Tour operators in Austria 2026: a ranking built on verified facts
A ranking of Austrian tour operators (Reiseveranstalter) that sell package holidays, built only on verifiable facts: the GISA number or the number in the former register of tour operators (Veranstalterverzeichnis) that the operator shows on its website, the insolvency protection under the Package Travel Regulation (PRV) with the bank or insurer and the claims handler (Abwickler) it names, the year the company started, whether the website names the company with its commercial register number (FN), an address and the travel terms, and whether a trip can be booked and paid for online. Every fact links to its source with the date we checked it. This is not advice to choose a particular operator. Places are not for sale.
| # | Company | Who it serves | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | TUI Österreich | 75 | Yes | Yes | Not verified | Yes | Register Protection Online booking Online payment |
| 2 | Kneissl Touristik | 73 | Yes | Yes | 1984 | Yes | Register Protection Online booking |
| 3 | Rhomberg Reisen | 73 | Yes | Yes | 1959 | Yes | Register Protection Online booking |
| 4 | Biblische Reisen | 67 | Yes | Yes | 1972 | Not verified | Register Protection Online payment |
| 5 | Idealtours | 64 | Yes | Yes | Not verified | Yes | Register Protection Online booking |
| 6 | Springer Reisen | 61 | Yes | Yes | 1912 | Not verified | Register Protection |
| 7 | Weltweitwandern | 61 | Yes | Yes | 2000 | Not verified | Register Protection |
-
- In the official register
- Yes
- Insolvency protection
- Yes
- In business since
- Not verified
- Online booking
- Yes
Pros
- Listed in the official register
- Customers' money is protected if the operator goes bust
- Holidays can be booked online
- Names its legal entity and registration number
Details Visit site ↗ 77% backed by facts
-
- In the official register
- Yes
- Insolvency protection
- Yes
- In business since
- 1984
- Online booking
- Yes
Pros
- Listed in the official register
- Customers' money is protected if the operator goes bust
- Holidays can be booked online
- Names its legal entity and registration number
Details Visit site ↗ 73% backed by facts
-
- In the official register
- Yes
- Insolvency protection
- Yes
- In business since
- 1959
- Online booking
- Yes
Pros
- Listed in the official register
- Customers' money is protected if the operator goes bust
- Holidays can be booked online
- Names its legal entity and registration number
Details Visit site ↗ 73% backed by facts
-
- In the official register
- Yes
- Insolvency protection
- Yes
- In business since
- 1972
- Online booking
- Not verified
Pros
- Listed in the official register
- Customers' money is protected if the operator goes bust
- Names its legal entity and registration number
- Booking terms can be read before you pay
Details Visit site ↗ 67% backed by facts
-
- In the official register
- Yes
- Insolvency protection
- Yes
- In business since
- Not verified
- Online booking
- Yes
Pros
- Listed in the official register
- Customers' money is protected if the operator goes bust
- Holidays can be booked online
- Names its legal entity and registration number
Details Visit site ↗ 64% backed by facts
-
- In the official register
- Yes
- Insolvency protection
- Yes
- In business since
- 1912
- Online booking
- Not verified
Pros
- Listed in the official register
- Customers' money is protected if the operator goes bust
- Names its legal entity and registration number
- Booking terms can be read before you pay
Details Visit site ↗ 61% backed by facts
-
- In the official register
- Yes
- Insolvency protection
- Yes
- In business since
- 2000
- Online booking
- Not verified
Pros
- Listed in the official register
- Customers' money is protected if the operator goes bust
- Names its legal entity and registration number
- Booking terms can be read before you pay
Details Visit site ↗ 61% backed by facts
Not ranked yet: not enough verified data
These services are known to us, but we haven't verified enough facts to rank them fairly.
- Eurotours (58% backed by facts)
- Raiffeisen Reisen (42% backed by facts)
- sabtours (60% backed by facts)
How we calculate the Score
40%
Reliability
Listing in the national register of tour operators (or, in Germany, which has no licence, the commercial register), protection of customers' money if the operator becomes insolvent, the year the company started and membership of the national tour operators' association or fund.
25%
Transparency
Whether the website names the legal entity with its registration number, publishes the booking terms or contract before you pay, and gives an office address.
25%
Booking
Whether a holiday can be booked online on the operator's own website and paid for online, and the App Store rating of its own app where there is one.
10%
Destinations
How many countries or destinations the operator says it sells, counted only where the operator states the number itself.
How to choose a tour operator
Find the operator in the register
Your contract names the tour operator, even if you buy from an agent. Look that company up in the official register of your country and make sure the entry is current.
Check how your money is protected
If the operator goes bust, the guarantee or insolvency scheme pays for the return trip and refunds. Find out which scheme protects your booking and whether you receive a certificate or document confirming it.
Read the contract and booking terms
Before paying, read the cancellation charges, what happens if prices change, what is included (flights, transfers, meals, insurance) and the deadline for paying the balance.
Compare the same trip
Compare identical packages: the same hotel, room, meal plan, dates and flight times. A cheaper offer often has a worse flight, no transfer or a different room type.
Pay the operator or its official agent
Pay on the operator's own website or to an agent named in the contract, and keep the contract, receipts and vouchers. Check the web address before entering card details.
Know where to complain
First send a written claim to the operator. Then you can turn to the consumer protection authority, the association's dispute scheme or the guarantee scheme, and finally to court.
Frequently asked questions
Must an Austrian tour operator be registered?
Yes. To organise package holidays or offer linked travel arrangements, a business needs an authorisation to provide travel services (Ausübungsberechtigung für Reiseleistungen). It is entered in the Austrian trade information system GISA and anyone can look it up free of charge with a GISA query.
How is my money protected if an Austrian operator goes bust?
The operator must have insolvency protection that refunds the deposits and part payments you made, the necessary cost of bringing you home and, where needed, the cost of continuing the trip. The protection can be an insurance contract, a bank guarantee or a guarantee from a public-law body.
What is the Abwickler?
Every operator must name a claims handler: an office in Austria reachable 24 hours a day that travellers contact in an insolvency. It handles their claims and, where necessary, arranges the journey home.
Why do many operators take only a 20% deposit?
An operator with limited protection may take at most 20% of the price as a deposit, no earlier than eleven months before the trip, and the balance no earlier than 20 days before departure. With unlimited protection, covering all its package travel turnover, these limits on taking customers' money do not apply.