Anyone in Austria who likes to get up close and personal with the wealthy aristocracy looks to the Alpine valleys in the west of the country.
The rich like to retreat to Tyrol and Salzburg.
Mountain air and alpine leisure activities lure you there.
After all, Austria is traditionally a stronghold of winter sports.
Accordingly, there is also a demand for residential properties in the mountain regions – mostly rustic and made of wood.
Whether as a main residence, second home or holiday home, demand usually exceeds supply.
Therefore, prices only know one direction – upwards.
Place with celebrity status
Michael Seiser
Business correspondent for Austria and Hungary based in Vienna.
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Kitzbühel is one of the traditionally expensive patches.
The celebrity status of the city with the red chamois logo is also explained by the events that take place here.
In winter, it's the legendary Hahnenkamm race that draws thousands of ski enthusiasts and the international crowd to the town of 8,000 residents.
Real estate prices are absolutely top
The well-known Tyrolean ski resort achieved the highest prices nationwide last year.
The most expensive single-family house between Bregenz and Eisenstadt cost 17.4 million euros at the time - the property is in Going am Wilden Kaiser in the Kitzbühel district.
Measured by the purchase price, numbers two and three are also in Tyrol - a villa in Aurach was sold for around 16.4 million euros, a detached house in Kitzbühel for around 14.9 million euros.
This is the result of a survey carried out by the platforms "Willhaben" and "IMMOunited" based on excerpts from the land register.
The most expensive apartment bought is also in the Kitzbühel district – namely in Jochberg at 5.5 million euros.
Also this year Kitzbühel holds the price record so far.
In no other region in Austria does a square meter cost as much as here: the median asking price was 8370 euros per square meter, as a district analysis by the real estate portal immowelt.at shows.
Innsbruck (7,000 euros) and Salzburg (6,300 euros) followed at a clear distance.
In Vienna, the 5000 euro limit is exceeded
Even the capital, Vienna, has clearly exceeded the 5,000 euro mark in asking prices.
According to the study, a median of EUR 5,420 per square meter was to be expected across all 23 districts.
This puts the federal capital in eighth place among the most expensive districts in Austria.
Overall, among the ten most expensive districts in Austria, four are from Tyrol - the high price level is mainly due to the many exclusive holiday apartments in the tourist regions of the state, according to the real estate portal.
Tourists came as early as the 19th century
The reason why there is such an unbroken interest in the town advertised as the "most legendary sports town in the Alps" has to do with its great recreational value.
The superlative is not only aimed at pioneering achievements in alpine golf and winter sports: In 1893, Franz Reisch managed the first high alpine ski descent in Austria from the Kitzbüheler Horn, in 1966 the Ski World Cup was born.
Already in the late Middle Ages, the city was characterized by its prosperity: the mining of iron ore and copper from the 15th century made it rich.
The connection to the railway brought the next opportunity to earn a lot of money.
When other places in Austria were still difficult to access, the first tourists traveled to Kitzbühel by train in the second half of the 19th century.
Earlier than in other areas in the Alps, the holiday providers there understood how to think about an attractive offer for the summer - also because the prospects for winter sports are poorer due to climate change and the lack of snow.
This includes 800 kilometers of paths for cyclists, mountain bikers and e-bikers as well as more than 1000 kilometers for racing cyclists and a generous network of paths for hikers.
There are also guided tours by moonlight or to heritage farms and several golf courses.
Climbing on the Wilder Kaiser, canyoning and paragliding is also possible.
The cultural offer from folk music to classical concerts, the Schwarzsee, the warmest moor lake in Tyrol, and several gourmet restaurants make it easy to understand why the place is a magnet for those who have had their fill of the good life.
