How hot does it does it get in Austria?

Keith Davies
Jul 28, 2023
2 min read

Updated: Jul 31, 2023

Introduction

Austria is not all about The Sound of Music and Snow-covered peaks; believe it or not, it does get hot in Austria during the summer months (mainly July and August). Sometimes the transition from Winter/Spring to Summer can happen over a weekend.

Statistics

The highest recorded daytime temperature according to the GeoSphere Austria website was 40.5C, which was recorded in Bad Deutsch-Altenburg, Lower Austria on 8th August 2013. In fact August 2013 seemed to set records in multiple Provinces, see below:

Province	Max Temp. C	When	Where
Lower Austria	40.5	08/2013	Bad Deutsch-Altenburg
Burgenland	40.3	08/2013	Neusiedl am See
Styria	39.6	08/2013	Fuerstenfeld
Vienna	39.5	08/2013	Wien Innere Stadt
Carinthia	39.0	08/2013	Ferlach
Upper Austria	39.0	07/1957	Enns
Tyrol	38.9	08/2013	Lienz
Salzburg	38.6	07/2013	Salzburg Freisaal
Vorarlberg	38.1	07/1984	Feldkirch

Source: GeoSphere Austria

How Cold

In contrast, the coldest recorded temperature in Austria was recorded by the Sonnblick Observatory, Rauris, Salzburg which is 3,106 metres above sea level. The recorded temperature was –37.4° C on 1st January 1905 (Source: GeoSphere Austria). In 2023, the coldest temperature so far was -24.3C at Brunnenkogel, Tyrol.

Note: A temperature of -52.6 ° C was also recorded in the Grünloch sinkhole, Lunz am See, Lower Austria in 1932 (Source: UWZ)

Tips

There are links below on how to stay cool, but the general advice is that when it gets really hot "stay indoors, consume enough liquids and avoid strenuous activity, particularly during the day".

If you have an elderly neighbour, please make sure they are OK too and please, please, please DO NOT leave pets or children in a car unattended. Inside car temperatures can be considerably more than the outside temperature.

It may be worth investing in an indoor/outdoor temperature monitor. It is best to close windows during the heat of the day and if you have shutters, use them. When the outside temperature is cooler than the indoor temperature, open the windows to create an air-flow. Opening the windows early morning at 4am or 5am sometimes helps. Safety comes first though, so if on the ground floor please be careful!

In addition, if you are English; please try and avoid the tradition of “Mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the Mid-day Sun”! 😊

Other Issues

Austria in summer is prone to thunderstorms, so please check the weather BEFORE setting off for the day. When going hiking, make sure you take appropriate clothing. Swimming is a good way to stay cool, but please be careful (see below).

Across the World

The official highest recorded temperature is 56.7°C, which was measured on 10 July 1913 at Greenland Ranch, Death Valley, California, USA (Source : Guinness World Records).

However, July 2023 is set to be the warmest globally with average worldwide temperatures over 17.0C (Source: Copernicus Climate Change Service).