The Rough Guide to Austria 4 (Rough Guide Travel Guides)

592 Pages·2008·3.56 MB·English

by  Rough Guides, Jonathan Bousfield, Rob Humphreys

“An excellent guide to
the country.”
The Guardian, UK
“Reliable and
intelligently written.”
The New York Times
EXPLORE every corner of
Austria, using the clearest
maps of any guide.
CHOOSE where to go and
what to see, inspired by
dozens of photos.
READ expert background on
everything from Schubert to
après-ski.
RELY on our selection of the
best places to stay, eat and
party, for every budget.
THE ROUGH GUIDE to
MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR TIME ON EARTH
OTHER ROUGH GUIDES INCLUDE: www.roughguides.com
Austria
ISBN 978-1-85828-059-2 USA $24.99
Can $27.50
UK £14.99
9 7 8 1 8 5 8 2 8 0 5 9 2
Published by Rough Guides
Distributed by The Penguin Group
Austria_cover.indd 1 30/6/08 14:48:52
ROUGHGUIDES
Austria
GUIDEBOOK
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Austria_4 Inside cover.indd 1 6/17/08 3:24:17 PM
The Rough Guide to
Austria
written and researched by
Jonathan Bousfeld,
Rob Humphreys, Neville Walker
and Christian Williams
NEW YORK • LONDON • DELHI
www.roughguides.com
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Contents

Colour section 1 8 The Salzkammergut .......... 421
9 Tyrol .................................. 459
Introduction ............................... 4  Vorarlberg ......................... 51
Where to go ............................... 8
When to go .............................. 12 Contexts 555
Things not to miss ................... 14
History ................................... 557

Basics 25 Books .................................... 581

Getting there ........................... 27 Language 587
Getting around ......................... 2
Accommodation....................... 6 German .................................. 589
Food and drink ........................ 40 German words and phrases ... 590
The media ................................ 44 Food and drink ...................... 592
Festivals................................... 45 Glossary................................. 595
Outdoor activities .................... 47
Travel essentials ...................... 51 Travel store 601

Guide 57
Small print & Index 603
1 Vienna ................................. 59
2 Lower Austria .................... 149
Coffee and cakes
3 Upper Austria .................... 215 colour section
4 Burgenland........................ 24 following p.184
5 Styria ................................ 265
6 Carinthia and the East
Tyrol .................................. 11
7 Salzburg and the Skiing colour section
Salzburger Land ................ 67 following p.440

ff Innsbruck f Mountain biking in Paznaun, Tyrol
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| CONTENTS |
Introduction to
Austria
Snowy Alps and the Sound of Music, Mozart and chocolate,
the Spanish Riding School and the Vienna Boys’ Choir,
skiing and yet more snowy Alps. The stock images of
Austria are safe and old-fashioned, and are happily
peddled by the country’s highly effcient tourist industry.
But it’s not all old ladies in fur coats. For every wealthy
St Anton skier, there’s a snowboarder in Schladming; for
every Strauss concertgoer, there’s a clubber in Vienna; for
every Kaffeehaus with Habsburg-era fxtures and fttings,
there’s a designer sushi bar open down the road; and for
every far-right voter, there are at least two who believe
fervently in the country’s well-funded welfare state.
Physically, the Alps dominate the landscape, but
Austria is by no means all mountainous vistas: the
country stretches across central Europe for some
700km, from the shores of the Bodensee in the west
to the edge of the fat Hungarian plain in the east.
Far removed from the archetype are the wetlands and
reed beds of Burgenland, and the dramatic sequence
of slopes that carve their way up the Erzberg in
Styria. In Upper and Lower Austria in particular, the
predominantly low-key landscape of gentle rolling
hills and vineyards can come as something of a surprise to frst-time visitors.
Yet this fertile, low-lying northern half of the country is, in fact, where
the majority of Austrians live and work, many of them within commuting
4 distance of the capital, Vienna – the country’s chief tourist destination after
the alpine regions.
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| INTRODUCTION | WHERE TO GO | WHEN TO GO
For all its love of old worldli-
Fact file
ness, and nostalgia for the days of
the Habsburgs when Vienna was • Austria is a landlocked country
the capital of a vast, multinational with an area of 8,855 square
empire, Austria today is a thoroughly kilometres – roughly the size
of Scotland or Idaho. The alps
modern, clean and eminently
take up to 62 percent of the
civilized country. Its tourist facili-
country: 9 percent is forested;
ties are uniformly excellent, and 2 percent is pasture; and 17
whether you’re staying in one of percent arable. Of its eight neigh-
the popular skiing, hiking or spa bouring countries, the longest
shared border is with Germany.
resorts, or in an out-of-the-way
The highest point is the Gross-
Gasthof, you’re likely to experience
glockner peak (798m) and the
Gemütlichkeit – a typically Austrian lowest the Neusiedlersee (115m).
term expressing a mixture of relaxed The two major rivers are the
cosiness and hospitality – at some Danube and the Inn.
point during your visit. Like neigh- • The total population is 8.2
million, with 1.6 million (20
bouring Switzerland, Austria is also a
percent) in Vienna. Of this, 78
supremely law-abiding nation, where
percent is Roman Catholic and
no one jaywalks or drops litter, and
5 percent Protestant. A total of
the trains and trams run on time. 68 percent is employed in the
In fact, looking at the country service industries; 29 percent in
other industries and crafts; and
at the beginning of the twenty-
percent in agriculture and forestry.
frst century – stable, conservative
• Austria is a federal republic,
and wealthy – you wouldn’t think
divided into nine Länder (states):
that Austria had spent most of the
Burgenland, Carinthia, Lower
previous century struggling to fnd a Austria, Salzburg, Styria, Tyrol,
national identity. After all, it was only Upper Austria, Vienna and the
in 1918, when the Habsburg Empire Vorarlberg.
5
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| INTRODUCTION | WHERE TO GO | WHEN TO GO
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disintegrated, that the idea of a modern Austrian nation was born. The new
republic, with a population of just eight million reluctant citizens, was riven
by left- and right-wing political violence and, as a result, the majority of
Austrians were wildly enthusiastic about the Anschluss with Nazi Germany
in 1938. The price of Austria’s participation, and ultimately defeat, in World
War II, however, was Allied occupation. For ten years the country was split,
6 like Germany, into Soviet, American, British and French zones. As a gesture
of détente, the Soviets fnally agreed to withdraw their troops, in return
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for Austria’s “permanent neutrality”. At this point, Austria turned over a
new leaf, and recast itself as a model of consensus politics, with an almost
Scandinavian emphasis on social policy as the guiding principle of national
life. Postwar stability saw the growth of a genuine, albeit low-key, patriotism,
while the end of the Cold War put the country, and its capital, back at the
heart of Europe.
In 1995, Austria became a full member of the European Union, a move 7
that for many was a sign that the country had fnally entered the mainstream
00 Austria Colour intro 1-24.ind7 7 6/27/08 5:28:28 PM
| INTRODUCTION | WHERE TO GO | WHEN TO GO
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of European politics. From time to time, Austria’s more reactionary
elements have attracted widespread media attention, most notably during
the Waldheim afair in 1986, when the wartime record of the president was
called into question, and in 2000, when the far right Freedom Party under
the charismatic Jörg Haider entered a coalition government. But the reality
is that the Socialist party retains the strongest infuence in government, as it
has for much of the postwar period, and the country’s political stability, for
the most part, continues intact.
Where to go
here’s a lot to be said for concentrating on just one or two regions,
rather than trying to cover a bit of everything in one trip – you
could happily spend a week or two in any one of the Austrian
Tprovinces, or Länder. Austria’s unique combination of outdoor attrac-
tions and classic urban centres ensures that you can pack a lot of variety into
your stay: take in some fresh air at a high altitude, linger over one of the
country’s world-class art collections, make the most of a musical heritage
second to none, or select any number from the list of recommended
highlights below.
8
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 Almabtreib, the return of the cows from the alpine pastures
| INTRODUCTION | WHERE TO GO | WHEN TO GO