Best Time To Travel To: Austria
Austria is one of the most mountainous European countries. After all, a large part in the west over the center to the south is occupied by the Eastern Alps. The Austrian Alps easily reach over 3,700 meters and are snow-covered in places all year round at high altitudes. The Alps with their many valleys certainly form an excellent climatic role in the country.
However, there are also some low-lying regions in Austria, especially in the north and east along the Danube to the Hungarian border. In the southeast, the climate in Austria can even take on a Mediterranean character.
Seen over the whole country Austria has a relatively changeable weather. Typically it is rainiest in summer, but the rains tend to be short-lived and quite heavy. Winters in Austria are distinct and usually quite cold, especially in valleys and lowlands there can be very low temperatures. It gets coldest whenever easterly winds bring cold temperatures over the country from Eastern Europe and Russia.
Summers in Austria have higher sunshine hours than in northwestern Europe, but lower than in southern countries. In July, Austria can easily get up to 10 hours of sunshine a day, in January it goes down to about two hours.
Austria can be divided into three climatic regions: the Alps, the Danube valley with Vienna and the southeast.
The Alps
The Alps are predestined for skiers in winter. The snow conditions are usually quite good (although the last few years were not reliably snowy). It is often quite sunny up there in winter but the valleys then can be cloudy and foggy and therefore quite cold. In summer the weather can change again and again, then you can see the highlands shrouded in clouds and fog, but down below it is sunnier. A special feature is the Föhn, which with its warm and dry winds occurs mainly in valley areas from south to north. Mostly the foehn is noticed at the end of winter or in spring.
As a representative of the lower areas of the Alps, one could take the climate table of Innsbruck.
The Danube Valley with Vienna
The region of the Danube and around Vienna is counted among the driest regions in Austria. In winter it doesn't snow extremely much here, but it can get very cold and the little snow can stay for a while. This region has quite comparable climatic proportions with the south of Germany, e.g. Bavaria. Summers can be very pleasantly warm here.
The climate table of Vienna can be taken as an example.
The Southeast
Here it can get quite warm in summer, but usually only in the sheltered valley areas. If the sun has prevailed, then the southeast of Austria can surprise you with an almost Mediterranean climate. However, these periods of good weather are also quickly interrupted by bad weather with violent storms. Winters in the southeast can be quite cold.
Typical for the weather in the southeast can be the climate diagram of Klagenfurt.
When is the best time to travel to Austria
The best time for winter sports is between January and March. In higher regions, April and May are also worthwhile. Spring and autumn can be very appealing travel phases for most parts fo Austria, summer is a good choice for the whole country.
