World Country Guide

Area
83,858 sq km (32,378 sq miles).

Population
8,169,929 (official estimate 2002).

Population Density
97.4 per sq km.

Capital
Vienna (Wien). Population: 1,608,144 (official estimate 1999).

Geography
Austria is a landlocked country, bordered by Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Germany, the Czech Republic, the Slovak Republic, Hungary, Slovenia and Italy. It is a mountainous country, nearly half of which is covered with forests. Austria’s nine Federal Provinces form a political entity, but reflect a diversity of landscapes falling into five sections: the Eastern Alps (62.8 per cent), the Alpine and Carpathian Foothills (11.3 per cent), the Pannonian Lowlands (11.3 per cent), the Vienna Basin (4.4 per cent) and the Granite and Gneiss Highlands or Bohemian Massif (10.1 per cent). Austria’s highest mountain is Grossglockner (3798m/12,465ft). On its way from the Black Forest in southern Germany to the Black Sea, the River Danube flows approximately 360km (220 miles) through Austria. The vegetation changes according to the climate: the lower regions are densely wooded, with fir predominating above 1600ft and giving way to larch and stone-pine beyond 4000ft; the Alpine foothills consist predominantly of arable land and grassland (above 2000ft). The Pannonian region is characterised by scrub and heathland.

Government
Federal Republic. Head of State: President Heinz Fischer since 2004. Head of Government: Chancellor Wolfgang Schssel since 2000.

Language
German is the official language. Regional dialects are pronounced and within the different regions of the country one will encounter marked variations from Hochdeutsch, ie ‘standard’ German. There are Croatian and Slovene-speaking minorities in the Burgenland and southern Carinthia respectively.

Religion
78 per cent Roman Catholic, 5 per cent Protestant, 4.5 per cent other denominations.

Time
GMT + 1.

Electricity
220 volts AC, 50Hz. Round two-pin European plugs are standard.

Communications

Telephone
Full IDD facilities available. Country code: 43. Outgoing international code: 00. Call boxes are grey and found in all areas. International calls can be made from payphones with four coin slots. Trunk calls within Austria and to 40 countries are cheaper Mon-Fri 1800-0800 and approximately 35 per cent cheaper at the weekend (from 1300 Saturday to 0800 Monday).

Mobile telephone
GSM 900/1800. Network operators include One (website: www.one.at), Telering (website: www.telering.at) and T-mobile (website: www.t-mobile.at).

Fax
Widely available, especially in cities.

Internet
There are many Internet cafes. ISPs include Nextra (website: www.nextra.at).

Telegram
Facilities are available from any post office; telegrams can also be sent by dialling 10 from any phone.

Post
Letters up to 20g and postcards within Europe are sent by airmail. Letters within Europe take two to four days, and to the USA four to six days. Stamps may be purchased in post offices or tobacco shops. Postcards and letters within Austria and Europe cost 0.55; to all other countries the cost is 1,25. Post boxes are yellow; red stripes mean that the box is also emptied weekends and bank holidays. A Poste Restante service is available at most post offices. Address mail to ‘Postlagernd’ (‘Hauptpostlagernd’ if a main post office), followed by the person’s name, town, and post code. Post office hours: generally Mon-Fri 0800-1200 and 1400-1800, and Sat 0800-1000, but main post offices and those at major railway stations are open for 24 hours, seven days a week, including public holidays.

Press
Newspapers are in German. The Wiener Zeitung, established in 1703, is the oldest newspaper in the world. The national daily with the largest circulation is the Neue Kronen-Zeitung, followed by Kurier, Der Standard and Die Presse. English-language newspapers and magazines are also widely available, particularly in the big cities and tourist resorts.

Radio
BBC World Service (website: www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice) and Voice of America (website: www.voa.gov) can be received. From time to time the frequencies change and the most up-to-date can be found online.