Vienna is experiencing a tourism boom: 8.9 million overnight stays this season!

Vienna is experiencing a tourism boom: 8.9 million overnight stays this season!

Vienna records impressive numbers of overnight stays and thus attracts many tourists. Between November and April, 8.9 million overnight stays were registered in the Austrian capital. This represents an increase of 10.3 percent compared to the same time last year, continuing the pre-pandemic upward trend that was briefly interrupted during the coronavirus pandemic. Accordingly, the number of overnight stays in the 2018/19 winter season was 7.8 million and in the 2017/18 winter season it was 6.8 million orf.at reported.

December 2023 was particularly strong, with hotel occupancy at 87 percent. The Christmas traditions, especially the popular Christmas markets, attract numerous tourists from neighboring countries. Vienna is internationally considered the Christmas city and is one of the most booked cities in Europe.

Impact of tourism on Vienna

The sharp increase in tourism also has a positive impact on trade and gastronomy in the city's tourist hotspots. At the same time, however, there is increasing criticism from residents about overcrowded city centers and overloaded public transport. In order to meet these challenges, the city and Vienna Tourism are planning concepts to make districts away from the city center more attractive for tourists.

Overall, Austria recorded 72.3 million overnight stays in the 2024/25 winter season, which corresponds to an increase of 1.6 percent compared to the previous year. With its 8.9 million overnight stays, Vienna contributed significantly to this nationwide growth. The Tyrol region with 26.4 million and Salzburg with 15.5 million overnight stays remain the dominant federal states, as shown in the figures from wien.gv.at becomes clear.

Look at the overall numbers

The different numbers of overnight stays in other federal states are also notable. Styria recorded 5.9 million, Vorarlberg 4.9 million, Carinthia 3.6 million, Upper Austria 3.2 million, Lower Austria 2.8 million and Burgenland 1.1 million overnight stays. Statistics Austria General Director Tobias Thomas commented on these results and confirmed a positive balance despite economic uncertainties. An interesting aspect of these bookings is that 46 percent of the bookings were made in the months of January and February.

The range of guest arrivals shows an increase of 2.8 percent to a total of 20.6 million. 14.6 million holidaymakers come from abroad, which corresponds to an increase of 3.5 percent. The most represented countries of origin were Germany with 25.9 million overnight stays, followed by Austrian guests with 16.5 million and 6.8 million bookings from the Netherlands. These three countries together account for 68 percent of all overnight stays.

In the calendar year 2025, from January to April, there were a total of 54 million overnight stays, which represents a slight decrease of 0.8 percent compared to the previous year. While bookings from Austria hardly changed, overnight stays from abroad fell by 1.1 percent to 42.4 million. A positive aspect was Easter 2025, which fell in April and thus led to an increase in overnight stays of 23.9 percent to 8.2 million compared to April 2024. The increase in bookings from domestically is reflected in an increase of 7.4 percent, while those from abroad increased by 32.6 percent.