Tourism

Tourism is inseparably linked with the Tyrol. It played a key role in the post-war development of the peripheral areas and is a mainstay of the Tyrolean economy today. With its spectacular mountain scenery and sights, the Tyrol attracts visitors from home and abroad. Tourists from all over the world are drawn to the Tyrol by the region’s ideal conditions for mountain tourism and modern ski areas. In addition to winter sports, the Tyrol also has a varied summer holiday offering. For the more energetic, that includes walking on a huge network of paths, mountain biking and rock climbing. For mountain bikers and cyclists, the regional authority has included a route planner on its website.

In the field of cultural tourism, too, the Tyrol has plenty to see with its various museums and cultural monuments.

With a hospitality industry offering a total of over 340,000 beds, some five million visitors come to the Tyrol every year, generating an annual bednight total of about 43 million.

The Tyrol has 36 tourism associations (in German), which represent their members’ interests and and promote tourism within their respective areas. Among other things, the tourism associations develop tourism strategies, handle the marketing, and support and coordinate the activities of their members and public bodies in developing the products and services the market wants.

Maintaining and enhancing the competitive strength of the tourism industry in the Tyrol is the number-one priority for all support measures taken by the regional authority in this sector. The agenda of the tourism and leisure industry, and especially tourism marketing, has been entrusted by the Tyrolean Parliament to a company called Tirol Werbung GmbH (Tyrolean Tourism Board). The company is financed out of regional funds on the one hand and by the Tyrolean Tourism Promotion Fund (Tiroler Tourismusförderungsfonds) on the other.

The regional authority manages the system of obligatory contributions paid by Tyrolean businesses to the Tyrolean tourism associations and the Tourism Promotion Fund. The objective is to develop a modern tourism industry taking due account of the economic, social, cultural, ethnic and ecological impacts of tourism and in keeping with the Tyrol’s overall development goals.

Major sports events held in the region make the Tyrol famous throughout the world and are a further incentive for visitors to discover its attractions.

Innsbruck hosted the Winter Olympics in 1964 and 1976, and the first Winter Youth Olympic Games in 2012.

Click here for further information on the subject of tourism, support programmes and the relevant departments at the Office of the Tyrolean Regional Government (in German).