Vienna Sustainable Tourism Observatory
Member since | Hosted by | Monitoring area |
2025 | Vienna Tourist Board | Vienna, Austria |
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The Vienna Sustainable Tourism Observatory (STO) is founded on strong partnerships between the public sector, business community and academia. It is supported by a coalition comprising the City of Vienna, the Vienna Chamber of Commerce and the Vienna Tourist Board. Together, these entities form the STO Management Board, with the Vienna Tourist Board serving as the coordinating Destination Marketing and Management Organization.
To ensure strategic alignment with the City of Vienna’s goals, a Strategy Board Vienna will be established. This board will include key municipal institutions, with representatives from sectors such as economy, urban development and mobility, culture and others. Several academic institutions in Vienna have already expressed their commitment to supporting the Observatory as scientific partners, contributing expertise to relevant projects aligned with their research agendas. Another key stakeholder group consists of businesses within the visitor economy, including those in accommodation, culture, meeting, retail, gastronomy, mobility and transport industries. These partner companies provide essential business-level data as key indicators and play a crucial role in developing and implementing joint pilot initiatives or targeted activities within their respective domains to achieve collectively defined KPIs.
FACTS & FIGURES
Monitoring Area | 415km2(Total city area) | 23(Districts) |
Visitors | 6,403,000(Overnight inbound (non-resident) visitors in 2024) | 1,766,000(Overnight domestic visitors in 2024) |
Peak Month | December(Inbound (non-resident)) | October(Domestic) |
Accommodation | 433(Number of establishments) | 40,885(Total rooms) |
5 Primary Source Markets | Austria, Germany, USA, Italy, UK(2024 data) | |
Sector Relevance | 7.4%(Contribution of tourism to the national GDP 2018) | 4.8%(Contribution of tourism to the regional (Vienna) GDP 2018) |
MISSION
To foster dialogue, innovation, and shared stewardship, co-create sustainable destination development and ensure that tourism enhances quality of life for all while preserving the city's unique character and resources.
To facilitate implementation of Vienna's Visitor Economy Strategy and makes a direct contribution to the goals of Vienna's Smart Climate City Strategy and the location strategy ‘Vienna 2030 - Economy and Innovation.
To support cooperation and the development of sustainable success models within the ecosystem of Vienna’s visitor economy.
To strengthen the credibility of Vienna as a sustainable destination both within the local community and on a national and international level.
Current Monitoring Process
The Vienna Tourist Board has long been focused on utilizing data as a basis for measurement and decision-making. Since the early 2000s, all tourism strategies developed for the destination have been equipped with measurable target indicators. Similarly, the corporate strategy of the Vienna Tourist Board includes clearly defined, measurable objectives that are regularly monitored.
Furthermore, the City of Vienna has established clearly defined target indicators within its strategic objectives, most notably the Smart City Climate Strategy.
KEY MONITORING AREAS
Climate Action
Per capita greenhouse gas emissions
Share of green space in the total urban area
Number of certified tourism and leisure operators
Number of certified Green Events hosted in Vienna
Energy Management
Local per capita final energy consumption
Per capita final energy consumption for heating, cooling, and hot water systems
Final energy consumption per guest (not yet available)
Number of buildings in the Visitor Economy that use renewable sources for heating, cooling, and hot water systems (not yet available)
Accessibility
Accessibility of public transportation stops (indicator to be determined)
Barrier-free public spaces (indicator to be determined)
Number of accessible hotels (not yet available)
Number of accessible meeting venues (not yet available)
Number of cultural institutions with specialized offers for users with disabilities (not yet available)
Mobility
Per capita CO2 emissions in the transport sector within Vienna
Share of journeys in Vienna made by eco-friendly modes of transport
Number of public electric charging stations
Share of overnight leisure guests arriving to the city by eco-friendly modes of transportation
Share of leisure guests using public transportation at the destination
Satisfaction with public transportation at the destination
Electric charging stations in hotels and event locations (not yet available)
Solid Waste Management
Share of separately collected waste
Guest satisfaction with cleanliness
Food or residual waste reduction in businesses of the visitor economy (not yet available)
Local satisfaction with tourism
Resident attitudes towards tourism (Tourism Acceptance)
Willingness to recommend (Vienna) (Visitor Satisfaction)
Percentage of Vienna residents who use cultural and artistic institutions
Impact generated and legacy created by the meeting industry (not yet available)
Destination economic benefit
Direct and indirect value creation
Tourism contribution to GDP
Net accommodation revenue per arriving guest
Average length of stay
Occupancy rates
Revenue per available room
Employment
Employment rate in the tourism sector
Unemployment rate in the tourism sector
Number of open positions in the tourism sector
Workplace Climate Index within the tourism sector
Water and waste water management
Number of publicly accessible drinking water fountains
Water quality in natural bathing waters
Water consumption per guest (not yet available)
Tourism Seasonality
Seasonality index of overnight guests
Seasonality index of day visitors (not yet available)
Bed and room occupancy rates
Governance
Share of desired guests
Total city population development
DID YOU KNOW...
With a population of 2 million, Vienna is not only the largest city in Austria but also the second-largest city in the German-speaking world (after Berlin) and the fifth largest city in the EU.
Vienna has a long tradition of forward-looking urban planning. As early as 1893, the famous Viennese architect and urbanist Otto Wagner envisioned the city's structure as that of a metropolis with four million inhabitants in the General Development Plan for Vienna, thus laying the foundation for the long-term planning and development of infrastructure, ranging from sewage systems and public transportation networks to the city's green belt.