Regions of Austria

The regions of Austria are actually federal states and are called Länder. There are nine in all, including the Vienna region, and each has its own personality, culture and landscape.

They all deserve to be visited because each one has something exceptional that should be seen but, as you know, holiday time is never enough. We have therefore created a short guide to help you choose the region of Austria best suited to the type of holiday you want to take, pointing out the two or three most famous attractions for each.

Fortunately, thanks to good road and rail connections, it is generally quite easy to get from one region to another.

List of Austrian regions

Here is the list of Austrian regions with their capitals, in a sequence from east to west and back.

• Burgenland, capital Eisenstadt
• Styria (Steiermark in German), capital Graz
• Carinthia (Kärnten), capital Klagenfurt
• Tyrol (Tirol), capital Innsbruck
• Vorarlberg, capital Bregenz
• Salzburg (Salzburgerland), capital Salzburg
• UpperAustria (Oberösterreich), capital Linz
• Lower Austria (Niederösterreich), capital St Pölten
• Landër of Vienna

Landër of Vienna

Among the Austrian Landërs, Vienna is the only one with a mayor, but being the nation’s capital, it is normal that it should be granted some privilege.

It is impossible, if not ridiculous, to attempt to summarise in two lines things to do in Vienna: discover the capital’s tourist attractions on the pages we have dedicated to it.

Tyrol

Of all Austrian regions, Tyrol is the one that needs least introduction because in the collective imagination it is almost synonymous with Austria.

Magnificent Alpine peaks, legendary ski slopes, hearty culinary specialities, funny (for foreigners, but very serious for Austrians) folk dances, spectacular spas with mountain views are the region’s best known and most popular tourist attractions.

Add to the list the capital Innsbruck, a lively city of art nestled in a region of peaks and valleys.

Carinthia

Carinthia is one of three regions in Austria that border Italy. Villach is a pretty town nestled in the mountains of Carinthia where you can go skiing, hiking or mountain biking, but it is also worth travelling a little further to visit the lively capital Klagenfurt and the Worthesee, an Alpine lake with not excessively cold temperatures that is taken by bathers in summer.

Salzburg

Salzsburgland is also a small region, but occupies the top tourist spots in Austria thanks to its capital city Salzburg, one of the most enchanting cities not only in Austria but also in the whole of central Europe (and, depending on taste, the whole of Europe).

Go beyond Mozart’s hometown, as well as the set of the legendary musical All Together Passionately starring Julie Andrews, to discover an extraordinary landscape in which legendary peaks, romantic green meadows, deep gorges, glittering glaciers and breathtaking scenic roads appear.

Styria

Styria is one of the largest regions in Austria. Its capital, Graz, is an exciting city that has been given a new lease of life by ultra-modern architecture, but also boasts gems of the past such as the elegant Schloss Eggenberg. The small town of Admont attracts many tourists with its ancient abbey, but no less interesting are the beautiful landscapes in the surrounding area.

The Styrian region has an important wine production, so much so that it has earned the nickname Tuscany of Austria.

Vorarlberg

The small, little-known region of Vorarlberg in western Austria is perfect for those who want beautiful mountain landscapes without the crowds of the more famous resorts.

Upper Austria

Upper Austria is a concentrate of what attracts tourists to Austria, but without the stress of large crowds. The beautiful blue Danube of Straussian fame also flows through this region and the tradition of classical music is proudly carried on.

You can linger for hours in an elegant café, perhaps tasting the delicious Linzer Torte, visit medieval towns with picturesque castles, soak in the warm water of a spa, and there are also the ultra-modern museums of the capital Linz. It’s worth coming all the way up here!

Lower Austria

With its variety of landscapes and situations, Lower Austria is not afraid of its proximity to Vienna. Its attractions include the Dachau Valley, a delightful wine region, the Semmeringbahn, one of the most impressive train journeys, the magnificent baroque church of Stift Mel, as well as green meadows, castles, medieval villages and forests.

Burgenland

Burgenland is one of Austria’s smallest regions and cannot compete in terms of tourism with other, more famous regions, but if you are passing through, you might want to stop for a glass of wine in a heurigen, the typical Austrian wine taverns that abound here, or to admire the landscape of Lake Neusiedler, Europe’s second largest steppe lake.