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The best events and festivals in Austria in 2023

Hayley Maguire
Hayley Maguire - [email protected]
The best events and festivals in Austria in 2023
There is an event for everyone in Austria in 2023. (Photo by Pixabay / Pexels)

From music festivals to sporting competitions, Austria is home to some great events. Here are the key dates for your diary in 2023.

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JANUARY

Hahnenkamm Race (January 16th - 22nd), Tyrol

The Hahnenkamm is a world-famous downhill FIS Alpine Ski World Cup race that takes place every year in Kitzbühel in Tyrol. In 2023, the event will have been running for 83 years and it will be the first time since 2020 without any pandemic restrictions.

The first downhill event will take place on Friday January 20. The second downhill race will be held on Saturday followed by the slalom on Sunday.

Despite a lack of real snow in the Tyrolean Alps (as reported by The Local), the Hahnenkamm will still go ahead through the use of artificial snow. More details about the event can be found here.

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Queer Art Spaces (January 19th - March 18th), Vienna

This exhibition takes place in cooperation with the Queer Museum Vienna. The 2023 event focuses on how story-sharing can create queer spaces, with topics including overcoming barriers and making political impact.

The programme features talks, performances, workshops, lectures and guided tours. More information can be found here.

GP Ice Race (January 27th - 29th), Salzburg

In this extreme motorsports event, amateurs and professional race drivers compete against each other on a frozen runway at the airfield in Zell am See, Salzburg.

The 2023 event features a 650 metre track, a drift circle and a separate karting track. It will also be the first year without restrictions since the start of the pandemic. Full details can be found at the GP Ice Race website.

FEBRUARY

Klimt. Inspired by van Gogh, Rodin, Matisse… (February 3rd - May 29th), Vienna

Vienna is the home of Gustav Klimt and this exhibition takes a closer look at the artists who inspired him.

There will be around 100 artworks on display including pieces by Klimt, ​​van Gogh, Monet, Whistler, Rodin, Alma-Tadema, Matisse, Macdonald Mackintosh, and others.

The exhibition has been organised in cooperation with the Van Gogh Museum and will take place at Lower Belvedere on Rennweg.

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MARCH

Vinyl and Music Festival (March 4th - 5th), Vienna

This festival is a mixture of live music, record exchange, get-togethers and 150 exhibitors. Highlights include live music by Mella Casata and Bad Ida.

The event takes place at the Ottakringer Brewery in Vienna. Tickets are €15 for Saturday and €10 for Sunday. More details about the event can be found here.

APRIL

Snowbombing (April 10th - 15th), Tyrol

Snowbombing is an annual winter sports and music festival held in the resort town of Mayerhofen in Tyrol. It’s organised by British live event company Broadwick Live and attracts thousands of people from the UK every year. 

Confirmed acts in 2023 include Jamie XX and Groove Armada and festival passes start at  £469 (including accommodation). Full event details can be found here.

Schönbrunn Easter Market (April 25th - 11th May), Vienna

Easter markets are held across Austria every year, and one of the most charming takes place at Vienna’s Schönbrunn Palace. 

Stalls at this family-friendly market sell arts, crafts and regional food, and photos can be taken with giant Easter eggs. 

Crossing Europe (April 26th - May 1st), Upper Austria

Crossing Europe is a festival dedicated to independent film from across the continent. It takes place in Linz, which is the capital of Upper Austria and a UNESCO City of Media Arts.

Festival passes are on sale from mid-April. More details can be found at the website.

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MAY

Design Month Graz (May 6th - June 4th), Styria

Graz is Austria’s UNESCO City of Design, so this annual event (organised by Creative Industries Styria) is always a cultural highlight for the city. The event programme includes exhibitions, lectures, workshops and presentations.

The topic for the 2023 Design Month is revolution. More information can be found here.

JUNE

Vienna Pride (June 1st - 18th), Vienna

This annual celebration of the LGBTQ community will return to Vienna in 2023. Highlights include the Pride Run on Friday June 16 and the Regenbogenparade (Rainbow Parade) on Saturday June 17.

Registration opens on April 3rd and more details can be found at the official Vienna Pride website.

Wiener Bierfest (June 1st - 4th), Vienna

For beer lovers, this is a key event to add to the calendar for 2023. Previous events have seen around 40 breweries in attendance, as well as stalls selling regional food and live brass bands to set the scene. 

The official website for the Wiener Bierfest can be found here.

Austria's Donauinselfest (Foto: Alexander Müller - Fotokurse, Fotografie, Fotoreisen | www.alexandermüller.at)

The Donauinselfest (June 23rd - 25th), Vienna

This is Europe’s largest open-air music festival with free entry. It takes place on Danube Island (Donauinsel) in the Danube River in Vienna every summer.

Performers at the festival are usually Austrian but there are also sometimes international acts in the line-up. And in 2023, the event will celebrate its 40th anniversary.

Full details of the 2023 event are yet to be announced, but organisers are already planning a special event to mark the milestone. More details can be found here.

Austrian F1 Grand Prix (June 30th - July 2nd), Styria

The Austrian Grand Prix has been held at the Red Bull Ring in Styria since 2014 and this year is no exception. The three-day motorsports event attracted record crowds in 2022 and the same is expected in 2023.

Even if you don’t attend this event, be prepared for heavy traffic in and around the venue in the days leading up to and after the final race.

Full details about Austria’s F1 race can be found here.

JULY

Nova Rock (June 7th - 10th), Burgenland

The annual Burgenland rock music festival returns in 2023. The line-up for this year’s festival includes Slipknot, The Prodigy and Bilderbuch. 

A weekend pass starts at €229.99 and can be purchased at the Nova Rock website.

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AUGUST

FM4 Frequency Festival (August 17th - 19th), Lower Austria

FM4 is one of Austria’s national radio stations popular with the country’s young and multicultural population. The annual Frequency Festival is a showcase of the music played on FM4.

The 2023 event will take place once again in St. Pölten, Lower Austria, and tickets are now on sale now at the website. The lineup includes Imagine Dragons, Kraftklub and Electric Callboy.

SEPTEMBER

Ars Electronica Festival (September 6th - 10th), Upper Austria

Every year Ars Electronica hosts a festival dedicated to art, technology and society. Attendees learn about how robotics, AI and biotech are impacting lives and what it means to be a digital citizen.

The programme includes exhibitions, concerts, screenings and workshops. Tickets go on sale in July via the Ars Electronica website.

The 2022 edition of the Viennale will mark the festival's 60th anniversary. (Photo by Viennale / Roland Ferrigato)

OCTOBER

Viennale (dates TBC), Vienna

The Vienna International Film Festival (Viennale) is an annual event that has taken place in Austria’s capital city every October since 1960. 

The festival attracts around 92,000 people from around the world and is Austria’s largest international film festival with a programme that includes special screenings and retrospectives.

Dates for the 2023 festival are yet to be announced but more information can be found at the Viennale website.

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NOVEMBER

VIECC Vienna Comic Con (November 18th - 19th), Vienna

The 2023 edition of this famous event dedicated to fantasy, science fiction, comics and gaming takes place at Messe Wien. 

Attendees should expect star guests from the world of film, TV and literature within the event’s genres. For example, the 2022 event featured an appearance by Jack Gleeson, aka Joffrey from Games of Thrones.

Full details, including information about tickets, can be found at the Comic Con website.

DECEMBER

Christmas markets (throughout December), nationwide

Christmas markets are a big part of Austrian culture and something that both residents and tourists should make an effort to experience.

After a two-year hiatus in some parts of the country due to the pandemic, the markets made a welcome return in 2022. The result was towns and cities across Austria transformed into glittering festive centres and heralded an end (hopefully) to an era of restrictions.

The markets usually start at the end of November and continue until Christmas.

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