Austria: Winter Tourism Remains A Strong Economic Factor

Focus on the decline in overnight stays in February: “Analyze the fluctuations carefully – tourism is and remains a key pillar for Austria as a business location.”

The overnight stay figures published today by Statistics Austria show that tourism remains a key factor of stability for Austria as a business location. The 2024/2025 winter season remains strong with over 51 million overnight stays – even though February brought a significant setback. "The figures confirm that our tourism industry remains an economic powerhouse – especially in winter. However, we take the downturn in February very seriously," emphasizes State Secretary for Tourism Elisabeth Zehetner.

With 17.15 million overnight stays, February 2025 recorded a decline of 7.2 percent compared to the same month last year. Reasons for this include the absence of a leap year and the Bavarian and Dutch holidays, which take place in March this year. "We're not talking about a structural decline here, but rather a seasonal effect. Nevertheless, such fluctuations demonstrate the importance of targeted measures to boost winter tourism – especially in times of climate change and changing travel habits," says Zehetner.

The outlook for the entire winter season so far is positive: From November to February, 51.35 million overnight stays were recorded – an increase of 1.5 percent compared to the previous year. Particularly encouraging: overnight stays by domestic guests increased by 3.5 percent.

Zehetner announces that he will actively address the challenges surrounding tourism fluctuations as part of the further development of Plan T – the national tourism strategy: "We will clearly identify problem areas and address them where necessary: ​​in the development of services, in adapting to new guest needs, and in the close cooperation of tourism and regions."