Camping and waking up to a beautiful view of the mountains - who wouldn't want that? Austria is the perfect country for it! The beautiful surroundings of this stunning country are the perfect setting for a unique camping trip. Whether you're camping in Austria with a tent or a campervan, there are of course a number of rules you need to follow, not only to respect nature but also the local population and economy. Here you can read all about camping in Austria, including the laws, as well as some very useful tips to get the most out of your camping trip.

Wild camping in Austria

In general, wild camping is not permitted in Austria and is often not tolerated. This rule is not so much imposed by the government itself, instead each federal state has its own rules. There are therefore no standardised regulations on wild camping in Austria.

However, one thing applies nationwide: camping in forests, national parks or protected nature reserves is generally not permitted.

There are federal states in which it is tolerated to sleep in your car or motorhome at the side of the road or in car parks. In this case, it is important that you do not engage in camping behaviour: in other words, you are not allowed to sit outside with your chairs and tables or extend your awning.

In federal states such as Tyrol, Upper Austria and Lower Austria, the rules are very strict and wild camping is absolutely forbidden. We therefore recommend that you check the local rules carefully and comply with them.

Fortunately, we have a helpful alternative for you further down in this blog post.

Breaking the rules can lead to serious fines of between five and 500 €, and if you are in a nature reserve, even more. If you're lucky, you'll initially get away with a warning.

Campsites in Austria

In Austria, you will find a large selection of campsites in a wide variety of settings. Some offer a wonderful view of the mountains, others are located by a lake or close to Austria's beautiful cities.

Most campsites have sanitary facilities with hot showers, toilets and washbasins, but often also washing machines, grey and black water disposal, electricity and many other useful facilities. Ideal if you want to completely refurbish yourself and your motorhome.

The more luxurious campsites sometimes also have an outdoor pool.

One disadvantage, of course, is that staying on a campsite is one of the more expensive options. For a camper and two people, you can easily pay between €30 and €50 per night, and even more at more luxurious campsites. During the high season, it is often necessary to book your campsite in advance. So be sure to plan ahead.

Paid parking spaces

In addition to fully equipped campsites, you will also find motorhome pitches in Austria that charge a fee. These are pitches where you can stay overnight with your motorhome for a fee, but which have significantly fewer or no facilities.

Some have a service point for filling and emptying water and sometimes electricity, but don't expect the sociability of a campsite. These car parks are often slightly cheaper than campsites, but in our opinion still on the expensive side. You can still expect to pay between €15 and €30 per night.

Look at the countryside: Overnight stays on farms

Our camping hack for Austria!

Campsites are expensive, paid car parks are not so cosy and wild camping is rarely accepted. Schau aufs Land therefore offers the perfect solution. Although wild camping is prohibited, it is permitted on private land with the owner's permission.

In the Schau aufs Land app, you will find numerous places such as farms and wineries that offer pitches so that you can spend the night close to nature. Some farms are even fully equipped for campers:inside with several pitches and also offer numerous facilities such as showers, toilets and even camper service stations for draining and filling up with water.

You can stay there for free and in return buy local produce from the farm, vineyard, etc. In this way, you support the local economy and farmers and can also sample delicious local produce. A win-win-win situation for everyone.

If you take out a subscription, you have access to all farms on this platform for a year. What's more, it's not only available for Austria, but also for Slovenia and Italy. We can only recommend it!

Below you will find some of our favourite spots from Schau aufs Land:

Our favourite spots from Schau aufs Land

You can find the farms described simply by entering the ID in the app's search bar.

Farm #729 (Salzburg)

The farm with the ID #729 is a small organic farm, situated on a small hill above Maria Alm. There are suckler cows, a herd of donkeys, chickens, ducks, cats, ... and a beautiful garden. We received a very warm welcome from the Rainer family.

We had a fantastic view of the mountains from the motorhome pitch. We were able to use various facilities such as a very clean and comfortable shower, toilets, washbasins and even washing machines. In the morning we ordered delicious Kaisersemmeln and fresh eggs. They also offer many products made from herbs, wild herbs, fruits and berries from their own garden.

We felt completely at home here and had literally everything we needed.

Farm #307 (Upper Austria)

Under ID #307 you will find a beautiful farm with chickens, pygmy goats, mini pigs and stray cats.

Diana and Gerhard have turned it into a super cosy place with a campfire, communal kitchen and a very comfortable and beautifully furnished indoor and outdoor seating area.

They have also built a nice outdoor shower, a dry toilet and a normal flush toilet. We really enjoyed our stay here and had everything we needed.

Not only can you stay there with your campervan or tent, there is also a small house, a tilt-up tent and a hay bed that you can rent via Airbnb.

Farm #706 (Carinthia)

The Kärntner Hof with the ID #706 is a wonderful farm at 1,150 metres above sea level, surrounded by meadows and forests. From the pitch you have a wonderful view of the surrounding mountains. Teresa and her family gave us a warm welcome. As a local product, we can highly recommend the Carinthian Kasnudln, but they also offer bacon, eggs and many other delicious products.

Camping tips for Austria

• Leave nothing but footprints
  Whether you're wild camping, staying at a campsite or staying at one of the lovely "Schau aufs Land" farms: always leave your campsite as you found it (or better).
• Do not allow anything to enter nature
  Never dispose of your grey and black water in nature, but in the designated areas.
• Respect others
  When camping, be respectful of the locals and other campers.
• Please do not disturb nature
  Don't make noise or light fires so as not to disturb nature.
• Chargeable roads
  Whether you are camping with a tent and car or with a camper, you always need a vignette on the motorways in Austria. These can be purchased online or at many petrol stations and are valid for one day, 10 days, 20 days, 2 months, 4 months or a year. Outside the motorways, there are separate toll roads that are not included in the vignette, so you have to pay separately.

If you want to read the full blog article, you can find it here in English:
https://coordinotes.be/camping-in-austria/