No, an Austrian airport doesn't have a desk for travelers who thought they were going to Australia

CLAIM: Salzburg Airport in Austria has a help desk specifically for people who intended to fly to Australia.

AP'S ASSESSMENT: False. The European airport confirmed it does not have a desk for misguided tourists trying to get Down Under. The misconception stems from an advertisement for a technology company that ran on a baggage carousel at the airport, which joked about offering such a service.

THE FACTS: It's the kind of fun fact social media users just can't resist retweeting: So many travelers who intend to visit Australia are accidentally buying tickets to Austria that the country's second-largest airport has had to set up a special counter to redirect misguided tourists to the correct continent.

The notion of a help desk for planeloads of absent-minded holiday makers who set out for Sydney but wound up thousands of miles away in Salzburg has delighted the internet in recent days, with one post on X, formerly known as Twitter, racking up more than 18,000 likes as of Monday.

"If you're having a bad day, just remember that the airport in Salzburg, Austria has a counter for people who flew to Austria instead of Australia," reads another post on Instagram that had received more than 14,000 likes.

Some shared an image of a large sign that reads in part: "Sorry, this is Austria not Australia! Need help? Please press the button."

But is it true? The answer, as Australians would say, is "nah." Or "nein" if you happen to have found yourself in Austria.

This photo provided by Commend International shows an advertisement for the technology company at Salzburg Airport in Austria. (Commend International/Salzburg Airport via AP)

Salzburg Airport said on Monday in a Facebook post written in German that no such counter or button exists and that the sign seen in some of the posts is actually an advertisement for Commend, an Austrian communication and security technology company.

Indeed, the sign also includes the address of Commend's website and reads: "Commend provides Security and Communication. From Salzburg to the rest of the world. Even for the most unlikely of situations."

Wolfgang Peer, a spokesperson for Commend International, confirmed to The Associated Press that the advertisement was real, but had been discontinued in 2022.

"The ad was designed together with a Salzburg advertising agency," he wrote in an email. "The briefing was to initiate a direct dialog between the passengers who see the board and the Commend brand and its Intercom products. Above all, it was to contain a witty message, with a certain wink."

He added: "An Austrian very often answers in English to the question where he comes from with: 'From Austria, but there are no kangaroos in Austria.'"

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This is part of AP's effort to address widely shared misinformation, including work with outside companies and organizations to add factual context to misleading content that is circulating online. Learn more about fact-checking at AP.