Camping in Austria: Everything you need to know!

Quite logical: The duration of the journey clearly determines your starting point within Germany. Whereas Munich residents reach our neighboring country in just over an hour, Hamburg residents clearly need more patience. However, one thing is the same for everyone: In Austria, tolls are compulsory. This applies to almost all highways for cars and motor homes up to 3.5 tons, as well as motorcycles. This is paid in the form of tolls or vignettes. Since there are regul traffic jams - and especially in the vacation periods - due to increased traffic and waiting times at the border, we recommend one thing: Buy the vignette online in advance. It's super easy and there are no waiting times. Just decide between toll, daily or monthly vignette and then you can start your journey. By the way: If you travel via Czech Republic, please pay attention to the toll regulations - but if you want to save yourself some time and work, this is also done by our travel planner...!

Depending on the season and equipment, the campsite prices vary extremely. A realistic price estimate is between 20€ and 50€, more extravagant sites start at 60€ and for glamping in the mountains the motto clearly is ´the sky the limit`. Regardless of the season, we always recommend booking in advance. Austria is wonderful, at absolutely any time of the year and a lot of people know that.

You prefer to let yourself drift? Understandable, but unfortunately not quite that simple in Austria: In Austria, free standing or spending the night away from the official campsites is largely prohibited and is punished with high penalties. Exceptions are the emergency bivouacking and break in the camper away from campsites. In addition, regulations are enforced differently from region to region. The specific regulations and where which gray areas prevail you can find out in our blog post Wild camping in Austria.

You certainly can't go wrong. Austria has absolutely breathtaking corners that are impossible to summarize in one article. Nevertheless, some campsites are somehow special - with a very special flair, location or adventure and we made a list for you to make it easier.

The Natur Camp Kuprian is located in Huben in the Ötztal directly on the edge of the forest and feels like a real insider tip. A place in Tyrol that was created to find balance and enjoy nature. The location in the Ötztal is ideal for climbing and mountain biking. It offers access to 1,600 km of hiking trails - both idyllic hiking trails, as well as high mountain tours. The Hahlkogel, the local mountain of Huben, promises the most beautiful view over the Ötztal.

The unique selling point of the campsite is its location high up (Hochoben) on the mountain. At over 1,200 metres above sea level, you can camp close to nature and in an impressive setting. The municipality of Mallnitz is located in the middle of the Hohe Tauern National Park. This is one of the most beautiful nature hiking regions of the Alps and offers perfect conditions for mountain sports or canyoning enthusiasts, for paragliding, fishing and rafting.

The Camping Grubhof in the Salzburger Land is located directly on the turquoise mountain river Saalach. The site offers very large pitches, rental accommodations and is ideal for camping vacations with children. It is surrounded by the Loferer Steinberge and the Berchtesgaden Alps. In the valley in between - in the Saalach Valley - are wild and romantic gorges, legendary caves, deep gorges and green meadows as far as the eye can reach.

Camping Au Donau is located not far from Linz in Upper Austria, directly on the Danube Cycle Path from Passau to Vienna. The site stretches like an island below the Danube dam along a natural pond and is just ideal for camping in Austria. Whether with a tent, camper or motorhome: The location right by the water brings many advantages for children and the surroundings are perfect for cycling, hiking and swimming.

The Camping Aigner located in the forest in Pinzgau is nestled between the hills of the Kitzbühel Limestone Alps and the mighty peaks of the Hohe Tauern National Park. It is centrally located for hikes into the national park valleys at the foot of the Walder Sonnberg. From here there are tours to the highest mountain in Austria - the Großvenediger - and the Krimmler Waterfalls or the National Parkwelten Mittersill are only a short drive away.

Austria is a country full of lakes that are absolutely stunning - so it's impossible to cover them all in one small chapter. That's exactly why we have dedicated a whole separate article to this topic: So you can find all the information about Millstätter See, Hallstätter See or Achensee in THIS article.

Here we mainly focus on mountains, cities and regions.

Tyrol not only has immense camping potential, but also endless vacation potential. Its location in the Austrian Alps offer endless recreational potential: the side valleys of Ötztal, Pitztal, Stubaital and Zillertal all lie in the province of Tyrol and each contains real treasures: Zillertal, for example, hides one of the craziest photo spots in the Alps. High above the Schlegeisspeicher - a huge turquoise blue lake surrounded by the mountain massif of the Zillertal, a suspension bridge slides at a dizzying height and grants an absolutely unique view. You reach the Kebema bridge via a 3km short but fierce climb to the Olpererhütte.

The Hohe Tauern National Park is located in the district of Zell am See in the province of Salzburg and is one of the most popular destinations in Austria. This is due to a very special highlight: the Krimmer Waterfalls. These plunge down from a drop height of 380 metres over three waterfall stages and thus belong to the highest waterfalls in the world.

The waterfall hike in the Krimmler Achental brings you as close as possible to this highlight, but the national park also offers many other tours for hiking or biking.

Austria has some pretty cool cities to offer: Salzburg has Mozart and lots of old town charm, Innsbruck has colorful houses and then there's Vienna. If you've never been here, it's time to plan your city trip - with or without a camper: Vienna is incredibly wonderful - so let's go, because here, in the footsteps of Sissi, you'll spend your summer between old buildings, Danube Island and café culture.

By the way, ther's also a camping site on the Danube Island.

If I'm being completely honest, there's not much you can do wrong on a camping vacation in Austria. The country is full of nature and serenity and action potential. Maybe after this article you will feel a little more inspired, informed or maybe just full of enthusiasm for Austria, because there are so many adventures ahead.