Austrian
phone booths ,
usually dark green with a
bright-yellow roof and logo,
are easy enough to spot and to
use, some even having
instructions in four languages
(including English). The
dialling tone is a short and
then a long pulse; the ringing
tone is long and regular;
engaged is short and rapid.
Although the minimum charge is
öS2, at the time of writing,
you're likely to need much
more than that in order to
make even a
local call
, since telephone calls are
still quite expensive despite
the recent deregulation.
You can make an international
call from any phone; it's
easiest to do so with a phone
card ( Telefonkarte
) rather than fumbling for
change. Telefonkarten
are available from all post
offices, tobacconists and some
other shops, currently in öS50,
öS100 and öS200
denominations. The other
option is to go to one of the
larger post offices and use
their direct phone service
facility: a booth will be
allocated to you from the
counter marked Fremdgespräche
, which is where you pay once
you've finished. The post
office is also the place to go
if you want to make a collect
call ( Rückgespräch
).
Mobile phones work
on the GSM European standard.
Young Austrians are very keen
on mobiles (known as a Handy
in German), but outside the
big cities, they're not yet
that common - the mountains
can make things awkward. If
you're taking your mobile,
make sure you have made the
necessary "roaming"
arrangements before you leave
home - which may involve
paying a hefty (refundable)
deposit.
The number of digits in telephone
numbers in Austria can
vary wildly from region to
region. Often, a telephone
number is followed by a hyphen
and a couple of additional
digits - this merely denotes
that it's an extension number
that can be dialled direct.
