Austrians don't like Czechs

According to an Austrian study, the number of Lower Austrians who are content with the open border to the Czech Republic has risen from 46 percent in 2000 to 65 percent today. But old prejudices still prevent many Austrians from visiting their neighbour, the conservative daily Lidové noviny writes: "A growing number of Czechs travel to the Alps, where they are becoming important customers. But that's not the way it works the other way round. Of all the foreign visitors to the Czech Republic the Austrians take only 11th place. Some historians point to prejudices left over from the days of the monarchy, while others say the Austrians simply prefer to travel to the Mediterranean. But that would also have to apply to the Germans, the foreigners who visit us the most. No, the scarcity of Austrian tourists really does have to do with prejudices that are very difficult to dislodge. Only when the Austrians start to flood into Prague and other cities the way the Germans do can we talk of an improvement in our relations."

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