A week before the final weekend in Laakirchen and Gmunden (November 30th/December 1st), an initial conclusion was drawn on Friday in the Lehar Theater in Bad Ischl: According to the first available figures, 600,000 visitors were welcomed to 300 projects by the end of October (there are but only 60 percent of the events were counted), which were designed by 2,800 artists and scientists. According to the Chamber of Commerce, 200 new jobs were created, and there was also an increase for tourism: the number of overnight stays in the Salzkammergut rose by 2.2 percent from January to October. A total of 23 communities in the Upper Austrian and Styrian Salzkammergut were involved in the cultural capital. Bad Ischl was the banner town.
The budget was 31 million euros, of which 15.8 million euros were spent on artistic projects, 6.9 million on staff, 3.6 million on marketing and 4.7 million on administration. A total of 39 people were employed full-time at the Capital of Culture this year. There were media reports about the Capital of Culture worth 110 million euros. 600,000 euros were raised through ticket sales. “It was important to us to provide low-threshold offers. Many events were deliberately free of charge,” said Manuela Reichert, commercial director of the Capital of Culture.
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Image: Herbert Schorn
Source: Nachrichten
