Vienna City Guide

Page 4

Vienna City Guide

Facts About Austria

Official Country Name:

The Republic of Austria (

Osterreich

)

Capital City:

Vienna (

Wien

)

Official Language:

German; nearly identical with the German spoken in Germany,

apart from some differences in vocabulary and dialect. English is the first foreign

language in Austria and is generally taught from the first grade of elementary school;

however, please be aware many Austrians, particularly elderly citizens, do not speak

a foreign language

Official Religion:

The majority of Austrians practice Catholicism (approx. two-

thirds), whilst a small percentage practice Protestantism

Currency:

Euro, €

International Calling Code:

(+43); the internet top level domain is “.at”

Time Zone:

CET (Central European Time), which is UTC +1 hour; in spring, clocks

are advanced one hour to DST (Daylight Saving Time)

Geographic Overview

The Republic of Austria is surrounded by eight countries, namely the Czech Republic,

Germany, Hungary, Italy, Liechtenstein, Slovakia, Slovenia and Switzerland. The country

covers an area of 83,870 square kilometers, measuring 575 kilometers from west to east

and 294 kilometers from north to south. Its population is about 8.48 million, of which

approximately 11% do not hold Austrian citizenship.

Austria consists of nine autonomous federal states with their own capitals:

State

Capital

Vienna

Vorarlberg

Bregenz

Tyrol

Innsbruck

Styria

Graz

Salzburg

Upper Austria

Linz

Lower Austria

St. Pölten

Carinthia

Klagenfurt

Burgenland

Eisenstadt

Climate

Austria is a mountainous country with more than half of its area being dominated by the Alps

and thus an alpine climate is prevalent in these parts. Austria’s greater part lies in a typical

temperate climate zone with four distinct seasons (spring, summer, autumn and winter), the

winters being rather cold and the summer relatively warm. Winter temperatures may well

drop below 0°C/32°F and summer temperatures reach from 20°C/68°F to 30°C/86°F.