First time in Vienna last year, took my gf to probably a very touristy restaurant. The waitress was helpful but when I paid the cheque which was 43.7 euros. I gave her 50.7 expecting 7 back. She looked at me like I’m crazy and said the change is a tip and that Vienna its rude not to tip. I asked politely for my change and said where I’m from it’s rude to ask. She basically threw the change back at me and walked off in a strop. Got my brownie points from my gf for sticking up for my principles.

@@hammalamiri12 I know there are countries where giving coins to help the change is not working. Same in Germany. If your bill is 50,10, don't give 100+10, they won't understand. From this point of view, their service is very good. If you pay with large bill, it will be their problem finding change, not yours.

And that's why Americans might think Austrians are unfriendly...

@@hammalamiri12 Wow, sorry. But not giving anything if service is ok IS rude. Any Austrian or German would at least make it 45 euros. If food or service were terrible I would understand, but not if it was ok.

You can't say in general terms, that people are "very happy with that" ;-) Of course it depends on the overall amount of the bill, how many there are in the party and how many courses and extra wishes one had. We Austrians may not the best tippers in the world, but if we have a sit-down meal we do usually give at least 1-2 euros and up to 10% per person.

I second this - tipping is not like in some countries where you leave a tip on the table after paying. It's far more common to state a figure to the waiter that's round up a little bit - and it's not expected to be 10 percent but something that makes the bill neat so, for example, 47 Euros becomes 50. Of course no one is going to complain about being given more but it's good for the budget to be aware of this.

Absolutely, as long as food and service were satisfying, we Austrians DO round up a little. If you only have a coffee, it may be 50 cent to 1 euro, but for a sit-down meal it will be 2-3 Euro or more for a bigger party.

@@Elatenl I’ve visited more countries than just Austria, so my experience isn’t limited to just Austria and the Netherlands.

@@Elatenl do you know if I’ve visited Asia and the US?

@@Elatenl I have been to South America, US, some Asian, several European countries and had some not good experiences in about all of the countries. Thailand was probably the best country. Compared to Thailand all other countries have bad service. So the point you are trying to make when comparing countries to other countries with better service is nonsense because there is always a better country and all country compared to the best are worse by defintion. Using comparison between countries of different continents doesn't make sense neither. You try to compare one country with a whole continent. If you say Austria is worse than Asia, I would say no because I will compare it with India (non-touristic places). And US? Is big enough to greatly differ depending on where you are in US. My impression from Washington DC was, the service 'pretends' to be good as long as you look like money. Although even in an expensive restaurant the service was worse than what I experienced in some villages in Austria. Your experiences may be different and that's absolutely fine but not all people share your experience.

is it hard to make freinds in Austria?

@@pman1368 I dont think so, we Austrians are just not "fake" Friendly what like can come over as Unfriendly to Outsiders. In Vienna is a bit Harder i would say then in Rural Areas but in General as the saying goes "Hard shell soft core"

@@pman1368 yes. I live here basicly austria is a racist backwards place with a villager mindset. If you like to be in a bad mood you will love it here

When you walk into a store, or a restaurant, always greet in German first. Even if it’s difficult to pronounce. Try and you will see what a difference it makes.

Wishing you a wonderful trip and many memorable moments here in May! It's unusually cold here at the moment (after extremely warm weather in February and early April), but we have high hopes for next month! 🙂

I'm glad you had good experiences in Vienna and yes, "Fromme Helene" on Josefstaedter Strasse in the 8th district is a good tipp when you are looking for well cooked, classic Austrian cuisine. Why hundreds to thousands of tourists per day flock to the little village of Hallstatt is beyond me, there are so many beautiful villages to be visited in the lake district of Salzburg / Upper Austria / Styria. Nowadays, this place is so run-over and crowded that I really feel sorry for every guest who does not experience the lovely, idyllic day at the lake they dreamed of and the good service they hoped for. But honestly, we feel sorry for the people who live and work there. Many tourists think it's an open door amusement park and they can just walk into private gardens or around houses to take photos wherever they please. Rules and guidelines are often ignored, cars parked everywhere they fit as the official parking lots are crammed already early in the morning. The last time I was there I just wanted to get out again asap! Have you visited Wolfgangsee or Attersee by any chance? A train ride up to the peaks of Schafberg and the view above the lakes and mountains is spectacular!!

@@inLmgb Yes, we have visited both, the Wolfgangsee and Attersea. For my money the way to see Halstadt anymore is from a tandem paraglide that takes off from the mountain top on the other side of the lake. Halstadt has become a zoo, shame that. Also worth the trip is the hike up the Dachstein. Beautiful hike up the mountain.

@@janetskitchengarden2038 Paragliding above the Hallstatter Lake truly sounds wonderful! And kudos for hiking up Dachstein! I have to admit we chose the cable car to go up ;-)

I think you will be fine in Innsbruck, it's a lovely city and very impressive (mountains, buildings) Wolter is adressing mostly americans and they find european waiters "rude" because they are not fake smiling, and checking on you every other minute (which i would see as annoying and rude) I Always round Up the bill like 1-3 euros If service is normal and fine, when over the top i give 10% and If service is shit - 0 This happens like once in 10 years or so, so i think you will be okay with waiters :-) Please keep in mind that a lot of austrians can't speak english or are too shy to do so. I went to the UK quite a lot, and service was quite similar to ours, professional, friendly, quick.

@@chrislstahl4239 Hey man, thanks for the heads up. To be honest, Im more afraid of going up the Nordkette Cable car to the top of the mountain overlooking Innsbruck than any local being rude to me as Im terrified of heights!

Just saw your post and I do hope you did not come visit now during this cold period in the second half of April. We already had the most beautiful spring weather before. Anyways, I hope you enjoy(ed) Tyrol and the spectacular view down from Hafelekar. Once you survived the cable car ride it's rather fantastic!

Not too many. I usually end on a codeshare via paris or amsterdam

@@woltersworld Thank you for replying! What is a codeshare?

Another alternative to consider is flying into Munich and take the train to wherever you are going in Austria. Not far from Salzburg or Vienna. Delta has flights to Munich.

@@gracemackenzie5780 delta air france and delta klm. My students flew direct from chicago yo vienna with austrian air

Fly to Germany and connect. Train or cheap ticket on Austrian air. I've done both. Both good.

You cannot compare humor and friendliness of Germans from the North or South, nor the East or West, and what is said about the "typical Berliner" is a whole different story. Now you want to throw in Austrians from all parts in the same pot?? 😉 That's nonsensical. Even the generally accepted prejudices regarding differences in character and temperament are enormous.

I absolutely agree with you! Unfortunately, the Sacher Torte at Hotel Sacher is not the best in town. I am very sorry for all the tourists queuing up only to get a dry and overly expensive piece of cake. I myself would rather recommend Café Demel or Kurkonditorei Oberlaa, but I prefer other cakes or Strudel at those cafes as well. In my opinion, the best Sachertorte is homemade - it has to be moist and chocolaty for me, with a thin layer of apricot jam in the middle 😄

Hmm, which point exactly is exemplified when tourists fight each other for the best photo and video shoots?? 😉 You are aware that those were other tourists, and not "rude Austrian people", right??

Some comments below you are stating that you are austrian...

it is a bit harsh, but compared to many other countries (especially USA) it is bad service. I lived here my whole life and got used to it, but for foreigners it must be quite unusual

Ah yes screw anyone who works for a living. The mindset of "why would you want to shop after 6?!" blows my mind!

@@enda1ie I worked as software support and as a developer for decades, including shift work. I never had a problem with shopping hours. Certainly as a tourist (which is what we are talking about), in the UK and the rest of Europe, including in Austria and including self-catering, I never needed to shop that late. Other people will differ no doubt.

@@Elatenl Personally, I do not want to live in a society where people don't clearly differentiate between the working day and the evening. Yes, I know some people have to work later shifts, but non-stop activity and a lifestyle that sees shopping and the like as the be all and end all of life is anathema to me and to a great many people. The day is for working and shopping and other business activity and the rest of the day is for real life; time with family and friends and for relaxing; perhaps going for walks, or playing or watching cricket or bowls etc. Here in the UK there is a disturbing trend towards longer shopping and business hours. The very regrettable changes in the law to allow Sunday trading is damaging the country and making people forget what real life is about and it isn't shopping or business. Even if, sadly, people don't see Sunday as a day for prayer etc, there is the necessity to have a day (at least) where we can forget about the stresses and strains of weekday cares. We need a similar break each day after the working and business hours are over. After all, we work and shop because we have to in order to have real life afterwards; work, shopping and business are unfortunate things that we have to put up with. Obviously there are people who prefer an endless day of work, business and shopping at all hours. It's one reason why I don't like cities, as they often never seem to stop. However, most of us are not like that and I hope such things never come anywhere near where I live.

Love Italy!

Visiting Japan for the food? Yes, but China? Come on..

@@brunolima7402 The food in China's way better than this country. The food in this country is a joke.

What's wrong with you?

Honestly? In all of them? Where have you stayed, if I might ask?