Statistics
(Austria) |
Area: 83,871 km2
Population
(may be an estimate):
8,189,000 (2005) |
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A landlocked country in Central Europe, Austria (in German, Österreich or Oesterreich) 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.
Austria consists of nine independent federal states (Bundesländern, singular Bundesland): Burgenland, Carinthia, Lower Austria, Salzburg, Styria, Tyrol, Upper Austria, Vienna and Vorarlberg; the states are divided into districts (Bezirke) and cities (Statutarstädte); districts are subdivided into municipalities (Gemeinden).
From sunny lake and river beaches to ice-covered peaks, from bucolic vineyards to luxuriant pine forests, from gentle pasturelands to lush riverlands, Austria boasts of perfect landscapes, backdrop for a culture which has developed over thousands of years and which visitors can experience in old cities as well as in historic villages, maintained by a charming and hospitable people who loves to share its love for arts.
Austria's cities fascinate with their monumental architectural buildings spanning all major epochs from Gothic to Renaissance, from Baroque to Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) and post-Modernism; the most famous city is certainly Vienna, the capital, but the tourist should also try to visit Linz, Salzburg, Graz, Eisenstadt, Bregenz and Innsbruck, to name but a few.
Apart from these bigger cities and their rich cultural agenda, and the world-famous ski resorts, the visitor should not ignore the smaller towns, where one can experience the past at every step on the trail of the Romans, Turks and Habsburgs.
Austria is located in a temperate climatic zone influenced by the Atlantic, with three different climatic regions: in the east, the weather is continental, with low precipitation, hot summers and moderately cold winters; in the Alpine regions, there's high precipitation, short summers and long winters; in the rest of the country, the weather is more influenced by the Atlantic in the west and more continental in the southeast.
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