Amazing things you need to know before traveling to Austria

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Vienna’s Habsburg-era opulence and Klimt’s lush sensuality attract the visitors to Austria, as do the melancholy traces of a grand lost empire. However, Austria is more than that.

There were thriving contemporary art scenes, a great nightlife, efficient transportation, safe streets, and food options that went far beyond schnitzel. You’ll also love the laid-back wine-growing regions and Alpine hospitality.

If you plan to enter Austria from a country outside Europe, you need to obtain a digital green certificate Austria.

These are 6 amazing things you need to know before you travel to Austria.

Vienna from a different perspective

Having been the capital of Europe’s longest-lasting empire, Vienna’s cultural and historical riches are astounding. The Innerstadt’s gilded palaces and masterpiece-lauded art museums are peppered with thriving, creative neighborhoods that lie beyond the historic Ringstrasse. In the scenic multicultural streets, fashionable Neubau, Mariahilf, and Leopoldstadt, surrounding the open-air Brunnenmarkt and Ottakring, you’ll find excellent cafes with better coffee than the grand old coffee houses. Also, small bars serving local wines, techno clubs, and intimate, small-scaled house museums such as the Freud Museum, set in the father of psychoanalysis’s house, are other notable attractions.

Salzburg beyond Mozart and Maria Von Trapp

Salzburg’s musical associations are omnipresent. However, there are ways to enjoy Salzburg without succumbing to clichés—Mozart and Von Trapp tour. Take, for example, the annual Salzburg Festival, which attracts the world’s best classical musicians and is well worth planning ahead of time. And, there is a thriving year-round jazz and electronic scene in a city full of music students, where the classically trained kids can let off steam. Besides, visiting the limestone peaks, mist-shrouded waterfalls, and jewel-colored lakes make for an excellent day trip. If you only have a few hours to spend outside of town, the sparkling subterranean ice pavilions and lantern-lit passages of Eisriesenwelt cave are must-visits.

Sample Austrian Wine

Austria’s Wachau, Kremstal, and Kamptal regions are home to traditional operations and younger, edgier producers of wine. The famous Danube-side town of Krems gets all the attention, but Langenlois is a hidden gem that stays true to its agricultural, working-town roots while also turning on the charm. Try the local Grüner Veltliner, which can be as citrusy and thirst-quenching, and peppery-rich as a good Chardonnay. Vineyards and winemaking villages emerge from Eisenstadt, completely encircling the marshy lake and home to an increasing number of natural winemakers, including the cult producer Gut Oggau. Blaufränkisch, a full-bodied red, is the region’s most famous wine. Südsteiermark is known as “Styrian Tuscany ” for its sun-drenched rolling hills and rambling villages, as well as its wine-growing skill. Sauvignon Blanc and Weissburgunder are local favorites.