Austria’s hatred for air conditioning is just cultural stubbornness

In Austria, the mere mention of installing an air conditioning system (AC) is often enough to elicit an eye roll or an environmental lecture. 

Official advice usually involves some variation of “keep blinds closed”, “place a wet towel in front of a fan”, or “open windows at night”, and I’ll admit, I’ve written quite a few stories sharing them. 

But with summer temperatures soaring to 38C in many Austrian cities, these suggestions increasingly feel like recommending herbal teas to someone with pneumonia: well-intentioned, but simply not enough.

A recent survey by market research institute Innofact showed that one in three Austrians are now considering installing an air conditioning unit. 

Around 12 percent of respondents already have a fixed system, while 20 percent rely on mobile units – often noisy, bulky, inefficient devices that nevertheless remain the only option for renters in Austria’s overheated apartments. 

READ ALSO: 8 cool places to work in Vienna on hot summer days

Households with children are far more likely to have an AC installed, pointing to a simple truth: for many families, especially those with babies, toddlers, elderly members, or chronically ill people, cooling is no longer a luxury. It is a health necessity.

Countless obstacles

Yet the obstacles to installing effective cooling systems in Austria remain immense. Renters require landlord approval to install split systems, which involves drilling into external walls to place a small outdoor unit. More often than not, landlords say no. 

They cite the aesthetic impact on the façade, noise concerns, or potential complaints from neighbours, even when, as in my case, the balcony is shielded and no one would see or hear it. Some neighbours oppose AC installations because of noise or the heat released from external units. Others simply don’t want to set a precedent in their building. 

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The result? Even in social housing, families bake inside apartments that turn into concrete ovens each summer.

READ ALSO: Austria ‘dangerously unprepared’ for increase in temperatures due to climate change

This stubborn refusal to adapt feels, at times, insane. 

I come from Brazil, where air conditioning is as standard as heating is in Austria. Of course, people are aware of environmental impacts, but there is also an understanding that sleep deprivation, heat exhaustion, dehydration, and cardiac strain are public health issues. 

Here in Austria, a recent Der Standard article suggested that the “shock temperature” between outdoor heat and an air-conditioned indoor environment can place stress on the human body, especially for the elderly, pregnant women, and children. But what about the health effects of enduring a 35C day or a sleepless 25C night indoors, day after day?

Another common argument against AC is the risk of mould and maintenance. Yes, filters need cleaning – but so do chimneys. Nobody bans wood-burning fireplaces because they require annual servicing; it is simply understood as part of owning such an appliance.

READ ALSO: Vienna’s free ‘cooling centre’ lets you avoid Austria’s stifling heat

Nobody can do it all

Then there are the environmental concerns. These are valid and important. Air conditioners use electricity (still partially sourced from fossil fuels in Austria) and release heat outdoors. The refrigerants they contain, if leaked, can contribute to global warming. But it is unfair to hold ACs alone accountable for climate change. 

In winter, many Austrians heat their homes to tropical temperatures, walking around in shorts and slippers indoors while it snows outside. Somehow, heating to 24C in winter is culturally accepted, but cooling to a bearable 26C in summer is deemed wasteful.

Environmental awareness is crucial, but moral purity is a luxury that few people can truly achieve. And, let’s be honest, the impact of a few uber-rich with their jets and yachts is much more relevant than our own small changes. As with every personal effort to ease the climate crisis, people can only do their best within their life cir***stances. 

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READ ALSO: How to avoid getting heat exhaustion in Austria’s scorching weather

I lived without an AC system for years – until I had a baby. I made it through my third trimester in Vienna’s oppressive summer heat, but seeing my infant sweat, and struggle to sleep was a different experience entirely. 

Every summer since 2023, I’ve emailed my landlord: “Please, let me install a split system. I will pay for it myself, I will leave it for the next tenant, I will use whichever certified company you require, the external unit will be hidden on our balcony.” The answer remains the same: “No, we do not want any façade changes.”

READ ALSO: Austrian heatwave: Six tips to get a better night’s sleep

Last year, we finally bought a mobile AC unit. It is large, loud, inefficient, dangerous, consumes more electricity, and requires us to leave a window open for the exhaust hose, letting hot air back inside. But it was the only option left. 

Every month, my husband and I browse property listings, searching for flats with cooling systems, existing split systems, or at least permission to install one.

Our blinds stay shut during the day, we keep the windows closed against hot air, ventilate thoroughly at night (except, of course, in my child’s room, where windows remain closed for safety reasons, as Austria is also stubbornly against safety nets on windows), and limit appliance use during peak heat. 

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However, none of these measures will be sufficient in every apartment, especially as climate change intensifies. 

A building’s position, design, insulation quality, and surrounding environment all contribute to its temperature. Not everyone lives in a leafy suburb with cross-breezes.

READ ALSO: How to keep your apartment cool in Austria this summer

Heat is a real threat

Public health agencies in Austria need to begin framing heat as the threat it is, just like extreme cold in winter. Heatwaves kill and they are becoming more frequent. They worsen chronic illnesses, strain cardiovascular systems, and they impact sleep, mental health, and child development. 

Austria prides itself on pragmatism, but its rejection of air conditioning has become cultural stubbornness. It is time to reframe the conversation from moral condemnation to practical adaptation. After all, most people seeking ACs are not asking to live in an artificial 20C bubble while the city bakes at 37C outside. 

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They simply want a safe and bearable indoor temperature that allows them to sleep, work, and care for their families without concern for their health.

READ ALSO: ‘We have to act fast’: Austria feels the heat from global warming