Hardly any bookings

GTI fans really stay away from Lake Wörthersee

The GTI meeting attracts many car enthusiasts every year

(Bild: SOBE HERMANN )

GTI fans had announced their return to beautiful Carinthia. So far, however, there has been silence around Lake Wörthersee and Lake Faak. Accommodation providers and the economy now see confirmation that the end of the GTI meeting was the wrong decision.

Although the GTI meeting attracted around 200,000 visitors to Lake Wörthersee and Lake Faak every year, the "Gummi Gummi" spectacle was famously stomped into the ground. Although many residents and neighbors are happy about this, it is a disaster for tourism. Die-hard GTI fans had announced that they would remain loyal to Lake Wörthersee, but so far there has been silence around the two lakes.

Keutschach's mayor Gerhard Oleschko (Team Kärnten) reports only a few room reservations: "There won't be much. The valuable tourist meeting has been killed off. We can only hope that at least some people will still come - the economic damage cannot be denied. The business community could have used the revenue." The carved GTI in Reifnitz will probably remain a pilgrimage stone.

Peace and quiet for those living near the lakes
"At Lake Faak, most of the hotels will open a month later. The population may be enjoying the peace and quiet, but it's a disaster for the economy," emphasizes Johann Pressinger from the Arneitz site on Lake Faak.

Most of the hotels on Lake Faak are opening a month later. The absence of the GTI is a disaster for the economy.

Johann Pressinger, Arneitz-Gelände und Veranstaltungen

There was already little going on last year. There is currently total silence. "Maybe something will happen around Mother's Day. We can only wait and see," says Pressinger.

The police, who have had special GTI operations in recent years, also have no plans this year. We will have to wait and see whether GTI meetings will take place at all, for example whether something will open up at the hotspot petrol station in Selpritsch near Velden.

In any case, numerous accommodation and catering establishments are postponing the start of their season. Wholesalers are also expecting major losses.