrenees are not as heavily populated as the Pinzgau valley in which Embach is situated. They are wild, open, empty: in a word: unspoilt. And this is their attraction.

Here, the Alps are busier, a major tourist destination, big business, and the country's wealth is partly built upon it. Ever year we see more “fun” attractions being constructed: scaffolding-like summer toboggan runs, high-speed flying foxes, suspension bridges to nowhere, mountaintop viewing platforms, as if a mountain peak needed a such a thing. Near here, an enormous restaurant and brewery has been opened high on a mountain and an igloo hotel has been built on a glacier. Easy access trails are built to even the most “secret” corners and ever more elaborate ski lifts constructed. This “Disneyfying” of nature to woo additional visitors disfigures our mountains and damages their fragile environment.

It is as if the landscape itself was not enough. Yet this is a country where 81% of the population place great importance on the beauty of the countryside. The natural, unadorned, rugged beauty of the Pyrenees is a reminder of how mountains should be seen and enjoyed.

Austria is bending over backwards not only to attract tourists, but to give them the mountain experience without hazards. This can be to the detriment of the beautiful countryside itself. For example, to make nervous drivers feel secure, unsightly steel barriers are to be found along the edge of many mountain roads. In recent years they have been augmented with ugly additional upper and lower railings to prevent motorcyclists sliding under or flying over the top.

The french appear to take a different view. Often only a low stone wall or a stout wood railing comes between the foolhardy motorist and a flight into the abyss. Sometimes there is nothing. The lack of barrier encourages more cautious driving and does not disfigure the scenery.

No barriers to spoil the view - or to prevent a flight into the abyss in the Pyrenees

Ugly steel barriers line many roads in Austria

There are still plenty of untouched mountains here for those that are prepared to hike away from the experience-seeking day-trippers, and where the view from the peaks can be enjoyed without a viewing platform. But a visit to the Pyrenees rings a warning bell: beware of killing the goose that lays the golden egg.

That having been said, coming back to Austria, the “whatever-the-tourist-wants” attitude makes life in many ways more comfortable than in France – but that is the pleasure of travel; experiencing the differences, enjoying them for what they are and appreciating the comforts of home.