Austria's winter tourism: Record numbers inspire the industry!

Austria's winter tourism: Record numbers inspire the industry!

Österreich - Winter tourism in Austria is all the more popular after a challenging time. In the winter season 2024/25, impressive 72.25 million overnight stays were recorded, which corresponds to an increase of 1.6 % compared to the pre -season. These positive numbers coincide with the expectations of Tourismus State Secretary Elisabeth Zehetner , which emphasizes the importance of winter tourism for added value and employment in Austria.

The number of guests rose to 20.55 million, which corresponds to an increase of 2.8 %. Zehetner was optimistic about the statistics and emphasized the need to strengthen the industry in the long term, especially with regard to securing skilled workers and regional added value. New funding programs were announced to support the small family businesses.

main destinations and countries of origin

Tyrol and Salzburg are leaders in winter tourism and together recorded 41.86 million overnight stays, which is almost 58 % of total winter tourism. In addition, Vienna, with an increase of 10.3 %, has the highest increase. The main travel time fell into the months of January and February, in which 33.21 million overnight stays were registered, which makes up for 46 % of the total winter season.

The origin of the guests is also remarkable. Germany leads with 25.90 million overnight stays, followed by the Netherlands with 6.83 million and domestic guests, which contributed to 16.50 million overnight stays. The sales and employment data for the tourism industry underline the economic importance of the sector. In 2023, an average of 224,711 people were employed in the area of ​​accommodation and gastronomy, which represents an increase of 3.3 % compared to 2022.

economic effects

Tourism and the leisure industry are of great importance for the Austrian economy because they influence income, employment and regional development. Despite the challenges of the Covid 19 pandemic, which almost brought tourism to a standstill, the sector recovered strongly from 2022. The year 2023 brought the first figures that were only 1.0 percent below the record result of 2019, with 45.2 million guest arrivals and 151.2 million overnight stays.

Tourism expenditure in Austria rose by around 87 percent to 35.9 billion euros in 2022 and were only 5.3 percent below the pre -crisis level of 2019. These developments show the resilience of the industry and the important role that tourism plays for the Austrian economy. Through targeted impulses and cooperation, Zehetner wants to ensure the success of the sector.

For interested readers, the website of Federal Government Valuable information about tourism statistics in Austria, while the Chamber of Commerce provides comprehensive studies and data on tourist development.