Austria Beckons: Australians Set New Tourism Records in 2023

Austria

Australians visited Austria in 2023 in record numbers! According to the year-end figures released by Statistik Austria, Australians accounted for 153,000 arrivals and 415,000 overnight stays during the calendar year 2023 – surpassing the previous records set in 2019 by 3% for overnights and 1.2% for arrivals. Australia was the top performing market in the Asia-Pacific region, achieving the highest number of overnights and being the only market outperforming pre-pandemic levels from this region.

Lilly Freudmayer, Market Representative for Australia, is delighted: ‘It is wonderful to see that Australians have rediscovered Austria as a preferred destination in Europe. The Austrian hosts cannot wait to welcome many more guests from down under in 2024 and in the years to come, for them to enjoy its rich cultural heritage, breathtaking scenery and diverse offering of outdoor activities.’

The impending launch of Turkish Airlines flights from Melbourne to Istanbul and the recently announced additional Emirates Airlines flights from Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide will add much needed capacity on the popular European route from Australia to Vienna or Munich, which is additionally served by Qatar Airways, Etihad and the Lufthansa Group among others. Especially the connecting Turkish Airlines flights from Istanbul to Salzburg make the western regions of Austria even more easily accessible.

Lilly Freudmayer adds ‘Salzburg is a must-visit destination in its own right, but it is also the gateway to the magnificent Bad Ischl Salzkammergut region, which has been awarded the title of European Capital of Culture 2024. 23 municipalities in the Alpine region also known as Austria's Lake district have joined together to offer a diverse cultural program in a scenic setting of lakes and mountains. The introduction of additional flights could not have come at a better time for Australians to discover this lesser-known region and participate in the festivities taking place throughout the year.’
* For additional inquiries, please feel free to reach out to lilly.freudmayer@austria.info