Newsletter: Diplomatic and Economic Relations Too Strong - Protective Measures against Too Many Tourists

Hallstatt App 2.0 - Protective Measures against Chinese Tourists

The Upper Austrian community defends itself against too many tourists, especially from China and South Korea. Since the Chinese built an exact copy of the city in Guangdong Province, and the South Koreans partly shot a soap opera in Hallstatt, the popularity of the Dachstein community has increased enormously. As a result, more and more tourists come to Hallstatt as part of a bus tour classic with 4 destinations including Hallstatt. In the previous year there were exactly 19,344 coaches. For the first time in the history of Austria, a town is now defending its friendly visitors by implementing the new "Traffic Concept Hallstatt 2018" and by strictly controlling the entrance to the town centre.

Kick-off for the 150th Anniversary of Diplomatic Relations between Japan and Austria

This year, Japan and Austria are commemorating the 150th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. This week the kick-off event took place with the Japanese Ambassador in Vienna Kiyoshi Koinuma and the Head of the Section for Foreign Cultural Relations (Sektion V - Kulturelle Auslandsbeziehungen) at the Foreign Ministry, Section Head Ambassador Dr. Teresa Indjein.

Vienna is Europe's Greenest Capital City

A new study has ranked 25 of Europe’s capitals on 10 green factors to reveal the continent’s most eco-friendly capital cities. Vienna - how else could it be expected - has once again emerged as the number one.

Economic Relations Between France and Austria on the Rise

France is Austria's fourth most important export market worldwide. At more than EUR 3 bn, the trade surplus with France is the second highest in the world after the USA. Last year, France grew particularly strongly as a destination for Austrian products with an increase of 32% or EUR 7 bn in Austrian exports.

Haus der Geschichte Österreich - Evaluation by a Team of Experts

The recently opened House of Austrian History is intended to present the history of Austria from the middle of the 19th century to as broad an audience as possible, with a special focus from 1918 to the present day in its European and international context. A team of experts met for the first time and will present a concept for the long-term design of the institution until the summer.

Holocaust Remembrance Day in Vienna: "We Remember"

On 27 January, the 74th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp by the Red Army was celebrated. On the occasion of the International Holocaust Remembrance Day various commemorative events were held in Vienna, among others by the Vienna Israelite Community at Heldenplatz.

Meet the Ambassador of the State of Israel to Austria: H.E. Ms. Talya Lador-Fresher

Ambassador Talya Lador-Fresher has been Ambassador of the State of Israel in Austria since 2015 and is Israel's permanent representative at the International Organizations in Vienna. She once told "The Diplomatic Club", that "It is hard to be a diplomat, it is harder to be an Israeli diplomat and even harder to be an Israeli woman diplomat."

Irish Ryanair Acquires Austrian Laudamotion Completely

The Austrian Niki-Airline successor Laudamotion has now been taken over 100% by Ryanair. Ryanair last held three quarters of the shares of Laudamotion. No information was given about the price for the remaining 25 percent.

OMV Acquires 2.2 Billion Euro Share in United Arab Emirates Refinery

Austrian OMV and the state-owned oil company of the United Arab Emirates, Adnoc, announced that OMV has acquired a 15 percent stake in Abu Dhabi Oil Refining Company. Thereby OMV establishes a major downstream Oil position. In addition, OMV will acquire a 15 percent stake in a trade joint venture with export volumes equivalent to around 70% of production.

Vienna Airport Surpasses 27 Million Passengers for the First Time

Vienna International Airport was able to handle 27 million passengers for the first time last year, a year-on-year increase of 10.8%. The top destinations were London, Moscow and Bangkok. 74 airlines serve 205 destinations in 71 countries. In the ranking of airlines as measured by their share of overall passenger volume, Austrian Airlines was followed by Eurowings (incl. Germanwings), the easyJet Group, Lufthansa and Laudamotion. The increase in the number of passengers in 2019 is estimated at 10%.

Vienna Opera Ball - Provide your Kids with the Chance to Debut at the Ball

The Ball of Balls in the magnificent building of the Vienna State Opera is regarded as the meeting place of international celebrities in Vienna and is a social event of the first order. Offer your children aged 17 to 24 the opportunity to open the Opera Ball together with 150 couples. We show you how to do it.