Lower Austria does not have a very high population density by Central European standards - but this Austrian state completely surrounds the capital Vienna on all sides, so it is the perfect place to live for everybody who works in the city but prefers a more green environment or for city dwellers who like to visit their country houses every weekend. From small towns over villages to forests - in Lower Austria you can find all this, and always in the vicinity of the capital.
It would, however, be a mistake only to regard Lower Austria as a satellite to the capital - this ancient part of Austria has in fact a lot more to offer: History, for example, can be found in abundance in the state. Take Sankt Pölten, the state's capital, for instance.
Lower Austria isn't Tyrol, but it has quite a dazzling array of mountains, especially in its South-East, including the Schneeberg (in English: Snow Mountain), which rises 2076 meters high. For the Viennese it means the easiest way to see an alpine peak without a long journey, since Schneeberg is just a convenient one hour's drive away from the nation's capital. In Lower Austria landscapes a very diverse - besides mountains there are hills and almost flat plains - further, there are lakes and the Danube river, which gives he state a very special character.
Lower Austria shares a long borders with the Czech Republic and with Slovakia. Before 1989 this meant a certain economic stagnation, but in today's world with its open borders, there are no more limitations for international trade. The region has benefited greatly from this. With its economy booming and due to its close proximity to Vienna, it can surprise no-one that Lower Austria has developed a very energetic real-estate market that at present seems to hold great promise.
