The Daffodil Festival has found its sovereignties

What colors does the Ausseer dirndl dress have – and what do they stand for? How many petals does a daffodil have? With questions like these, young women from all over Austria were tested by a jury on Saturday in the Altaussee Hotel Seevilla for their suitability to become daffodil princesses or even daffodil queens. And of course it wasn’t just about the candidate’s knowledge of the Styrian Salzkammergut. More importantly, how confident and natural they acted. In the video you can see how the election went and what the newly crowned Daffodil Queen says about her title:

35 candidates competed

After the Narcissus Festival had been canceled in the past two years due to Corona, a particularly large number of young women applied this time. The 35 most promising were invited to the Altausseer See for the casting, and the range of candidates was wide: from plus-size models from Lower Austria to Hungarian students who have been living in Austria for years. And of course the local heroes: young Ausseer women, some of whose mothers have already worn the crown themselves and who have dreamed of being a daffodil queen since they were children.

The jury, including a representative of the OÖN editorial team, had a particularly difficult time this time. “In many years we would have been happy to have such candidates,” says Rudolf Grill, chairman of the Daffodil Festival.

First of all, the ten most suitable candidates were determined in a first round of selection. In a second round, the daffodil queen and her two deputies had to be chosen. Three Upper Austrians also made it into the last ten: Nina Wipplinger (20) from Reichenau (Urfahr area), Sophia Hellwig (20) from Gmunden and Viktoria Spitzbart (22) from Kirchham (Gmunden district).

Ultimately, Lisa Weinhandl (21) emerged as the winner from the casting. The prospective hotel management student from Bad Aussee was practically born with the crown. When she was born, the midwife in the Bad Ischler hospital said: “51 centimeters – the perfect size for the next daffodil sovereignty.”

In fact, the 21-year-old, who comes from a traditional family, has been at the Narcissus Festival for as long as she can remember. Even as a small child she was allowed to help put the figures together, later she picked daffodils and ran in the parade. And when she was old enough, she helped out as a waitress during the Daffodil Festival. So don’t tell anyone that Lisa Weinhandl doesn’t know what to expect.

Coronation on May 26th

The new queen and her two princesses Katharina Thomanek (19, Abtenau/Salzburg) and Isabella Kain (24, Tulln/Lower Austria) will be the faces of the Narcissus Festival and the Ausseerland for a year – be it at tourism fairs or at the Steirerball in Vienna. And especially at the Daffodil Festival itself, they will be omnipresent.

Its festive crowning glory on May 26th is the opening event of the flowery Aussee spectacle. They are fully clothed for their performances and not only get a dirndl, but also a silk scarf, traditional shoes, all kinds of accessories and traditional jewellery.

By the way: The Ausseer dirndl has the colors white (stands for daffodils), purple (gentian), pink (alpine rose) and green (forest). And daffodils have five petals.