37 Facts About Austria

Austria, officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in Central Europe.

Austria has an area of 83,871 square km.

The country’s capital and largest city is Vienna.

German is Austria's official language. 

Euro (€) (EUR) is Austria's official currency.

Austria is bordering with countries likewise are the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Liechtenstein, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Switzerland. 

Austria is a landlocked country. 

Terrain is highly mountainous in Austria.

After the defeat of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in World War I, Austria was reduced to the status of a small republic (28 Jul 1914 – 11 Nov 1918).

Austria was a major European power during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries as the center of the Habsburg Empire. Long before Roman rule, the region was inhabited by Celtic tribes.

After the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918, Austria went through years of political and economic instability. It was annexed by Nazi Germany in 1938 and remained under Allied occupation after World War II until it regained full independence in 1955. Austria became a member of the United Nations later that same year.

Vienna developed into one of Europe’s great cultural capitals in the nineteenth century and was deeply affected by several major conflicts of that era. Today, the city is known for its architecture, museums, and music heritage.

Austria is famous for Mozartkugel, a chocolate specialty that originated in Salzburg, the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

The Vienna Clock Museum houses a large collection of historic timepieces, including rare astronomical clocks. The Austrian National Library, completed in the early eighteenth century, holds millions of volumes and preserves manuscripts dating back to the Middle Ages.

Austria’s highest mountain, Grossglockner, rises to nearly 3,800 meters in the Alps and was first climbed at the beginning of the nineteenth century.

Agriculture plays a relatively small role in Austria’s economy, and farms tend to focus on quality rather than large-scale production. Austria is known for its strong organic farming sector and was among the early European countries to establish formal organic standards.

From east to west, Austria stretches roughly 360 miles across Central Europe. Lake Neusiedl is the country’s largest natural lake and lies partly in Hungary.

More than two-thirds of Austria’s electricity comes from renewable sources, especially hydropower. Austria’s longest border is with Germany, and the Port of Vienna is one of the most important inland ports on the Danube River.

Football, volleyball, basketball, skiing, and dance-related sports are popular across the country. Austria is also known for its historic towns and villages set against Alpine landscapes.

The Danube River, Europe’s second-longest river, flows through Austria on its journey from Germany to the Black Sea and is the only river in the world that passes through ten countries.

Forests and meadows cover much of Austria’s territory, making it one of the most heavily forested countries in Europe. The country is also home to the world’s largest ice cave system, Eisriesenwelt, which attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.

Tiergarten Schönbrunn in Vienna is the world’s oldest continuously operating zoo. Krimml Waterfalls is the highest waterfall in Austria and among the tallest in Europe, descending in three stages through the Alps.

The Alpine ibex, a species of wild mountain goat, lives in Austria’s high mountain regions. Environmental challenges such as air pollution and acid rain have affected parts of Austria’s forests in the past.

Austria’s lowest point lies at Lake Neusiedl, while much of the country stands more than 500 meters above sea level. The climate brings frequent rainfall, especially in Alpine areas.

Austria produces high-quality wine and exports a portion of its harvest, particularly from regions such as Lower Austria and Burgenland. It is also among Europe’s wealthier countries in terms of living standards and income levels.

Austria adopted the euro as its currency in the late 1990s, with banknotes and coins introduced in 2002. The Zwentendorf Nuclear Power Plant, although fully built, was never activated after a public referendum rejected nuclear power.

Austria has produced numerous Nobel Prize winners, including Bertha von Suttner, the first woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize.

Most Austrians speak Austrian German, a regional variety of standard German. The country consistently ranks high on international measures of human development and quality of life.

Austria is a founding member of the OECD and part of the European Union and the Schengen Area, allowing free movement across much of Europe. It is one of the few EU countries that is not a member of NATO.

Vienna frequently ranks among the world’s most livable cities, known for its public transport, safety, and cultural life.

Several famous historical figures were born in what is now Austria, including Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Sigmund Freud, Christian Doppler, and Gregor Mendel. Adolf Hitler was also born in Austria, though he later became leader of Germany.

St. Peter Stiftskeller in Salzburg is considered the world’s oldest continuously operating restaurant, with origins dating back more than a thousand years.

The Spanish Riding School in Vienna is internationally famous for its Lipizzaner horses, trained using traditional methods developed over centuries.

Austria is known for its strong recycling culture and deposit systems for bottles, which help reduce waste.

A long-standing mix-up between Austria and Australia once caused mail to be misdirected, leading Austrian post offices to label mail with “Austria in Europe.”

Potatoes are a common part of Austrian cuisine and appear in many traditional dishes. Austria’s national flag is also one of the oldest still in use.

Downhill skiing has been Austria’s most successful and popular sport for over a century. The first modern ski instruction manuals were written in Austria, helping shape Alpine skiing as it is known today.