Do you want to immerse yourself with Austrian culture, traditions, and customs? The following list of celebrations gives you a good overview of how Austrians value their traditions and how Austrians celebrate.
Austria is a rather small country in central Europe. It’s influenced by its history and strong traditions. Despite its small size, Austria is rich in diverse customs, special celebrations, dialect and dishes. In each region, you will find its own customs.
Austria has nine federal states, and those states are divided in districts. Usually those districts have a unique identity with its dialect, customs and dishes. However, those districts can also vary within the area. Especially in the alpine area, every valley has its own character, and so do its people.
Celebrate the Three Kings Day in Austria – Heilige Drei Könige
On this Catholic holiday in Austria, three disguised kings (usually children with an adult) visit each house in the village. They are called “Sternsinger” (carol singers) because they sing a carol at each house and collect donations for children’s projects. They also put the letters C+M+B and the date on the door frame, which stands for “Christus mansionem benedicat”, which means “Christ bless our house”. The Three Kings are the patron saints of travelers, pilgrims, merchants and innkeepers. The tradition of coral singing dates back to the Middle Ages.
Where: whole Austria
When: 6th of January
Carnival in Austria – Fasching
Carnival is known and celebrated in different regions of Europe. The history of carnival dates back to the Middle Ages. Just before Lent, they celebrated with exuberant festivities.
In Austria, it is very typical for children to dress up on the day of carnival “Faschingsdienstag” for kindergarten or school. Adults also dress up for work. During the carnival time it is very common to find doughnuts in bakeries, in Austria we call them “Faschingskrapfen“. They are usually filled with apricot jam or they are cut into two pieces with a vanilla cream in the middle.
Huge carnival celebrations in Austria really depend on the area. Typically, there are carnival parades in larger cities or in towns that have a very active community. The most famous carnival in Austria is the “Villacher Fasching” in the state of Carinthia.
Where: various locations in Austria, in particular in Villach, Carinthia
When: beginning of February
That’s how Austria celebrates Easter – Ostern
The Easter celebration was one of my favorite holidays as a kid. It is usually in March or April. So the temperatures are already warmer, the snow melted and the first signs of spring appear.
But what makes it so special for kids on this holiday is that they get gifts. Other than at Christmas, the gift is not just handed to them. Gifts are hidden in the garden and children need to find them.
Adults tell the children the Easter bunny is hiding the gifts for them. There are various stories about the customs of the Easter bunny, which date back to the 18th century.
It is common in Austria to have an Easter Breakfast on Easter Sunday. That includes sweet bread in the shape of a lamb, Easter eggs (some color them themselves), brioche and other germ dough specialities. It is very important to do “Eierpecken”, which is a fun tradition.
Eierpecken – Fun Easter game
Take your colored hard-boiled egg and have a friend as opponent ready. Discuss who will go first. The person who goes first holds the egg up to your opponent’s egg and hits your opponent’s egg with your egg. If you have a hole in your egg, you lose. If your opponent has a hole in their egg, you win. The game continues, and it’s your opponent’s turn. If he/she has a hole in his/her egg, he/she uses the other side of the egg.
You can even continue after that and use the long sides of the eggs. The winner is the player with the strongest egg.
Easter is as well as Christmas a traditional event that Austrians spend with their families.
Another symbol of the festival is the palm branch. Easter is a very colorful time of the year, with the coloured eggs and lots of flowers. There are Easter masses and Easter markets that you can visit. Or maybe you find a workshop to color eggs. It is also a time where many Austrians visit the Church.
Where: whole Austria
When: March or April
First of May – Das Maibaumfest
Also called Staatsfeiertag – Day of the work. The title is a bit misleading, because it’s a day of no work, a public holiday. Back in the days of mass demonstrations of the labor force broke out. Inspired by Australians also Austrians labor strikes on the 1st of May. They didn’t go to work but on day trips with their families or marched through the cities. The workers protest about better working conditions. In 1934, the 1st of May became an official holiday in Austria.
As many celebrations and traditions in Austria, the 1st of May event leads back to the customs of Germanic customs: to the Memorial day of St. Walburga, an English abbess of the 8th century. The worship of Germanic forest deities is the origin of the maypole “Maibaum“.
The Maypole is a huge tree with a long wooden trunk, a wreath and an actual tip of a fire tree on the top. Some customs on the 1st of May and the night before are stealing of the Maypole, Maypole climbing, Maypole parade, brass band music. It is a typical folk festival that you can find in almost every little village, town or city of Austria.
Where: whole Austria
When: 1st of May
Samson parades – Samsonumzüge
Samson is a biblical figure and the symbol of Lungau, a region in Salzburg, Austria. In the Baroque period, it was customary to represent biblical figures during celebrations. That’s why the figure of Samson is an old custom in the region.
This parade features giant 6-meter tall Samson puppets made of wood and light metal. The biblical figure of Samson stands for strength, superhuman powers that lay in his hair. He symbolically represents the struggle of the Jews against the Philistines. Together with a brass band, it makes an impressive parade.
Where: Lungau, Salzburg
When: end of May, beginning of June
Spring fair and autumn festival in Salzburg – Dult and Rupertikirtag
Back in the days Dult was the name of two markets in Salzburg. The first mentions of the Dult were in 1331! Throughout the centuries, the festive and regularity of the Dult changed. Nowadays, it is a huge funfair at the trade fair center in Salzburg. It is every spring at Pentecost. It is the biggest folk fest in western Austria.
During autumn, you can find another traditional festival in Salzburg. The Rupertikirtag. A traditional celebration that also dates back to the middle ages. In the past, when farmers paid their interest to the bishops, they took the opportunity to sell their produce in the city. This resulted in a large fair. Which is still celebrated up to toda, but a little differently.
Different from the Dult, the Rupertikirtag is held in the city center of Salzburg. It offers less theme park atmosphere but traditional Austrian “Kirtag” vibes, with stands with food, beer, local handicraft and much more.
Where: Salzburg city
When: Dult end of May, beginning of June; Rupertikirtag is around the 24th of September.
Daffodils festival – Narzissenfest
The daffodils festival is a festival for the local community of the “Ausseerland”, which is lake and mountain area in the middle of Austria.
The idea of the daffodils festival came actually from another town in Austria, at the end of the 50s. However, this town couldn’t keep up with costs. Now it is for years part of the history and tradition of the Ausseeregion. The area is blessed with many daffodil meadows, and the local community is willing to make the event happen. Cars, boats and sculptures are made of daffodils. Music and culinary delights are, of course, not missing during that event.
Where: Bad Aussee
When: beginning of June
The longest day in Austria, the Solstice bonfire – Sonnwendfeuer
The longest day of the year is celebrated in Austria with bonfires. The origin of the customs through lots of noises expels evil spirits. Today, it’s a cheery folk festival. Especially in Sweden, it is known as the Midsummer festival.
In Austria it is pretty special, in particular in the alpine region, if the weather is good. You don’t miss that! Mountain peaks and ranges are lit up in lights. In some regions in Salzburg and Tyrol, you can find even pictures and symbols drawn with the lights, for instance an edelweiss, a cross or an angel. It is unique to observe it from the valley or to celebrate in the alps directly at the bonfire.
The day also holds the name Johannestag (John day), because it is around the birthday of John the baptist. So the fire is also called Johnfire.
Where: whole Austria, special in the alpine Region
When: around the 21st of June
Cellar lane festival – Kellergassenfest in Lower Austria
The region around Vienna is famous for its wine production. Besides wine tasting events, you can visit the so-called Kellergassenfest. Those cellars, which are small buildings in the outskirts of villages, close to the vineyards, were used for the storage of the wines. The cellars that are still existing nowadays originate from the second half of the 19th century or later. Soon the wine production got modernist, and those cellars weren’t used anymore. Therefore, people are eager to not let the collar lanes fall into disrepair. That’s why you find projects around the cellars.
The Kellergassenfest is primarily about wine, of course, you can also get food and find the one or the other handcraft.
Where: in Lower Austria the wine region
When: May to September
Cattle drive in the Austrian Alps – Almabtrieb
Each summer Austrian farmers bring their cattle up into the mountains. The animals spend their summers up in higher altitudes close to a so-called “Alm” where one or more people will look after the cattle. In autumn, the cattle are brought down from the “Alm”, back to the stables. This, however, is happening with a big celebration called Almabtrieb.
A century old tradition that is especially popular in Tyrol. The cows are wearing colorful decorations with flowers and bells. In the valley, visitors are waiting for the cows with culinary delights, music and traditional craftsmanship or performances to admire.
Where: the alpine region of Austria
When: in autumn, depending on the weather in September or October
National Holiday in Austria – Nationalfeiertag
The Austrian national holiday is not celebrated as in other countries, like Mexico. But Austria hadn’t had a massacre to fight independence. There were some other wars. After the 2nd world war, soldiers of the victorious countries occupied Austria for ten years. An interesting side fact is that Americans started a popular newspaper in Salzburg.
The then Foreign Minister Leopold Figl ordered that all allied soldiers have to leave Austria by 25th of October 1955. He signed the national treaty and said the famous words “Österreich ist Frei” (Austria is free).
So that’s why Austria celebrates its National Holiday on the 26th of October. During this time, you can see the Austrian Flag at private houses, public buildings, or on the streets. The main celebrations are held in Vienna with parades, speeches by the president, and a federal army march. On this day, the Parliament in Vienna is free to visit among some other museums in Austria.
Where: whole Austria, especially in Vienna and other state capitals
When: 26th of October
Martinsday – Martinstag
The legend of St. Martin tells of a soldier who gave half of his coat to a poor beggar. Later he became a monk and after some time, people wanted to make him a bishop, but as he was a humble man, he did not want this. He hid in a goose stall, but soon the people found him and he became bishop. This is why eating goose on St. Martin’s Day is so widespread.
Many celebrations are in the evening before, with Martin parades and kids with lanterns. Restaurants have the traditional dish, roasted goose, on their menu during this time. It is also the last festival before Lent.
Where: Celebrated in various regions of Austria differently, especially in Tyrol and Burgenland
When: 10th and 11th of November
The day of the deaths in Austria – Allerheiligen/Allerseelen
This is a catholic holiday in Austria. That isn’t celebrated hugely with parades and music. It is for remembrance of the dead people. There are special masses and the graves get decorated very nicely. Austrians walk together to the graveyards. A typical pastry for this time is the “Allerheiligenstriezel” or the “Seelenzopf”.
Where: whole Austria
When: 1st of November
Christmas time in Austria – Adventzeit
Christmas in Austria is indeed special and you can find lots of traditions like the nativity play, the songs, and of course, Christmas cookies. Therefore, I dedicated to the topic Christmas in Austria whole blog post.
Where: whole Austria
When: December
Of course, Austria has many other traditional festivals all around the year. I hope this gave you a little overview and you can decide easier which celebrations you want to visit.
If you have visited a traditional event in Austria and you want to share your experience, feel free to write a comment.
