The Land of The Hohensalzburg Castle, Sigmund Freud

& The Eisriesenwelt Caves

Information on Relocating to Austria

• The capital city of Austria is Vienna with about 1.62 million people. The political centre is also Vienna. Austria is a Federal Republic.

• Languages: German is the official language. Regional dialects are pronounced and within the different regions of the country one will encounter marked variations from Hochdeutsch, i.e. ‘standard’ German. There are Croatian and Slovene-speaking minorities in the Burgenland and southern Carinthia respectively. The TV programs are in German but through satellite channels there is also English, French, Italian, and Turkish.

• Population: The population is about 8.2 million people - Germans 91%, Turks, Serbs, Croats, Slovenes, and Bosniasns; other recognized minorities include Hungarians, Czechs, Slovaks, and Roma.

• Expat areas: Popular area for the Expat community is the 19th district which has the largest concentration of Expats with families due to it's location and suburban qualities (i.e. American International School, easy access to the Vienna International School, houses with yards).

• Housing: There is a large offer of single-room apartments, but by far the most offers can be found in the section of two- to three-room apartments. If you are looking for an apartment with four or five rooms, you have less offers to choose from. And the selection in the field of apartments with more than five rooms or houses is even more limited like in most big cities. Rents for unfurnished or furnished apartments in Vienna or other major cities and towns may vary. Rents depend on the location, the standard of the building, and the available facilities.

• Cost of housing: Varies from area to area and the size of the house or apartment- you'll pay anything from EURO 900 - EURO 3500 for an apartment and EURO 2000 - EURO 6000 and higher for a house. The local currency is EURO.

• Schools: We have the American, Japanese, Swedish, Arabic and French International schools. Depending on the age we can tell you about a possible waiting lists, etc.

• Transportation: Vienna has an extensive system of metro, bus, light rail and tramway services. The classic way to travel round the capital is by horse-drawn carriage (Fiaker); fares should be agreed in advance. There are bus systems in all the other main towns, and also tramways in Linz, Innsbruck and Graz, and trolleybuses in Linz, Innsbruck and Salzburg.

• Bank: The banks in Vienna are open Monday-Wednesday and Friday 8.00 am - 12.30 pm and 1.00 pm - 3.00 pm. On Thursday 8.00 am - 12.30 pm and 1.30 pm - 5.30 pm (head offices do not close for lunch). Different opening hours may be kept in the various Federal Provinces.

• Shopping: Shops and stores are generally open from Monday-Friday 8.00 am - 6.00 pm (with a one- or two-hour lunch break in the smaller towns). Some shops are open until 7.30 pm on Thursday and on Saturday opening hours are until 5.00 pm.

• Climate: Austria enjoys a moderate continental climate: summers are warm and pleasant with cool nights, and winters are sunny, with snow levels high enough for widespread winter sports.

• Culture: Viennese nightlife offers something for every taste: opera, theatre and cabaret as well as numerous discotheques, bars and nightclubs. There are cinemas of all types, some of them of architectural interest, showing films in different languages.

• Public holidays: January 1st-New Year’s Day; January 6th-Epiphany; Good Friday-Easter Monday (dates vary); May 1st-Labour Day; Ascension Day (date vary); Whit Sunday (date vary); Corpus Christi (date vary); August 15th-Assumption; October 26th-National Day; November 1st-All Saints’ Day; December 8th-Immaculate Conception; December 25th-Christmas Day; December 26th-St. Stephen’s Day.