Actually, even in Austria there are several different dialects. Similar to germany, even though Austria is much smaller ;o). To take it further: Even in Vienna, were I am living at the moment, there are different dialects, depending on the district. But anyway, you cannot say, that Austrian dialect is similar to Bavarian dialect (never say this to an Austrian!!! ;oD ). Important to know: In Austria they use quite a lot of expressions not used in germany, and in some cases the gender of words is different (compared to german).

Austrian and Bavarian accenct don't differ much. I would not hear if it is Bavarian or Austrian. But as far as the prounciation is (in most cases) not the big problem for you. But the Problem might be the use of different words: Here is a nice list: http://www.bayrisch-lernen.de/wortschatz/wortschatz.html But don't be angry try to speak the Bavarian words and in most cases you will recognize that it sounds similar… Best Regards

Hello , Yes there is quiet a difference in accent , where the austrians accentuate their words in a specific way that is best recognized if you heard it, so it is recommendable to contact an austrian person and listen to his/her spoken german to get hold of that peculiar accent :)

oh yes it is different!! german is different in the noth of german till the south of germany and austria and Schweiz are also different. it is difficult to give an example because I do not speak German like they speak it in austria but I can understand it. I also moced trough Germany so I can understand everything but it is difficult to explain.

You'll also have to be aware of regional dialects like Plattduutsch, spoken in the area near the Netherlands.