Tourism in Vienna was able to continue its long-standing success story in the summer.

We're back," Dominic Schmid, chairman of the hotel industry group in the Vienna Chamber of Commerce, draws a satisfied balance of the last summer months. With occupancy rates in excess of 75 percent, Vienna's hotels returned to profitability. In the annual balance sheet, most of the houses are now in the black, despite the closures at the beginning of the year. 

“Since May we have been in the black overall and thanks to the excellent number of guests in the summer, the minus from the first four months has at least been compensated for in most hotels. The number of guests in July and August in particular is almost the same as in the years before the pandemic. On some days in August we were already fully booked", says Schmid, who also refers to the increased prices: "The room prices this year are around 10 to 15 percent above the level of the last few years. On the one hand, this additional income serves to cover the increased costs for energy and raw materials, on the other hand, it goes to the employees. For example, starting salaries have risen by around 15 percent this year.”

The Germans are back

In July, Germany again led the list of the markets with the highest volume with 280.000 overnight stays (+78 percent compared to July 2021). With 248.000 overnight stays (+56 percent compared to July 2021), the source market Austria also recorded more guest overnight stays (+6,4 percent) than in July 2019. Other top source markets for Vienna in July include the USA (99.000), Great Britain (50.000) and Italy (48.000).

Autumn is still in the dark

Schmid does not yet dare to estimate whether the positive interim balance of the Viennese hotels can be maintained until the end of the year, because the forecasts are more difficult than ever this year. The conference and seminar business, which is traditionally strong in autumn, cannot be predicted at this time. “The booking times have been shortened considerably. While such events were previously planned and booked an average of 30 days in advance, this lead time has been reduced to a third. Of course, this is due to caution against a possible autumn wave of the pandemic and the associated restrictions. That's understandable, of course, but it makes our planning more difficult," says Schmid.