Basics BASIC DATA Population Austria: 8,773,960; Vienna: 1,867,960 (2017 estimates) 27,4% of people living in Vienna are foreign nationals, over 140,000 of them originating from the former Yugoslavia, 45,000 from Turkey and 42,000 from Germany. Area: Austria: 83,872 km2; Vienna: 414,90 km2 Official languages: German. Slovene, Croatian and Hungarian are officially recognised. Local time: Central European (GMT+1hr) Longest river: Danube (357,5 km in Austria) Highest mountain: Austria: Großglockner 3,798m Vienna: Hermannskogel 542m Borders: Austria borders Germany and the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west. Religion: Roman Catholic 49,2%; no religion 25,6%; Muslim 7,8%; Orthodox 6%; Protestant (mostly Lutheran) 4,7%; Jewish 0,5%.
CRIME & SAFETY Vienna is a safe city to visit, and there’s little to fear except perhaps for spending too much on food and souvenirs. As elsewhere, avoid dark alleys at night and clutch your wallet or purse when using public transport or in busy places.
DISABLED TRAVELLERS Most hotels, restaurants and sights in Vienna are wellequipped for people in wheelchairs or otherwise requiring assistance, and public transport is easy to use with its many escalators, lifts and low-floor trams. The symbols below our hotel reviews which hotels are suitable. The city has an informative site for disabled travellers at www.wien.info/ en/travel-info/accessible-vienna.
ELECTRICITY Austrian electrical current is 220v AC, and the country uses the standard European round, two-pin sockets.
MONEY & COSTS Austria uses the euro (€) with banknotes in denominations of €5, €10, €20, €50, €100, €200 and €500. Coins, whose design depends on in which country they were minted, come in denominations of €0.01, €0.02, €0.05, €0.10, €0.20, €0.50, €1 and €2. ATMs can be found everywhere in Vienna and are the best way to get cash. Vienna is not an overly expensive city by Western European standards – and competition from nearby cheap countries keeps the price of for instance cigarettes at bay. Vienna´s status of a social democratic stronghold means that public services such as public transport are relatively cheap. facebook.com/InYourPocket
History is king in the Austrian capital
POLITICS The current mayor of Vienna is Michael Ludwig. Since 1917, Vienna has been (co-)governed by the Social Democratic Party with an absolute majority in the city parliament (except from 1934 to 1945 when the party was banned and mayors were appointed by the Austro-fascist and later by Nazi authorities). The Social Democrats currently rule in coalition with the Green Party. Many political experts believe that the rival Austrian People’s Party would completely dominate Austrian politics if it weren’t for the Social Democrats’ unbreakable hold on Vienna. An example of the city’s many social democratic policies is the low-cost Gemeindebauten residential estates which house about 25% of the Viennese population.
SMOKING It felt as though it might never happen, but the Smoking Ban has officially made it to Vienna. As of November 1, 2019, puffing away is illegal in all indoor venues, that being restaurants, pubs, bars, clubs, cafes and all the rest, bringing to an end Vienna’s smoking adolescence.
TIPPING If the service merits it, waiters appreciate a tip of about 10%; at the bar or at the Würstelstand it’s common to round up the sum a little.
PURCHASING POWER How far does your euro go in Vienna? Espresso Glass of local beer (0.5 litre) Bottle of local wine Packet of cigarettes Big Mac Public transport ticket Taxi ride across town Litre of petrol
€2,50 €3,50 €5 €4,50 €3,50 €2,40 €20 €1,30 March – April 2020
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