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What direct flights can I get from Austria’s regional airports?

Flying abroad from Austria doesn't always mean you have to go from the capital Vienna, because there are options from the country's regional airports including Salzburg, Graz and Innsbruck.

What direct flights can I get from Austria's regional airports?
A flight taking off from the scenic Salzburg airport. Photo: picture alliance / Salzburger Flughafen GmbH/dpa-tmn | Salzburger Flughafen GmbH

If you’re flying intercontinental in particular, there’s often no other choice than for you to fly out from Vienna or to connect through an even larger European airport – but for those who don’t live in the capital, it’s still sometimes worth checking for the connections you can get out of some of Austria’s other airports.

Salzburg, Innsbruck, Graz, Linz, and Klagenfurt all have at least a few direct flight connections.

READ ALSO: What direct intercontinental flights can I get from Vienna?

Flying out from the Alps – Salzburg

Out of the country’s non-Viennese options, Salzburg Airport by far offers the most destinations. Depending on what time of year and week you’re flying, you can access over 30 direct destinations from Salzburg.

Although many options are seasonal or only available a few times a week – or even just once a week, the UK is particularly well-connected with Salzburg flight-wise.

You can get a direct flight to a London airport every day, with both EasyJet and British Airways running direct daily flights to Gatwick Airport. Both airlines also offer connections to either Luton or Heathrow respectively, running a few times a week, while BA even operates a once-weekly flight from Salzburg to London City Airport. Ryanair also sells a direct service from Salzburg to London Stansted and WizzAir is slate to start up a three-times weekly service to Luton in early 2024.

From Salzburg to elsewhere in the UK, Jet2 offers once-weekly flights to Belfast, Newcastle, Edinburgh, Manchester, Nottingham, Leeds, and Birmingham. Meanwhile, easyJet has either once or twice-weekly connections to Liverpool, Birmingham and Bristol – while Ryanair flies twice a week to Manchester.

There are numerous connections directly into and out of Salzburg without having to go through Vienna or Munich first. Photo: Pixabay / Werdepate

For Ireland, Ryanair also sends passengers from Salzburg direct to Dublin three times a week. Northern European countries also have a few direct connections to Salzburg, with daily flights to Berlin, Hamburg, Frankfurt, Düsseldorf, Rotterdam and Amsterdam – and many less frequent services to destinations like Cologne, Brussels, and the Nordic and Baltic capitals.

Southern direct destinations include both Belgrade and Skopje. Sunseekers can also use Eurowings a few times a week to get direct from Salzburg to Palma de Mallorca, Ibiza, the Canaries, Sardinia, Cyprus and even Greek destinations like Thessaloniki, Crete, Zakynthos, Corfu, Kos and Rhodes. The airline also has occasional service to Egyptian destinations. 

Those travelling intercontinentally even have a few options from Salzburg, notably through a daily Turkish Airlines flight bound for Istanbul, a weekly Arkia connection to Tel Aviv, and five-times weekly flights to Riyadh on Flynas or Dubai using Flydubai. 

Transatlantic travellers can even route themselves through Reykjavik on Icelandair direct from Salzburg twice a week.

Munich, Vienna, or Salzburg: Which is the best airport to fly from?

From Styria to the world through Graz

Austria’s second-largest city has nearly 20 direct flight connections.

Most of these are with destinations that are fairly close by – some easily reachable also by train – perhaps in order to connect Graz passengers with hubs able to take them to more far-flung destinations. These include daily flights to Vienna, Frankfurt, Munich, and Amsterdam on Austrian, Lufthansa and KLM – as well as four or five-times weekly flights on Eurowings to Düsseldorf, Hamburg, and Berlin – and a Swiss flight to Zurich. 

Travellers looking for sunnier climes also have a few options from Graz, although many only run once a week, such as Eurowings options to the Canary Islands, Corfu, Kos, Rhodes and Cyprus. There are, however, more frequent options on Eurowings to Hurghada in Egypt or Palma de Mallorca, as well as a SunExpress flight that travels direct to Antalya every day except for Wednesday.

READ ALSO: What are the new flights to and from Austrian airports in 2024?

Westward from Tyrol – Innsbruck

The Tyrolean capital has over 20 direct destinations by plane. The vast majority of these are in nearby northern European countries.

Similar to Salzburg, it has excellent connections to London – with EasyJet, BA, or Jet2 able to provide you with a way to a London airport – including Gatwick, Heathrow, Stansted and Luton – every day of the week.

Other UK destinations are less well-served. But there are EasyJet or Jet2 connections a few times a week to Bristol and Manchester, and weekly Jet2 flights to Edinburgh and Birmingham.

canary islands limit property purchases foreigners

Sunny destinations like Spain’s Canary Islands are well-served from all of Austria’s airports, not just Vienna. Photo: slavikfi/Pixabay

You can also connect to hubs like Frankfurt, Vienna, and Amsterdam daily, through Paris on Air France twice a week, and once a week, you can use a direct Icelandair flight to connect onto North America through Reykjavik.

Other major European cities are also within your reach anywhere from once a week to Athens, Stockholm and Helsinki, twice a week to Berlin and Brussels, and four times a week to Hamburg. 

Finally, Israir will send you to Tel Aviv once a week.

READ ALSO: What are your rights if your trip is delayed or cancelled in Austria?

The small offerings – Linz and Klagenfurt

With less than 10 direct destinations between the two of them, people living in or near the state capitals of Upper Austria and Carinthia may often just end up having to go further afield – but there are a few options.

A daily Austrian Airlines flight links Klagenfurt to Vienna, while people in the city can also use Ryanair to head to London Stansted five times a week. Less frequent options include two or three times weekly Ryanair flights to Palma de Mallorca and Alicante. Meanwhile, a once-weekly Austrian flight will take Klagenfurt passengers to Hamburg.

Linz meanwhile, has a few options for those needing either to connect to a hub or grab some sun – with daily flights to Frankfurt and twice-weekly flights to Palma de Mallorca.

READ ALSO: Do people really mistakenly fly to Austria instead of Australia?

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COST OF LIVING

IN NUMBERS: Where are Austria’s most budget-friendly cities?

Austria is known for its high living standard and beautiful nature. However, settling down in the country can come with a higher price tag. But there are some cities that are more affordable while also offering jobs and activities.

IN NUMBERS: Where are Austria's most budget-friendly cities?

If you want your living situation to be as affordable as possible while still living in a big capital city with a lot to offer, you should not focus on places like Salzburg, Innsbruck, or Vienna.

Instead, you should consider beautiful Klagenfurt near the mountains in Carinthia, cultural Graz in Styria, or, why not, lively Linz in Upper Austria, known for its music and cultural scene.

Linz

Linz is the capital of Upper Austria and Austria’s third-largest city.

For a long time, it was mainly known for being one of Austria’s most industrial hubs.

Today, it is also known for its cultural offerings, with many festivals and various events happening all year round, such as the famous festivals Ars Electronica and Lido Sounds.

The city also has a beautiful historical centre, with interesting architecture and a wide variety of bars, restaurants, and cafes.

In Linz, housing is relatively affordable compared to other Austrian cities. A one-bedroom apartment in the city centre costs around €678 per month, while the price drops to around €576 outside the centre.

If you are looking to buy property, the price per square meter in the city centre is about €4,833, and outside the centre, it is as low as around €3,583.

Eating out costs €15 for a meal in a standard restaurant, while a three-course meal for two at a mid-range restaurant costs around €66. 

Buying food is also relatively cheap, a litre of milk is priced around €1.35, while a loaf of fresh white bread (500 grams) costs €2.56. Rice costs around €2.22 per kilogram.

Using the public transport in the city costs €2.60 for a one-way ticket, and a monthly pass is €54.10.

In Linz, the average monthly net salary after taxes is about €2,524.58, similar to Vienna’s (€2,544). 

Renting or buying an apartment in Linz is affordable comparing to many other cities. Photo by Leonhard Niederwimmer on Unsplash
 
 
 
Graz

Graz is the capital of Styria and Austria’s second-largest city. It is a lively city full of students, cultural events and historical architecture. 

In fact, the city centre has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site and drags tourists from everywhere. 

Housing in Graz is relatively cheap compared to other larger Austrian cities.

Renting a one-bedroom apartment in the city centre costs about €753 per month, while the price drops to about €625 outside the centre.

If you instead plan to buy property, the price per square meter in the city centre is about €6,583.33. Outside the city centre, the price is about €4,316 per square meter, a price range higher than in Klagenfurt and Linz, but at the same time significantly lower than in cities such as Vienna and Salzburg.

Prices for eating out in Graz vary depending on what you are looking for. A meal at an inexpensive restaurant costs around €14, while a three-course meal for two at a mid-range restaurant will cost about €70.

When it comes to groceries, a litre of milk costs around €1.44, and a loaf of fresh white bread (500 grams) around €1.74. A kilogram of rice goes for about €2.48.

Public transport in Graz is relatively affordable, although slightly more expensive than Vienna’s. A single ticket costs €3, valid for one hour, while a monthly pass costs around €64.

The average monthly net salary in Graz is around €2,491, similar to the average net salary in Vienna (€2,544).

A woman sitting and looking out over the city of Graz. Photo by Anna Oliinyk on Unsplash

READ MORE: Does Graz offer the best quality of life among Austria’s cities?

Klagenfurt

Klagenfurt is the capital of Carinthia in the south of Austria. The city is not only beautiful but is also located near Lake Wörthersee and many other impressive lakes and mountains.

Klagenfurt and its surroundings are a paradise for those who love nature, and the city itself has a lot to offer in terms of restaurants, bars, entertainment, and culture.

On top of this, Klagenfurt is quite an affordable city, especially when it comes to housing.

For a one-bedroom apartment in the city centre, you can expect to pay around €818 per month. Outside the city centre, the rent is even more affordable, and you will pay around €717 per month.

If you want to buy property, the price per square meter in the city centre is about €4,120. For locations outside the city centre, the price per square meter is around €4,425.

A three-course meal for two at a mid-range restaurant typically costs about €60, while a meal at an inexpensive restaurant costs around €15.

When you go to the supermarket, a litre of milk costs about €1.38, a loaf of fresh white bread (500 grams) is around €2.25, and one kilo of rice usually costs around €2.36.

If you want to travel with the local public transport, you pay about €2.50 for a one way ticket, while a monthly pass costs around €47.50.

The average monthly net salary in Klagenfurt is around €1,807, which is lower compared to some other Austrian cities.

However, since many other costs, such as housing, are significantly lower, many people still see Klagenfurt as a more affordable option compared to other cities.

Calm street in the city centre of Klagenfurt. Photo by Evangelia Panteliadou on Unsplash

READ ALSO: IN NUMBERS: What are Austria’s most expensive cities to live in?

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