Austria is embracing the shift from winter tourism to summer time actions, notably mountain biking. The nation promotes alpine mountain biking as a key summer time attraction when the snow melts.
Summer season tourism now contributes extra to the economic system than winter tourism, particularly for the reason that Covid-19 pandemic. From Could to October, the summer time season, they generated 15 out of 29.5 billion euros in annual income final yr. This important financial enhance is a testomony to the rising reputation of summer time actions in Austria. A current authorities survey revealed that over 1 / 4 of vacationers go to Austria in the summertime particularly for biking, following mountain climbing as the highest summer time exercise. In consequence, bike gross sales within the nation have soared, with over 500,000 bicycles bought in 2022, practically half of which have been mountain bikes, representing a 15% improve since 2019.
A Nationwide “Mountain Bike Plan”
In Leogang-Saalbach, the identical cable automobile cabins and ski lifts transport bikes to the highest of the 90 kilometers of slopes. In the beginning of the yr, the federal government initiated a “mountain bike plan” to assist resorts broaden the variety of trails solely for cyclists by rising contracts with landowners who presently restrict entry. Though there are greater than twenty appropriate parks, the provision of trails is insufficient in comparison with the demand.
“Tourism professionals have to rethink their actions and adapt to new tendencies in response to more and more shorter ski seasons attributable to an absence of snow resulting from local weather change,” explains Martin Schnitzer, a sports activities economist on the College of Innsbruck. Vienna is now taking a severe take a look at this subject.
The 1975 legislation on forests permits walkers to make use of them, nevertheless it solely gives biking if written authorization is obtained from the proprietor. That is seen as a radical exclusion of a sport, with different Alpine international locations not having such strict rules. Offenders threat a hefty tremendous of 730 euros for “violation of property,” which may generally quantity to a number of thousand euros.
Conflicts between Hikers and Cyclists
Hikers will not be used to sharing the terrain, which results in quite a few potential conflicts. As a pioneer, Leogang Park has discovered options to diversify since its creation in 2001, signing agreements to defuse disputes. This success has paid off: in ten years, the variety of new summer time guests has elevated by 70%, reaching 260,000 final yr. The variety of in a single day stays now exceeds the winter season. This success story is a beacon of hope, displaying that with the best strategy, conflicts could be resolved, and all can get pleasure from the great thing about the Austrian panorama.
Nonetheless, cohabitation between locals, walkers, and go-getters stays tough. Nature lovers looking for peace and quiet generally conflict, and hunters worry these new guests of their colourful outfits will scare away their recreation.
Consultants insist that making certain peaceable coexistence between the totally different events ought to be the federal government’s precedence. This effort is price it, because it ensures that each one can get pleasure from the great thing about the Austrian panorama.
