Austria Travel Tips

Traveling to a foreign country is always an experience and it should always be fun, no matter whether one is traveling for business or pleasure. One needs to make the most out of the trip and have as few complications as possible. Our site provides with Austria travel tips which would come handy for the visitor’s. The page on Austria travel tips helps in planning out your trip. The list of safety tips to facts about the country is a great help for a hassle free stay.

• Time zone: 1 hour ahead of Greenwich Medium Time (+1 GMT). Austria observes Daylight Saving Time from March to October.
• Tipping: Tipping is quite common, but large amounts are not expected. On restaurant bills a service charge of 10 to 15 per cent is included, but it is usual to leave a further 5 per cent.
• Language: German is the official language. Regional dialects are pronounced and within the different regions of the country one will encounter marked variations from Hochdeutsch, ie ‘standard’ German. There are Croatian and Slovene-speaking minorities in the Burgenland and southern Carinthia respectively.
• Electricity: 220 volts AC, 50Hz. Round two-pin European plugs are standard.
• Single European currency (Euro)
  The Euro is now the official currency of 12 EU member states (including Austria).
• Shopping hours: Shops and stores are generally open from Mon-Fri 0800-1800 (with a one- or two-hour lunch break in the smaller towns). Some shops are open until 1930 on Thursday and on Saturday opening hours are until 1700.
• Country dialing code: 43

• Social Conventions

• Austrians are quite formal in both their social and business dealings. They do not use first names when being introduced, but after the initial meeting first names are often used.
• Handshaking is normal when saying hello and goodbye.
• It is considered impolite to enter a restaurant or shop without saying Guten Tag or, more usually, Grüss Gott; similarly, to leave without saying Auf.
• If invited out to dinner, flowers should be brought for the hostess.