Guidance

We’ve all been there: It’s Sunday and we need new shoes, a haircut or just a day shopping across the Austrian border.

Planning a trip to Austria for the holiday season? While borders are still open during the nationwide lockdown and travel from most countries is possible, tourism is effectively closed under current regulations.

Just because you're a long way from home doesn't mean you can't enjoy Thanksgiving in Vienna - even during a lockdown.

The founder of Self-employed in Austria reveals the three mostcommon questions about starting your own business.

Looking to get married in Vienna? Here's our straightforward guide to tying the knot in the “City of Dreams.”

The City of Vienna has brought MA 35, AMS and the Vienna Business Agency’s Expat Center under one roof in what consultant Friedrich Bruckner calls a major “cultural shift”.

Here is everything you need to know, the documents you need, and which steps to take to get your student visa in Vienna and Austria.

Like every country, Austria has spawned numerous regulations regarding where, when and how you can enjoy a drink – here are some of them.

Vienna has a glamorous, fun-filled solution to its cold, grey winters: the ball season! December skies weigh heavily in Vienna and are continuous ...

There are plenty of kids Halloween events in Vienna for cute little monsters, demons and witches to enjoy.

Each of us thrives on our social relationships, knowing our family is safe and healthy and having a routine and productive life. COVID-19 upended eac...

In future, people in Austria will receive catastrophe warnings delivered to their cell phones via an SMS emergency system

New in the country and need to get around? Follow our complete guide to transferring to an Austrian driver’s license.

The unemployment rate in Austria continues to fall.

The challenges to interpreting laws and contracts in an international setting.

For those who seek professional independence and creative freedom, self-employment might be the right career path. To help you navigate this complex field, Metropole has partnered with Self-employed in Austria to bring you this helpful new series on all things self-employment.

An expat describes the processes and paperwork for benefits that – even with children – make work-life balance possible.

The world’s most livable city still has its share of challenges, with overcast skies, unfriendly locals – and the city’s notorious dialect.

The 5th Anti-Money Laundering Directive seeks to curb terrorist financing and money laundering by forcing companies in the so-called “crypto sector” out in the open.

Austrian companies thrive all across Central and Eastern Europe. From kickbacks to bribes, booming business often also involves layers of corruption.

Maintaining the highest quality of life in the world is a costly endeavor – thankfully, there is always someone out there gullible enough to pay the bills. A satirical look at Austrian corruption.

“Keine Haftung für Garderobe” – “No liability for wardrobe.” This sentence is everywhere if you are out on the town. But is it actually possible to evade liability for lost or damaged items belonging to a guest?

In Vienna, you need to prove yourself worthy of your café of choice in what can be a lengthy application process.

How the new director of the Vienna International School left her small town for distant places and turned her passion for learning into a mission to educate for change.

After years of seemingly endless growth, the pandemic plunged the tourism sector into deep crisis. Vacillating between hope and despair, Vienna’s hoteliers summon resilience and creativity

Alexis Eremia and Karin Granner have marshaled the Impact Hubs in Vienna and Amsterdam to focus on local, sustainable fashion brands.

What’s in a name? It is not sleeve, nor pant leg, nor button... How brands distinguish quality and set fashion makers apart. Designers beware, make sure to take trademarking seriously.

Superior craftsmanship and the willingness to pivot have ensured the longevity of Austrian fashion luxury brands like Swarovski and Wolford.

Vienna is full of sewing shops and DIY stores. We checked out some of them – and ended up printing 100 T-shirts.

COVID-19 poses a major challenge to all, raising questions about rent payments, the assessment of (unfulfillable) supply contracts, lower franchise fees and why data protection should not be neglected even during a pandemic.

The coronavirus lockdown has taught us a lot and may herald a new era of organizational flexibility, agility and adaptability.

Businesses that span generations are known for consistency, stability and tradition. Keeping these values alive is a continuous labor of love.

Can startups help reach the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals? In Vienna, Circle17 started an Impacthon to find out.

If you are an innovator in Europe, it pays to know how to protect your inventions.

Getting our affairs in order in time of a crisis can be a huge relief for all parties, while protecting those you love.

Although the current situation is everything but easy on the labor market, things will certainly change again. Prepare now with the tips of our expert in recruiting.

The SARS-CoV-2 virus poses a major challenge both to companies and individuals. A Vienna-based lawyer and data protection experts gives insights into ramifications in law.

STEM-tastic opportunities await Vienna’s children, even before their first science class at school.

So, you’re a good musician. They even give you roses. But not much bread. Now what?

In a fast-paced, digital world, Vienna’s master instrument makers seem to live a time apart.

The scene may feel like an impenetrable world from the outside. In truth, it’s within any art lover’s reach. The trick is knowing where to look – and how.

Imagine you are planning a dinner party in your home, your city. A mix of people coming together to spend time with each other. Your job, as...

Digital, green, innovative – what's the real deal behind the buzzwords?

Forget the idea of Vienna as a big open-air museum. It's really one big playground. “Jackpot!” a young woman yells excitedly, after her boyfriend m...

From sports on its shores to a Hugo on the canal, the Danube is much more than Vienna’s Riviera.

Between 175 and 200 Austrian companies are considered to be hidden champions. That’s the highest density per capita in the world. These companies are ...

In the first installment of our new series of how expats built their careers in Vienna, we talked to Maurizio Poletto, the designer behind E...

With law firms expanding globally, both opportunities and challenges arise for the practitioners Globalization has been a mixe...

Coming of age in Vienna can be frightening, freeing and exhilarating at the same time - just like growing up. Arriving in Vienna at 14 wa...

Start with eating, end with drinking – and take in the Gemütlichkeit on the way. Coming from a chaotic, colorful and noisy part of Italy, a little ...

The surrounding cultural heritage invites us to take many pictures, especially in the smartphone age. Here what’s allowed and what isn’t. ...

In Japan, Vienna is the Ongaku no Miyako, “the capital of music,” and that’s where Mayu Kotari wanted to be. A pianist from Tokyo, Kotari has been liv...

Schmäh may not be the first thing you notice when you arrive in Vienna. But it comes up soon enough In school, for example: My children were astonish...

It’s not easy to buy woodlands in Austria. You need passion, roots in the local area and many millions. Cord Prinzhorn, the chief executive officer o...

See how Augarten porcelain is crafted, learn how to make chocolate pralines, and sample Schlumberger Sekt right at the source: here is how to visit a ...

Austrian law offers a number of options for establishing a business here. The legislative jungle can be quite confusing, so here’s a brief overview A...

If you are committed to moving to Austria but don’t have an employment contract yet, one may be eligible to apply for a six-month, “job-seeker” visa ...

Whether you want to chill like a hipster or enjoy the green, there’s a place for you.

Pursuing a career in acting, like most fields, requires perseverance and a strong belief in yourself Have you ever wondered what it takes to beco...

Metropole and viennacontemporary join forces to help new buyers navigate the local art scene in style When you visit the sauna for the first time...

Gustl, a six-month-old golden retriever, tugged at the leash, tempted by the many smells around the Donaukanal. Katherine Mawdsley stopped. “We’ve got...

The international family is something we are inclined to think of as a new phenomenon – but it isn’t. Marriage has been a contract since antiquity,...

An employment consultant with 20 years’ experience has some advice for landing your dream job in Vienna. Want to work in Vienna? Finding a job as...

As the Danube gets ready for the summer travel season, a new law is set to give travelers more rights and better information on their trips. So, ...

Planning a new career? The tourism and hospitality sector is booming and offers a wide variety of options. Trying to push past hordes of tourists...

The Danube powers many an industry on its way to the Black Sea, from hydropower to high-volume logistics Flowing through 10 countries – from the ...

Pull your own Apfelstrudel dough, make a perfect Wiener Schnitzel – passionate chefs offer tasting tours and сourses. Maybe you’ve come to love Aus...

Austrians take food and drink seriously, so it comes as no surprise that opening a restaurant is not as easy as it sounds. Here’s how to do it. F...

Is a midcareer transition madness? It might change your life for the good. Abandoning a 10-year career as an opera singer in Australia to reinven...

From the Wachau’s Grüner Veltliner to Vienna’s Gemischter Satz, Austrian wines have reinvented themselves onto the global stage. In the theater o...

It often seems impossible for an outsider to get a job at the UN. But is it really? “No,” said Linda Starodub, who recently retired from 30 plus ye...

New modes of transport are trying to change the way we travel. But are they really a match for Austria’s time-tested infrastructure? Austria’s trai...

In Austria, privacy is king. The advent of drones is thus seen with a good measure of skepticism and trepidation. But you can still pilot them legally...

Feeling the urge to get out of town and hit the open road? It may be time to get an Austrian driver's license. It had been snowing all night. S...

Great art has the power of legend. So it’s perhaps not surprising that one of the most spectacular legal disputes in post-war Austria was over the “Th...

Great art has the power of legend. So it’s perhaps not surprising that one of the most spectacular legal disputes in post-war Austria was over the “Th...

In Austria, you can vote at 16 and don’t need to register. For some elections, EU citizens can vote too. In democracies, a citizen’s right to vote ...

Everyone’s talking about blockchain – that mysterious new technology inherently linked to cryptocurrencies. The more it seeps into the public debate, ...

Austrian politics is late to the digital revolution. Past electoral campaigns have typically focused on billboards and traditional media. But in the 2...

How do you make your voice heard in a country that is not entirely your own? Politics often seems like a cross between a telenovela and a car c...

Steel, glass, concrete and marble.The design of most modern office buildings – while elegant and sophisticated – can feel cold and impersonal. R...

What would Vienna’s palaces be without their brilliant chandeliers, gleaming mirrors and fine crystal glasses?Uniting craftsmanship and innova...

This year, the dance floor can be yours. With these tips, you’ll have all the moves to wow the ball season crowd.

Vienna has long been a link between East and West. As more CEE entrepreneurs seek access to Western markets and capital, can Vienna offer them what th...

Not without my pets! Vienna offers pet lovers everything a furry, scaled, or feathered companion needs The one-eyed Persian cat Guinevere i...

Austrians enjoy generous worker benefits – hard to imagine for Americans, who remain ambitious and optimistic, a spirit that is harder to find...

Astonishing spoiled moviegoers is no small task. Marrying virtual reality with architecture, a Viennese company is dazzling audiences By Susanne Got...

We asked board member Thomas Schaufler about designing Erste Bank’s online banking platform George In Austria, banking has not always moved with ...

You don’t need to be an artist’s muse to live like Alma Mahler. Vienna is bustling with design pieces that can turn your flat into a stylish Gesamtk...

The U.S. has Craig’s List. Brits adore Gumtree. But Austria has Willhaben, the country’s biggest peer-to-peer marketplace for secondhand goods. Will...

A new startup called Music Traveler – like an Airbnb for musicians – helps music professionals find space to practice while they’re on the road. ...

Long-distance relationships are living proof that love is not just physical. I can feel you next to me even when you’re thousands of miles away.” – Pa...

When love goes bad, many cases of violence go unreported. Here is how Vienna offers support for victims and families Think of five women you know...

Finding ways to take it easy in the city bustle can give you new strength in health and spirit It’s Monday; you wake up to a leak in your kitch...

So what's wrong with dirty money? Founder Georg Fechter has perfected the art of banking on fuel, fire and adrenaline. Motors roar, flames blaz...

Pharma's Market: The pharmaceutical industry has played an important role in Austria’s economic growth. But the challenge remains to find a balance be...

Your guide to being pregnant in Vienna, Austria – a great place to have a baby, but make sure you have your “MuKi” Having a child is one of lif...

The ultimate dream jobs in public service take patience, persistence and good language skills. If you’re lucky, you even get to save the world Ad...

The number of coworking spaces in Vienna is growing. Is sharing an office with strangers the new normal? In 2017 more than a million people will choo...