IT seemed like a bizarre tactic when a member of Team UK, in the beer-drinking race at the Alpen Highland Games, threw her pint over the referee. But the incident didn't attract as much as a yellow card. Austrians laid-back? Most definitely!

Team UK – a motley collection of journalists, most well beyond their prime – rarely inconvenienced the scorers as they "competed" against towering, kilt-wearing specimens of Austrian manhood. But the fun day did match one of the main themes of holidays amid the lakes and mountains of this stunningly beautiful province – activity.

Carinthia (the German is Karnten) scores highly as a summer destination because it is "on the sunny side of the Alps", bordering Northern Italy and Slovenia. It offers leisurely or serious hiking, Nordic walking, cycling, golf, inline skating, swimming and every other water sport you can think of – and a host of spas to pamper you afterwards.

We were based in the clearly well-heeled resort of Velden at the western edge of Lake Woerth (Woerthersee). The hotel, Schloss Velden, a majestic chateau frequently chosen as a set by film-makers, provides sheer luxury – at a price. And, as you would expect, you will pay more at hotels around Lake Woerth but there is no shortage of affordable accommodation nearby. Before you book, check whether or not the hotel offers the Karnten card – it could save you a fortune in travel and entrance fees.

You can easily pick up the equivalent of a small forest in tourist information – and all in English. Walkers should get the map and details of the 55km Woerthersee Rund- wanderweg (circular route). And you don't have to do it in one go – boats on the lake will take you to different points along the route. Be sure to visit the Pyramidenkogel observation tower high above the lake and the delightful little peninsula of Maria Woerth.

From the Pyramidenkogel you can walk to Trattnigteich, in the forest, where the owner of the restaurant will cook seibling – a delicious Austrian fish – as you gaze out on a small lake.

You could finish your meal with a schnapps, which may tempt you to ask for details of the Thursday tasting sessions at the dairy farm of Franz Lauritsch. We tried liqueurs and schnapps made from quinces, apples, elderberries, pine needles, walnuts, raspberries, pears and plums. (I think, at the end, he said plums).

Austrian archaeologists have suggested that the kilt may have been invented in Austria. It is a claim which, personally, I wouldn't make at closing time in a Glasgow pub. But it is one reason for the Alpen Highland Games, held in August.

A word of warning though: if a competitor is found to be wearing "underhosen", the offending garment is removed and ceremonially burned. And, when participants are pulled to the ground in the tug-of-war, it is very clear indeed that nothing is worn under the Austrian kilt!