Capital of Culture Bad Ischl: One year full of highlights and discussions

Capital of Culture Bad Ischl: One year full of highlights and discussions

A total of 23 municipalities were actively involved in the Capital of Culture, including 19 in Upper Austria and four in Styria. Particularly noteworthy is Bad Ischl, which was the first rural Alpine region to receive this title. The event caused a lot of excitement and attracted both locals and international visitors.

A highlight was the performance of the "powder dance", which caused a sensation at the opening in the traditional spa park in Bad Ischl. This not only blinded bare dancers, but also set a sign of diversity. In addition, the first Pride parade took place in the imperial city, while the art star Gottfried Helnwein covered the town hall in Gmunden. According to the director Elisabeth Schweeger, art can combine people and encourage them to approach each other.

impressive number of visitors

by November 19, 2024, over 600,000 visitors were counted at the events, of which around 59,000 participants alone saw the exhibition of the Chinese artist Ai Weiwei in the Marmorschlössl in Ischl. The event "Travel of the Pictures" attracted around 50,000 visitors and addressed predatory art from the Nazi era. This shows that the Capital of Culture year was not only local, but also nationally important.

The Salzkammergut region, which is strong in sales, recorded an increase in overnight stays to around five million this year, which corresponds to an increase of 2.2 percent. In Bad Ischl itself there was even an increase of ten percent, which underlines the city's tourist attractiveness. Manuela Reichert, the commercial managing director, also reported an increase in arrivals by 15 percent.

Despite a relatively modest budget of 31 million euros, numerous innovative projects could be realized, which should provide sustainable impulses. In addition to art, topics such as vacancy and environmental affairs were also addressed, and it was important to give the youth room for creative ideas. In this context, the pleasure laboratory of the hood chef Christoph Held has attracted a lot of attention by putting new impulses for the tavern culture in the Salzkammergut.

Schweeger emphasized that it was important to hear critical voices, as this is a democratic process. "That strengthens us rather than weakening us," she said. All in all, it can be said that despite some critical comments, the year can be seen as a great success that brought many positive changes for the region.

In the near future, the titles of the European Capital of Culture at Chemnitz in Germany and Neu-Görz will be awarded in Slovenia, but for the Salzkammergut the memory of this special year remains alive. The focus is now on the further development of the projects that have been started and to maintain the positive dynamics.

For more information on these exciting developments in the Salzkammergut, See the current reporting on ooe.orf .